Quick answer: The cheapest way from Vienna Airport to the city centre is the ÖBB train: Railjet or REX7 reach Wien Hauptbahnhof (U1 metro) in 15 to 20 minutes, and a ticket that includes Vienna’s public transport costs roughly 4 to 5.50 euros depending on the source. Important until the end of October 2027: Vienna’s S-Bahn trunk line is closed, the S7 ends at St. Marx, Wien Mitte is not served – and the City Airport Train runs as the CAT bus (14.90 euros, 21 minutes). Five Vienna Airport Lines buses (11 euros) go to Westbahnhof, Schwedenplatz, Karlsplatz, Praterstern and Donauzentrum. Updated 9 November 2026, sources below.
It is 10:40 pm, the flight from Lisbon has landed, the baggage belt in Terminal 3 hums, and behind the sliding doors Vienna’s November air is waiting: eight degrees, a little fog, the smell of wet asphalt. Taxis to the left, the green CAT buses straight ahead, the platforms downstairs. This is the moment you decide whether the trip home or to your hotel costs 4 euros or 40 – and whether it takes 15 minutes or 50, because you boarded a train that no longer stops where it used to.
We live in Vienna and ride this route several times a year. In this article: every way from Vienna Airport to the city with price, journey time and frequency, what the big rail closure of 2026/2027 means for you in practice, which option suits which hotel district, the traps in the arrivals hall – and a checklist so you know what to do before the plane even lands.
Vienna International Airport (Schwechat) lies about 18 kilometres south-east of the centre. You have four kinds of transport: ÖBB trains (Railjet, REX7, S7), the CAT bus, the Vienna Airport Lines buses, and taxis or transfers. This is how the figures look in November 2026:
| Transport | Destination in Vienna | Journey time | Frequency | Adult single fare |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Railjet / Intercity (ÖBB) | Hauptbahnhof (U1), on to Meidling (U6) | 15 min to Hbf, approx. 26 min to Meidling | every 30 min, from Hbf 5:42–22:42 | ÖBB/VOR ticket incl. Vienna public transport: approx. €4.10–5.50 depending on source |
| REX7 (ÖBB) | Hauptbahnhof (U1), Meidling (U6) | approx. 20 min | up to 4 per hour | same fare as Railjet |
| S7 (ÖBB) | only to St. Marx (trams 18/71, bus 74A) | 18 min to St. Marx | approx. every 30 min | same fare as Railjet |
| CAT bus (replacing the City Airport Train) | Wien Mitte/Landstraße (U3, U4) | approx. 21 min | every 12 min (7 am–7 pm), otherwise every 15 min | €14.90 (return €24.90), reduced €7 |
| Vienna Airport Lines (5 bus routes) | Hbf/Westbahnhof, Schwedenplatz, Karlsplatz, Praterstern, Donauzentrum | 22–40 min | every 30 min (line 3 hourly) | €11 (return €20), children 6–14: €6 |
| Taxi / fixed-price transfer | door to door | 20–40 min depending on traffic | any time | pre-booked approx. €25–42 according to the CAT comparison; metered fares depend on traffic |
Sources: ÖBB (airport travel pages, trunk-line closure leaflet, “Next stop: the whole world” leaflet, September 2026), Vienna Airport, cityairporttrain.com, wien.info, Vienna Airport Lines – as of 9 November 2026. Children under 6 travel free on ÖBB, under 15 on the CAT bus.
The table already tells you the most important thing: the train is three times cheaper than the CAT bus and faster than any bus. So why do so many people pay 14.90 euros? Because the situation changed in September 2026 – and that is what we explain first.
Since 7 September 2026 Vienna’s S-Bahn trunk line between Wien Hauptbahnhof/St. Marx and Wien Praterstern has been completely closed – expected to last until the end of October 2027. The stations Rennweg and Wien Mitte/Landstraße are not served by any train during this period. That is exactly where the S7 from the airport used to terminate, and exactly where the City Airport Train went. In practice:
If you remembered “S7 to Wien Mitte, then U4” from before the closure, you will end up in St. Marx in 2026/2027 and wonder what happened. The good news: during the closure ÖBB tickets are also valid on the U1 between Hauptbahnhof and Praterstern, on tram O and on tram 18 to Stadion – so your ÖBB ticket takes you further than you think. And from the timetable change on 13 December 2026 the REX7 runs every 30 minutes all day and takes over the night S-Bahn role on weekend nights.
Sounds complicated? It is not, once you know one rule: Hauptbahnhof instead of Wien Mitte. With that rule the train is the best option – and this is how it works.
