Austria's public transport
system is fast, efficient and,
all things considered,
relatively cheap. Train and bus
routes tend to be fully
integrated, complementing each
other rather than competing. You
can reach most areas of the
country by public transport,
although rural villages may only
be served by one bus per day, or
just a couple per week. Getting
around on Sundays and public
holidays can be problematic:
train services are reduced and
many rural bus services cease
altogether.
Most parts of Austria -
including the big cities -
operate a zonal travelcard
( Zeitkarte or Netzkarte
) system covering all forms of
public transport in that
particular area. Ticket
durations and prices vary
considerably from one place to
another, and depend on how many
zones in a particular region
they cover, but it's safe to
assume that, if you're staying
in one area and are planning to
explore the outlying region by a
combination of rail and bus,
then it will be much cheaper to
buy a 24-hour ticket ( Tageskarte
) or seven-day ticket ( Wochenkarte
) for the relevant zone than to
buy tickets for each individual
journey. Travelcards of longer
duration (a month-long season
ticket is a Monatskarte )
are also available in most
regions. Travelcards can be
bought from both train and bus
stations, and often from tourist
offices, too. A 24-hour pass for
the whole of the Vorarlberg, for
example, costs öS160/?11.68),
and a seven-day pass öS310/?22.63.
There are also (cheaper) passes
for specific regions within the
Vorarlberg, and reductions for
children and over-60s.
Trains
Austrian Federal Railways or ÖBB
( Österreichische Bundesbahnen
, www.oebb.at ) run a punctual,
clean and comfortable rail
network, which includes most
towns of any size. Trains marked
"EC" or
"EN"...
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Buses
Austria's Bahnbus and Postbus
system fills most of the gaps
left by the rail network. As a
general rule, Bahnbus services
(run by the ÖBB) depart from
train stations, and Postbus
services (run by the post...
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Boats
Passenger boats ( Schiffarht )
ply many of Austria's lakes and
waterways, notably the
Salzkammergut and Carinthian
lakes and the stretch of the
Danube between Vienna and Linz.
Operating times may well be
seasonal (most lake steamers...
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Mountain transport
It's highly likely that at some
point during your stay, you'll
use transport to help you get to
the top of a mountain quickly. A
remarkable number of Austrian
summits can be accessed by
public transport, and the view
from the top is invariably
superb....
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Driving
Travelling by car ( Auto or PKW
) is very straightforward in
Austria. The roads are in
general impeccably maintained,
and there's an extensive system
of autobahns linking all main
cities and providing onward...
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Cycling
Austria is a bicycle-friendly
country, with cycling lanes in
all major towns. There are also
a large number of designated
cycle routes out in the
countryside; these include
stretches of pedestrian- and
cycle-only pathway, but more
often...
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more >>
