Vienna Transport and things to do there

[STEVIEBOY1]

Hi. I Am thinking of having a long weekend in Vienna towards the end of March. I have been checking out how to get to the city centre from the Airport and also rover style travel cards for 3 days. I have found one online for about 72 hours which includes all 3 train services. Obb. S7 and CAT. Plus what would appear to be for all train, tram, bus and metro. Does anyone know if that would be the best value ticket? I can not work out how far one could travel out from the city. I should like to have a bit of a play on the trains if Possible. Is there a city transport desk in the airport like these is in Berlin Tegal?

I have also been advised to visit Grinzing and Nussforf in the evenings for an authentic meal/bars. Has anyone any knowledge of these areas which are near each other on the outskirts of the city.

Many thanks. Steve.

 

[class387]

Don't bother with the CAT - it's no quicker. A standard ticket for 4.20 euros can be used on the S7 to Wien Mitte as well as Railjet services to the Hauptbahnhof or Meidling.

Went to Grinzing when I visited in 2018 - it's lovely. From Grinzing you can also get the 38A to the Kahlenburg for a good view of Vienna.

As for trains, there is diesel haulage as well as some old 5047 railcars on the line to Marchegg/Bratislava - Hausfeldstrasse is the last stop inside Vienna. The old 4020 EMUs operate suburban services and don't have much time left, though the new Desiros are also very nice. It is also very worthwhile to try and ride an old E1/E2 tram (E2s can be found on the Ringstrasse routes and also to Grinzing).

 

[Struner]

& on a different note: it’s a Beethoven year! There’s a very fine museum dedicated to him.

 

[Alfonso]

Vienna is very pretty, a trip round the shottenring on tram D? Will show you lots of very grand Hapsburg architecture, the Praterpark and it's famous big wheel can be fun, the centre is nice an full of gelato shops, and the hundertwasser house is possibly worth a look. Baden, a bit to the South is also pretty apparently

 

[70014IronDuke]

..
I have also been advised to visit Grinzing and Nussforf in the evenings for an authentic meal/bars. Has anyone any knowledge of these areas which are near each other on the outskirts of the city... .

Grinzing + bars, authentic? Ha ha ha! Maybe in 1980 you could still call it authentic. I wouldn't say so today. There again, I suppose you could say authenticity moves with the times. I'd say you could find far more 'authentic' Heurigern in the more obscure (for visitors) Bezirk such as Liesing or Schwechat. But these would take some searching out. Grinzing is, I suppose, where the slightly more adventurous tourist goes. But the stress is on 'slightly'. There again, you could say there are one or two authentic places in VII and VIII, within the Gurtel.

 

[Aictos]

I’m going later this year for 4 days so any idea what’s the best ticket to get for travel within the Greater Vienna area?

By that I also am including Bratislava but I’ve been told that there’s not much in Bratislava?

 

[Taunton]

I did exactly this a year ago (it was snowing lightly - wonderful), finishing up a business trip at Vienna airport on Friday afternoon I stayed over to the Sunday. It was my first time there since Interrailing through there in the 1970s.

The 2 day (in my case) unlimited ticket is actually 48 hours, purchased at 1900 on Friday it gave me that evening, plus all Saturday, and Sunday until the flight left. It includes the regular OBB train out to the airport. Yes, there is an information counter in the terminal, at least in the Austrian Airlines one - there are two, both connected to the station beneath. I bought my ticket from the machine, typical middle-European, large and complex but straightforward and with English as an option.

Walk inside the Ring, that's the old city with plenty of historic buildings etc to see in a short interval. It has all the grand coffee/cake cafes, streetcorner sausage stands, and pleasant restaurants for meals that you would hope for.

There's a tram museum, the Remise, at the end of line 18, in an old depot, only open Sundays (so good for weekend visits), but they seem to have one of everything from past times. https://www.wienerlinien.at/eportal3/ep/channelView.do/pageTypeId/66533/channelId/-51032#72012

I found line U6 interesting, unlike the rest of the system it doesn't have typical European metro trains but strings of tram-like vehicles. It's also driven extremely aggressively departing and arriving at all the intermediate stops. When I went there in 1975 it was similar, with 1940s tram-type vehicles. I took it to Neue Donau station and walked one station back to Handelskai along the footpath parallel to the line across the Danube bridge.

Everyone tells you the CAT from Vienna airport is a waste of time and money, and it seems to operate mostly empty. The regular OBB on the same tracks is more frequent. The trains from there do operate to two separate routes across Vienna.