The platforms are directly below the terminal, signposted “Bahn/Train”. At the ticket machine upstairs or in the ÖBB app you buy a ticket “Flughafen Wien – Wien”: it is valid to Hauptbahnhof or Meidling and for onward travel by metro, tram and bus with Wiener Linien right to your front door. Vienna Airport quotes “from 4.10 euros”, wien.info calculates 5.50 euros (2.30 euros airport to city boundary plus a Vienna ticket); the fare table in the ÖBB leaflet from September 2026 shows 2.60 euros for the section to the city boundary. You see the exact amount in the app before you buy – in any case it is well under a third of the CAT fare.
If you already hold a Vienna annual pass, a Klimaticket or a Vienna City Card, you only need the short section airport to city boundary (2.30 euros according to wien.info, 2.60 euros according to the ÖBB leaflet 09/2026) – the airport lies outside Vienna’s core zone, so a normal Vienna single ticket (2026: 3 euros digital, from 1 January 2027 3.10 euros digital or 3.30 euros on paper) is not enough on its own.
The Railjet runs non-stop from the airport to Hauptbahnhof: departures from the airport 6:33 to 23:03 plus one at 0:02, towards the airport from Hauptbahnhof 5:42 to 22:42, every half hour. Journey time 15 minutes, then another 26 minutes on to Meidling. You board a long-distance train with power sockets, luggage racks and Wi-Fi – with the same ticket that is valid on the S-Bahn. Just watch the display: some Railjets heading west stop at Hauptbahnhof and continue to Linz, Salzburg or Innsbruck. Coming from Salzburg, by the way, you sit on one train for 2 hours 49 minutes straight to the airport.
The REX7 takes about 20 minutes to Hauptbahnhof, stops at Schwechat, Kaiserebersdorf and Simmering (U3) on the way and runs up to four times an hour. If it leaves before the next Railjet: take it, the time difference is minimal. From Hauptbahnhof the U1 takes you to Stephansplatz in five minutes.
For decades the S7 was the classic: every 30 minutes, cheap, to Wien Mitte and on to Praterstern and Floridsdorf. Until the end of October 2027 it terminates at Wien St. Marx – a station in the commercial part of the 3rd district, 18 minutes from the airport. From there:
For most travellers this is a detour; the S7 only makes sense if you are staying in Simmering, St. Marx or along tram 71 anyway. Your ÖBB ticket remains valid on these connections. If you land late in the evening, check in the ÖBB app whether the REX7 or the S7 is running – from the December timetable change the REX7 takes over the weekend night services.
The City Airport Train was the fast, expensive train to Wien Mitte. During the closure it runs as a bus: Setra coaches with 57 seats, Wi-Fi, USB ports and luggage space, non-stop between the stop right in front of Terminal 3 and Wien Mitte/Landstraße (Marxergasse 1b). Journey time about 21 minutes, depending on traffic on the A4 motorway. Frequency: from Wien Mitte every 15 minutes from 5:30 am, every 12 minutes between 7 am and 7 pm, then every 15 minutes until midnight; last buses 23:15 from Wien Mitte and 23:37 from the airport.
Fare: 14.90 euros single, 24.90 euros return (valid for six months when bought online). With a Klimaticket, Vienna annual pass, ÖBB Vorteilscard or VOR Top-Jugendticket you pay 7 euros per direction, children under 15 travel free. Tickets are sold online, at ticket machines or from the CAT staff at the bus. The CAT is not part of the VOR fare system, so you need a separate ticket for the metro afterwards.
When is it worth it? If your hotel is in the 3rd district or on the U4 line (Landstraße, Stadtpark, Schwedenplatz, Schottenring), if you travel with children under 15 – two adults then pay 29.80 euros for the whole family – or if you hold one of the discount cards. For everyone else, the train to Hauptbahnhof is the better choice. And then there is the option that takes you almost anywhere without changing.
The yellow-green Vienna Airport Lines buses leave from the bus stop in front of the arrivals area. Since 5 September 2026 there are five routes:
| Line | Stops in Vienna | Journey time | Frequency & hours from the airport |
|---|---|---|---|
| VAL 1 | Hauptbahnhof (south entrance, U1) → Westbahnhof (U3, U6) | 40 min | every 30 min, 4:30–1:00 |
| VAL 2 | Morzinplatz/Schwedenplatz (U1, U4) | 22 min | every 30 min, 4:15–0:15 |
| VAL 3 | Donaumarina, Stadion, Krieau/Messe, Kaisermühlen VIC, Donauzentrum (U1) | 39 min | hourly, 6:00–21:30 |
| VAL 4 (new) | Karlsplatz (U1, U2, U4) | 26 min | every 30 min, 4:30–1:00 |
| VAL 5 (new) | Praterstern (U1, U2) | 28 min | every 30 min, 4:42–1:12 |
Source: wien.info / Vienna Airport Lines, November 2026. Fares: €11 single, €20 return; children 6–14 €6 or €11, under 6 free. Tickets online, from the driver (cash) or at the machines at the airport and Westbahnhof.
