Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Remember, Vienna has several train stations, the biggest of which are undergoing an ex-
tensive renovation. Be sure you know which station your train departs from; see
here
for
the basic rundown, but always confirm locally. For general train information in Austria, call
051-717 (to get an operator, dial 2, then 2), or visit
www.oebb.at
.
From Vienna by Train to: Salzburg
(3/hour, 2.5-3 hours),
Hallstatt
(hourly, 4 hours,
change in Attnang-Puchheim),
Innsbruck
(almost hourly, 5 hours),
Budapest
(every 2
hours direct, 3 hours; more with transfers; may be cheaper by Orange Ways bus: 3-4/day, 3
hours,
www.orangeways.com
),
Prague
(6/day direct, 4.75 hours; more with 1 change, 5-6
hours; 1 night train, 6 hours),
Munich
(6/day direct, 4.25 hours; otherwise about hourly,
5-5.75hours,transferinSalzburgorPlattling),
Berlin
(9/day,mostwith1change,9.5hours,
some via Czech Republic; longer on night train),
Zürich
(nearly hourly, 9-10 hours, 1 with
changes in Innsbruck and Feldkirch, night train),
Ljubljana
(1 convenient early-morning
train,6hours;otherwise7/daywithchangeinVillach,Maribor,orGraz,6-7hours),
Kraków
(5/day, 8—10.5 hours with 1-3 changes, plus a night train),
Rome
(3/day, 12-13 hours, plus
severalovernightoptions),
Venice
(3/day,8-9.5hourswithchanges—somemayinvolvebus
connection; plus 1 direct night train, 12 hours),
Frankfurt
(6/day direct, 7 hours; plus 1
direct night train, 10 hours),
Paris
(7/day, 12-13 hours, 1-3 changes),
Amsterdam
(2/day,
11-12 hours, 1-2 changes).
ToPragueandBudapest:
Viennaisthespringboardforaquicktriptothesetwomagni-
ficent cities—it's three hours by train to Budapest and about five hours to Prague (including
a Prague night train, leaves Westbahnhof around 22:00). Americans and Canadians do not
need visas to enter the Czech Republic or Hungary. Purchase tickets at the station or at most
travel agencies.
Vienna International Airport, 12 miles from the center, has easy connections to Vienna's
various train stations (airport code: VIE, airport tel. 01/700-722-233,
Two different trains transport airport passengers into Vienna. Both go to the same point
in the city center: the Wien-Mitte Bahnhof, on the east side of the Ring (adjacent to the
Landstrasse U-Bahn stop, with a handy connection to Mariahilfer Strasse hotels and other
accommodationsneighborhoods).Themaindifferencesbetweenthemaretimeandcost.The
S-Bahn
commuter train (S-7 yellow line) works just fine and is plenty fast (€4, 2/hour, 24
minutes, buy 2-zone ticket from machines on the platform, price includes any bus or S- or