If you have never been to old socialist Eastern Europe then Bratislava, onetime Czechoslovakia, nowadays capital of the Slovak Republic, is only an hour away by train. No border controls. Traditional Tatra tramcars still operate (probably not for much longer), and it has its own charm.

 

[30907]

By that I also am including Bratislava but I’ve been told that there’s not much in Bratislava?

IIRC there's a day returj fare for about EUR10 - well worth it. The city centre is not particularly "Ostblock" though the suburbs (and the dual carriageway that slices right through the old Jewish quarter!) are. Trams are cheap.

I have also been advised to visit Grinzing and Nussforf in the evenings for an authentic meal/bars. Has anyone any knowledge of these areas which are near each other on the outskirts of the city. Many thanks. Steve.

Grinzing looks v touristy. We changed onto the bus up to the Kahlenberg and walked downhill through the vineyards, stopping at a small Weingut where the food was simple but excellent and they didnt rip us off wine-wise, and picked up a bus in Nussdorf. In daylight obviously!

 

[Mag_seven]

By that I also am including Bratislava but I’ve been told that there’s not much in Bratislava?

IIRC there's a day returj fare for about EUR10 - well worth it. The city centre is not particularly "Ostblock" though the suburbs (and the dual carriageway that slices right through the old Jewish quarter!) are. Trams are cheap.

There used to be a day return ticket from Vienna that included a day pass on the local transport in Bratislava. I don't know if it still exists though[1]. There are two rail routes between the two so you can go out one route and return on the other. I stayed in Bratislava for a couple of nights last year and there is plenty to see including riding on the trams if you like that sort of thing.

[1] EDIT:

Ticket still exists:

https://www.oebb.at/en/regionale-angebote/ueberregionale-angebote/bratislava-ticket

Travel inexpensively to Slovakia with the Bratislava-Ticket (known as Euregio Slovakia). The ticket can be used with all public urban transport trains.

 

[dutchflyer]

Note that the 2 raillines have different endstations in BL-one is in that high rise area south of river, the other at the main (Hlavny).
There are also 3 different buscompanies running 3 or 4 buses/hr, some with stops at airport, with much lower fares. The day return/excurs is not 10 eur from Wien, as prices from Wien are much higher as from BL.
Note that city Wien is 1 big zone and there are ample ticketing options-see vor.at or wienerlinien. The AIrport is OUT of this zone and requires either an additional 1 zone extra ticket both ways, or you can get a full 2 zone ticket or daypass-thats more costly. WESTbahn private trains are excempt from all that. Besides the transpo only passes there are also more expensive passes that include entries to musea etc. general sites like TA=tripadvisor are likely best for advice about that.

 

[Austriantrain]

I would suggest a 72-Hour-Ticket, which at approx 17 Euros is really good value. It is valid on all public transport within Vienna including rail services (except WESTbahn). However, it is NOT valid from or to the Airport!

I would not recommend using CAT. It is not worth the extra cost.

Instead, buy your 72-Hour-Ticket either online or at a ticket machine at the airport. Then buy an additional ticket from the airport to „Schwechat“ which is the City limit. From there, your 72-Hour-Ticket will be valid. Same on the Return (provided you are still within the 72 hours).

Either coming from or going to the Airport, I suggest you take a RailJet service to the main station, Hauptbahnhof, so you can see the Station. Exactly the same tickets as described above are valid.

 

[SquireBev]

Fiancé and I did three days in Vienna last summer - happily we arrived on a Monday so were able to get a weekly ticket (Wochenkarte?) which covered the buses, U-Bahn, trams etc - it worked out about the same as a 72-hour pass, but they're only valid Monday to Monday I believe.

I'd absolutely recommend a trip to Bratislava, as others have mentioned. It's only about an hour each way, and very cheap, but be prepared for utter chaos on the way back as the main station in Bratislava hasn't expanded to keep up with demand, so there's a lot of shunting and confusion, with platforms not being announced until the last minute.

In Vienna itself, the trams are a great way to get about. There's a "heritage" tram that does circular tours of the Ringstrasse for an extra fee - ignore it. The 1 and 2 services between them cover the entire Ringstrasse and can be used to sight-see. Either the 1 or 2, I forget which, also goes out to the Prater, the huge park between the Donaukanal and the Donau itself. If fairground rides are your sort of thing, then give the Prater a visit.

 

[Austriantrain]

A Wochenkarte is indeed even better value than the 72-Hour-ticket but geared towards commuters, hence valid from monday to sunday.

Tram nr 1 goes to the Prater. However, for the Ferry Wheel (Riesenrad), Underground 1 or 2 are better options (it is a nice and not very long walk from the terminus of line 1 though).