The buses have Wi-Fi, USB charging and room for suitcases. Their advantage is the direct stop: if you are staying at Schwedenplatz, Karlsplatz or near the UN complex, you are dropped at the door without changing. Their disadvantage: 11 euros for a route the train covers for a fraction, and the journey time depends on traffic on the eastern motorway – on a Friday afternoon, 22 minutes to Schwedenplatz quickly become 35. For early flights, though, the buses are gold: line 2 leaves Morzinplatz from 3:30 am, line 1 leaves Westbahnhof from 3:00 am for the airport.
Taxis wait outside both terminals. A ride to the centre takes 20 to 40 minutes depending on traffic. In its own comparison the CAT quotes pre-booked airport taxis and Uber at “from approx. 25 to 42 euros, depending on the provider” – fixed prices you know before you set off. With the meter at the taxi rank, the fare depends on route, time of day and congestion; ask for a flat rate before getting in or book in advance. For three or four people with luggage, a taxi is often cheaper than three CAT tickets (44.70 euros) – but not cheaper than the train (around 15 euros for three people).
Uber and Bolt pick up at designated meeting points; the price is shown in the app, peak times cost more. If you land after midnight, the taxi – alongside the Railjet at 0:02 and the Airport Lines night services (line 1 from Westbahnhof hourly until 2:30 am towards the airport) – is the realistic option anyway.
If you have a few days after arriving, our Vienna things to do gives you the plan for the first 48 hours – and Vienna hidden gems the places where we eat and walk ourselves. In December, add a look at the Vienna Christmas markets 2026. But first, the traps we see in the arrivals hall every year.
All avoided? Then only one question remains: how do you get to Vienna in the first place – and what awaits travellers without an EU passport at the border.
Vienna-Schwechat is Austria’s largest airport with direct flights from all over Europe, North America, the Middle East and Asia. Compare fares on Kiwi.com (advertisement) – it also shows connections with a stopover, which are often much cheaper on intercontinental routes. From Linz, Salzburg, Graz and, recently, Klagenfurt via the Koralm railway, the Railjet takes you directly to the airport without changing; from Germany you reach the airport via Hauptbahnhof.
Austria is a member of the EU and the Schengen area. EU citizens need only a valid passport or national ID card, with a separate document for each child; no visa is required. All official entry information for Austria is published by the Austrian Foreign Ministry at bmeia.gv.at and the Interior Ministry at bmi.gv.at. Travellers without an EU passport – from the UK, the USA or Switzerland, for example: since 12 October 2025 the Entry/Exit System EES is being rolled out step by step at Schengen external borders (biometric registration instead of stamps), and the ETIAS travel authorisation is due to start in the last quarter of 2026 according to the EU, at a fee of 20 euros. The only official address for this is travel-europe.europa.eu – as of November 2026, check before you travel.
Warning: there are intermediary websites that charge many times the fee for ETIAS or for so-called “entry permits”, or collect money for something that does not even exist yet. We fell for one of these sites ourselves once – since then: official sites only, type the address yourself, never click through an ad. In our guide you will find all official links as QR codes; the Frangipani guide “Vienna like a local” then takes you through the city the way we live it.
The train: Railjet, REX7 or S7 with the ÖBB/VOR ticket including Vienna public transport – roughly 4.10 to 5.50 euros depending on the source (November 2026), children under 6 free. The Railjet takes 15 minutes to Hauptbahnhof.
Not as a train. Because of the trunk-line closure from 7 September 2026 until expected end of October 2027, the CAT runs as a bus between Terminal 3 and Wien Mitte: about 21 minutes, 14.90 euros, every 12 to 15 minutes.
Until the end of October 2027 at Wien St. Marx. Continue by tram 18 or 71 or bus 74A to Landstraße station (U3/U4). Wien Mitte and Rennweg are not served.
No, the airport lies outside the core zone. You additionally need the ÖBB/VOR ticket airport to city boundary (2.30 euros according to wien.info, 2.60 euros according to the ÖBB leaflet 09/2026). On the CAT bus, annual pass and Klimaticket holders get the reduced fare of 7 euros.
15 minutes non-stop on the Railjet, about 20 minutes on the REX7. The Railjet leaves the airport every 30 minutes from 6:33 to 23:03, plus one departure at 0:02.
The CAT comparison quotes pre-booked airport taxis and Uber at around 25 to 42 euros depending on the provider (November 2026). At the taxi rank the meter applies and the fare depends on traffic – better agree a flat rate beforehand.
Passend dazu:
Want more? Once you reach Hauptbahnhof, Stephansplatz is five minutes away – and from there it is straight into our Vienna hidden gems. Flying on from Vienna? Read Lisbon Airport to the city centre or Bangkok Airport to the city first – same logic, different traps.
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