Vienna / Wien

Vienna is the national capital, largest city, and one of nine states of Austria. In 2001, the city center was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The historic center of Vienna is rich in architectural ensembles, including Baroque palaces and gardens, and the late-19th-century Ringstraße lined with grand buildings.

Vienna tourism website
Government website

Basic tourist information

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Vienna has a rich history as the capital city of the monarchy, and thus, there is an abundance of historical buildings and museums. The heart and historical city of Vienna, a large part of today’s *Innere Stadt (map), was a fortress surrounded by fields in order to defend itself from potential attackers.

Art Nouveau left many architectural traces in city. The Secession building (map), Karlsplatz Stadtbahn Station (map), and the Kirche am Steinhof (map) by Otto Wagner rank among the best known examples of Art Nouveau in the world.

⇒ Interactive city map • All sights from A to Z at a glance •  Brochures & Maps

Vienna’s principal park is the Prater (map) which is home to the Riesenrad, a Ferris wheel. The imperial Schönbrunn’s (map) grounds contain an 18th-century park which includes the world’s oldest zoo, founded in 1752.

The Hofburg (map) is the location of the Imperial Treasury (Schatzkammer), holding the imperial jewels of the Habsburg dynasty. The Sisi Museum (a museum devoted to Empress Elisabeth of Austria) allows visitors to view the imperial apartments as well as the silver cabinet.

A number of museums are located in the MuseumsQuartier (map), the former Imperial Stalls which were converted into a museum complex in the 1990s. It houses the Museum of Modern Art, commonly known as the MUMOK (Ludwig Foundation), the Leopold Museum (featuring the largest collection of paintings in the world by *Egon Schiele.

Directly opposite the Hofburg are the Kunsthistorisches Museum (map), which houses many paintings by old masters, ancient and classical artifacts, and the Naturhistorisches Museum (Natural History Museum, map).

There are a multitude of other museums in Vienna, including the Albertina (map), Museum of Art Fakes (map). Vienna Museum on Karlsplatz. There are also more than 100 art museums >> List of museums in Vienna (wiki)

The vast majority of shops, restaurants, and cafes are closed on Sunday. The Naschmarkt (map) is a permanent market for fruit, vegetables, spices, fish, meat, etc., from around the world. The city has many coffee and breakfast stores.

Viennese Christmas Markets (“Christkindlmarkt”, “Weihnachtsmarkt”) most are not so much for shopping as for eating and drinking, open from November 15 or 20 to December 23 or 24.

In 2009 the yellow tourist Vienna Ring Tram was established, which travels around the Ringstraße for €9 and has an audio guide in several languages. The famous ‘ring lines’ 1 and 2, however, will give you the exact same view (without, of course, the audio guide) and are covered by Vienna’s normal fare zone.

You can take tram 1 (bound for Prater-Hauptalle) from Oper to Schwedenplatz and take tram 2 (bound for Ottakring) from Schwedenplatz back to Oper.

Also сheck оut мore info about Vienna: Wikipedia • Wikivoyage • UNESCO

Regions & Cities of Austria

Page navigation: Basic information > Must to See & Do > Regions & Cities > Transport

Austria
::: Source: www.ezilon.com

Salzkammergut – the region is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site as “Salzkammergut Cultural Landscape“. Lower Austria, Wachau — inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2000 with the towns *Melk, *Spitz, *Dürnstein and Krems. Salzburg (state) – the most important forms of income are tourism and agriculture.

Tyrol – is a multi-national historical region in the heart of the Alps. South Tyrol, despite its German-speaking majority, has been part of Italy since the end of World War I. It makes up the northern portion of the alpine Italian autonomous province Trentino-Alto Adige with its capital in Bolzano / Bozen.

Vorarlberg – the state is almost entirely mountainous and enjoys one of the highest standards of living and income levels in Austria due to its proximity to Switzerland. It is also is home to an Alemanic alpine culture, quite different to the rest of Austria making it a special place in the country even to other Austrians.

For the most up-to-date information, see the official tourist resources.

Transport around Vienna

Page navigation: Basic information > Must to See & Do > Regions & Cities > Transport

Vienna has a good public transportation system > Wiener Linien • About Tickets. The underground is very efficient and will take you to within a few minutes walk of anywhere you are likely to want to visit > Subway Map.

⇒ Also сheck оut мore info: Public Transport (wien.gv.at) • WienMobil – the app for all routes in Vienna.

Eurolines Austria / ÖBB postbus.at / InterCityBus

Trains are the best and most common form of mass transportation in Austria. Comfortable and moderately priced trains connect major cities and many towns; buses serve less significant towns and lakes. The two forms of transport are integrated and designed to complement each other, and intercity coaches exist but don’t provide anywhere near the level of intercity rail service.

FlixBus are one of the leading long-distance providers in Europe and operate a network of around 1,700 stops within 28 countries. Within Austria, this coach provider operates a network of 34 stops which make it easy to travel even further.

RegioJet are a private Czech coach provider, who operate bus routes around the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and 90 other cities throughout Europe.

The railways are managed by the Austrian Federal Railways ÖBB. Wien Hauptbahnhof (map) – is the main railway station in Vienna. The station names of all stops in Vienna start with its German name “Wien“.  + Rail Europe

Wien Westbahnhof (map). The services from Salzburg run by the private company WestBahn terminate here. Apart from it, only regional trains serve the Westbahnhof. Westbahn also serves a few other otherwise regional stations such as Wien Mitte and Wien Praterstern.

Travelling times between major Austrian cities:

  • Vienna ⇔ Salzburg = less than 2,5 hours with ÖBB railjet
  • Salzburg ⇔ Innsbruck = less than 2 hours with ÖBB railjet
  • Innsbruck ⇔ Bregenz = starting from approx. 2,5 hours
  • Vienna ⇔ Graz = 2 hours 38 min.
  • Graz ⇔ Linz = starting from approx. 3 hours
  • Graz ⇔ Innsbruck = starting from approx. 6 hours

Austria has a well-developed road network which lets you reach your destination with ease. Find all pertinent information about rules of the road and answers to frequently asked questions.

⇒ “Vignette” toll sticker • Current traffic information • Austrian driving rules in detail • Electric filling stations in Austria • Hire a car

An excellent motorway, highway, and federal road network connects Austria with its neighbouring countries. All main border check points are open day and night. In general, Austrian traffic regulations and traffic signals are similar to those enforced in other European countries.

Vienna International Airport (map), located 18 km (11 mi) southeast of the city center. City Airport Train – non-stop airport transfer to Vienna! (+ St. Gallen-Altenrhein Airport)

Riverboats on the Danube include connections with Linz, Bratislava and Budapest, but are slower and more expensive than other options.

LOD – Run a fast hydrofoil between Vienna and Bratislava May–October with up to two daily departures.

Twin City Liner – A fast catamaran between Vienna and Bratislava March–December with up to four daily departures.

Mahart Passnave – Operate a fast hydrofoil between Vienna and Budapest May–October with daily departures during the peak season.

Video source: Vienna

Links to additional resources with useful information for planning your trip.