 

[supervalkoinen]

If you have time and fancy a full day out of the city on some lesser-travelled tracks, you could do a circular around the lake, Neusiedlersee, crossing into and out of Hungary, partly on Hungarian trains. It's some time since I've been there but I'm sure Austrian Rail in Vienna could give you info.

As it's a big vineyard area, a lot of the villages near the lake are good for wine cellars, usually with decent food, at more reasonable prices than their Vienna counterparts.

 

[30907]

I'd absolutely recommend a trip to Bratislava, as others have mentioned. It's only about an hour each way, and very cheap, but be prepared for utter chaos on the way back as the main station in Bratislava hasn't expanded to keep up with demand, so there's a lot of shunting and confusion, with platforms not being announced until the last minute.

The day ticket is EUR16, sorry.
Fortunately the Vienna train usually leaves from the platform by the main buildings, and is distinctively an OeBB diesel loco plus driving trailer set that incorporates one or two Slovak coaches. There is also a lunchtime IC you can use at no extra cost, complete with ZSSK restaurant car. Inconveniently timed for a day trip though!

 

[Austriantrain]

but I'm sure Austrian Rail in Vienna could give you info.

Of course, anytime.

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

I once did a day trip from Vienna by train through the Danube gorge area via Krems, as far as Spitz an der Donau.
Very nice rustic riverside wine area - the Wachau.
The river is much more scenic there than in Vienna.

I see from various tourist sites that the railway west of Krems is now a heritage operation, the Wachaubahn.
This year it runs weekends from March 21 and daily from May 30, from Krems via Spitz to Emmersdorf.
https://www.wachaubahn.at/en/timetable-2020-1

The trains from Vienna to Krems leave from Franz Josefs Bahnhof taking just over an hour.
What drew me to the area was remembering that the ruined Dürnstein Castle, between Krems and Spitz, was where our Richard the Lion Heart was locked up by the Austrians for a large ransome, while on his way back from the Crusades.
Such is the impact of school history lessons!

As an alternative, it's possible to travel over the Semmering Pass without too much effort - using the RailJets heading for Graz/Klagenfurt.
It's about 90 minutes from Vienna Hbf/Meidling to Mürzzuschlag on the south side of the pass, and a bit further to the larger Bruck an der Mur.
It's a remarkable half-hour ride over/through the pass, to be bypassed in a few years' time (a new base tunnel is under construction).
Don't try to get to Simmering by mistake (a drab eastern suburb of Vienna, with vast railway yards)!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semmering_railway

 

[gordonthemoron]

Vienna has 3 Flak Towers, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flak_tower each with their own Control Towers. The Control Tower in city centre is now an aquarium https://www.haus-des-meeres.at/

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

Many thanks for all you great information, tips and suggestions, I shall go through them all later and decide what to do.

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

I would suggest a 72-Hour-Ticket, which at approx 17 Euros is really good value. It is valid on all public transport within Vienna including rail services (except WESTbahn). However, it is NOT valid from or to the Airport!

I would not recommend using CAT. It is not worth the extra cost.

Instead, buy your 72-Hour-Ticket either online or at a ticket machine at the airport. Then buy an additional ticket from the airport to „Schwechat“ which is the City limit. From there, your 72-Hour-Ticket will be valid. Same on the Return (provided you are still within the 72 hours).

Either coming from or going to the Airport, I suggest you take a RailJet service to the main station, Hauptbahnhof, so you can see the Station. Exactly the same tickets as described above are valid.

Thank you for that, 17 Euros for 72 hours sounds much better than the 46 Euro Vienna pass that I found on one of the websites. If I bought the 17 Euro ticket and extra ticker to Schwechat, would I then only be able to use the S7 line which stops at Schwechat or would it still be valid on the Railjet train which I don't think stops at Schwechat?

 

[Spoorslag '70]

Thank you for that, 17 Euros for 72 hours sounds much better than the 46 Euro Vienna pass that I found on one of the websites. If I bought the 17 Euro ticket and extra ticker to Schwechat, would I then only be able to use the S7 line which stops at Schwechat or would it still be valid on the Railjet train which I don't think stops at Schwechat?

You can use the Railjet services, your train does not have to stop at Schwechat.

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

You can use the Railjet services, your train does not have to stop at Schwechat.

Brilliant, thank you.

 

[Austriantrain]

You can use the Railjet services, your train does not have to stop at Schwechat.

Be careful to validate your 72-Hour-Ticket (and additional ticket) before stepping on board the train at the airport though (if you buy from the machine, you will probably have a choice to have it issued already validated and I think if you buy online, you will have to specify the exact time from whereon you want it to be valid). On the S-Bahn, penalty fares are quite expensive.