Getaways from Vienna: day trips and destinations close by.

The CAT, by coach to Wien Mitte because of the works

There are direct flights to Vienna-Schwechat airport (VIE) from Madrid, Barcelona, Málaga, Alicante, Valencia, Palma, Gran Canaria, Tenerife South and Fuerteventura. Until the end of October 2027 the central section of the S-Bahn is closed for works and the CAT runs by non-stop coach to Wien Mitte, in about 21 minutes; from there, the metro. For the city itself, a day around the centre and a Sunday between Schönbrunn and the Prater.

Almost everything outside is done by train, and while that closure lasts it is worth checking on ÖBB which station yours leaves from. From Wien Hauptbahnhof and Meidling leaves the southern line to Mödling, Wiener Neustadt, Payerbach-Reichenau and the Semmering; the western line goes to St. Pölten, Melk and Salzburg, and via Attnang-Puchheim to the Salzkammergut; the REX 7 goes to Carnuntum and there is a regional train to Bratislava and Eisenstadt. Tulln is reached on the S40 from Franz-Josefs-Bahnhof, and Baden on the Badner Bahn from the Opera. A hire car only pays off for combining in one day places with no connection between them: the Marchfeld, the Kamptal or the Wolfgangsee.

Mödling and Burg Liechtenstein fit into a morning

Under an hour away is what fits into a morning: Mödling and Burg Liechtenstein (25 minutes), Baden and the Vienna Woods with Heiligenkreuz and Mayerling (35), the Roman city of Carnuntum and the Schiele museum in Tulln (40), the castles of the Marchfeld (45), the Esterházy palace in Eisenstadt (50) and, at 55, Göttweig and the wine cellars of the Kamptal and Lake Neusiedl, with Rust and Mörbisch.

Between one and two hours the day already means an early start: Bratislava, at 60 minutes, and at 75 the Wachau, the rack railway up the Schneeberg, the cable car on the Rax and the Semmering, with its mountain railway and the path beside the track.

The sensible thing, from two hours up, is to sleep away: Mariazell on the Mariazellerbahn (135), Graz and Salzburg with two nights (150), and the Salzkammergut with Hallstatt and the Dachstein, three and a half hours away. Salzburg and Hallstatt can also be done in a day, but those are days of five to seven hours on the train there and back.

No boats in the Wachau until spring

In winter, the city and the thermal baths: the Badner Bahn to Baden, with Beethoven and the sulphur baths, the Vienna Woods, which are recommended all year, and Mariazell, with its Advent lights in December. The boats of the Wachau, the Schneeberg and the Semmering do not run or are not recommended from November to March.

In spring and summer the water and mountain plans come out: the Danube boat between Krems and Melk sails from late March to early November, Lake Neusiedl is toured by bike, the Schneeberg and the Semmering are recommended from May to October and Salzburg has its summer version, with a boat on the Salzach and the water games of Hellbrunn. In July and August, the mountains are better than the centre of Vienna.

In autumn, wine: the Wachau harvest in September and October, the Heuriger of the Kamptal and a night at Schloss Hof and the Marchfeld, with the storks of Marchegg, recommended until October.

Three hours of Danube to Melk

• Without a car, in a day: the Wachau by train and boat. Train to Krems, three hours of Danube upriver to Melk and the abbey in the afternoon.
• By train, in a hurry: Hallstatt in a day. Railjet and Salzkammergutbahn, the boat from the station to the village and the salt mine; if you can, stay the two nights of the getaway.
• By car: Schloss Hof and Carnuntum, 50 minutes away: Prince Eugene's palace in the morning and the Roman city in the afternoon.

If you come from Spain with three nights, the stay in Vienna with opera and thermal baths brings together the essentials of the city.