Vienna and Salzburg: Best of Austria 4 Day Itinerary
Traveled in November 2018
Austria may not be the first place that comes to mind when planning a trip that makes it out of the group chat, but it should be! My friends and I remember Austria fondly as the country with the best cafes, most festive Christmas markets, and most leisurely sightseeing. It’s really perfect for a friend trip because there are so many opportunities to slow down and enjoy each others’ company. We spent hours in conversation over cake and coffee in gorgeous cafes. Wandering through museums and palaces turned into bonding moments too. Vienna and Salzburg are delightfully walkable, and girls know walks make for the best talks. If you’re craving culture, charm, and a trip that feels equal parts aesthetic and meaningful, here’s a 4 day Vienna and Salzburg itinerary to copy and paste into the group chat.
Vienna & Salzburg Itinerary
When to Go
There really is no bad time to visit Austria. We visited in the winter for the Christmas Markets and it was absolutely magical. The weather is perfect in spring and fall for sightseeing and with fewer crowds. And in the summer, it’s warm enough to take advantage of all the nature and outdoor activities. It’s one of the unicorn travel destinations where there is a reason to visit year round.
How to Get There
The airport in Vienna (airport code VIE) is the main international airport in Austria. However, it may be cheaper to into Munich (airport code MUC) because it’s a bigger international airport. Munich is only a 1.5 hour train ride to Salzburg or short 1 hour flight to Vienna.
Where to Stay
I am all about staying in the most central locations in the old town for charm or close to the train station for convenience to save time on sightseeing.
In Vienna, staying in the inner town is the way to go for both old town charm and convenience. Our picks for hotels in the inner town are:
- Pension Sacher – Apartments am Stephansplatz ($$) – where we stayed and LOVED it!
- Nikolai Homes ($$)
In Salzburg, the best areas to stay are either the old town or across the river near Mirabell Gardens. Salzburg is pretty compact and walkable, so both areas are convenient for sightseeing. We stayed in the Mirabell Gardens area and enjoyed being just a short walk away from the hustle and bustle of old town.
- Boutiquehotel am Dom ($$) – Old Town
- Apartments Salzburg – Bergstrase ($$) – Mirabell Gardens area
Read our guide to the best areas to stay in Vienna and Salzburg for all the details on what we love about these hotel picks!
How to Get Around
Austria is very well connected by train, so travel between cities is a breeze. One of the things I love about Vienna and Salzburg is how walkable they are. And the palaces that are a bit outside of the old town are still easy to reach since they are just a subway or tram ride away. Although we didn’t have to use the public transportation network much, it is very extensive.
Show Me the Money
Austria is part of the European Union, so they use the Euro as their currency. Credit cards were widely accepted, so we mostly relied on our no-foreign-transaction-fee credit card (use my contact form to request a referral for Chase, AmEx, or Capital One for bonus points!). Always choose to pay in the local currency rather than USD for a better exchange rate. We did withdraw a small amount of cash just in case. If withdrawing any cash, look for ATMS run by the local banks and always choose to withdraw the amount in the local currency rather than USD for a better exchange rate.
Saving tip: to avoid ATM fees (from the foreign bank and your bank), look for a checking account that offers ATM fee reimbursements. I can personally recommend the Schwab investors checking account and the Betterment checking account for this purpose.
How to Stay Connected
Because we took this trip before e-sims were commonly used, we bought tourist prepaid sim cards for our cell phones during this trip. Orange and Vodaphone are two popular cell phone companies in Europe and sell prepaid tourist sim cards that can be used throughout Europe.
However, nowadays we always use an e-sim from Airalo when traveling abroad.
The e-sim is the cheapest way to get international cell phone data. We had a great experience using Airalo to purchase an e-sim on our trip to Canada, our trip to Switzerland, and our trip to Japan. The downside is that you only have data and no phone service when using Airalo e-sims, so it’s a good option if you don’t anticipate needing to make phone calls.
- The Airalo website has great tutorials and I also watched this Youtube video for more installation tips.
- We usually start the installation process at home to load the e-sim into our phones, and then once we land at our destination we turn off our US e-sim and turn on the international e-sim.
Airalo offers local e-sims for specific countries or regional e-sims for all of Europe.
- Get the Austria Airalo e-sim here or the regional Europe Airalo e-sim here if traveling to other European countries to cover the entire trip (use my referral code ATEASP4988 for $3 off your first Airalo e-sim!).
Vienna & Salzburg Itinerary at a Glance
| Day | Activity | Sleep In |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arrive in Vienna Explore Inner City Classical Concert | Vienna |
| 2 | Vienna Opera House and Hofburg Palace Albertina Museum | Vienna |
| 3 | Train to Salzburg (20 min) Mirabell Gardens and Palace | Salzburg |
| 4 | Salzburg Old Town Hohensalzburg Fortress | Salzburg |
Day 1: Arrive in Vienna
To get from the airport to the city center, the quickest way is the City Airport Train. This train drops you off at the Wien Mitte/Landstraße station, which is a 15 minute walk from the old town and is connected to the subway lines.
If arriving by train in Vienna, try to arrive in the Wien Hauptbahnhof, which is the central station in Vienna. To get to the city center from the Wien Hauptbahnhof, you can take the U-1 subway (although the U-Bahn stop is about a 10 minute walk away from the train station), or grab an Uber.
Since we stayed across the street from the St. Stephan’s Cathedral, we spent the evening exploring the Inner City and visiting the Christmas markets in the area. If you’re visiting in winter, don’t miss the amazing Christmas markets in Vienna! These Christmas markets were some of our favorites because they were the most festive and had the most unique and well-made ornaments.
Another option is to take in a classical music concert. Vienna is a city of music, and there are so many opportunities to enjoy live music. We bought last minute tickets to a piano concert. And we were surprised to be seated at a table next to the pianist at a cafe we visited later that night after the concert!
Day 2: Explore Vienna
Opera House
We started the day at the Opera House. This opera house also offers tours, but the interior is less impressive than the one in Budapest so we skipped this tour. Another option is to get cheap standing-room tickets and watch an opera if there is one playing. Make sure to check the information on the website about the dress code if attending an opera!
Viennese Cafes
Hopefully it is not too early for cake! Cafe culture in Vienna is thriving, and having a leisurely cake and coffee became one of our favorite activities during our time here. The cafes usually serve lunch as well. Our first cafe experience was at the Gerstner Cafe across the street from the Opera House and we were hooked after that.
Hofburg Palace
For more opulence, tour the Hofburg Palace. The Hofburg Imperial Apartments (including the Sisi Museum) and the Treasury are the must sees at the Hofburg Palace (in my opinion), and then any museums you’re interested in after that. Separate tickets are needed for each, and can be purchased online using the links above.
Next to the Hofburg is the Burggarten park, which was once the royal palace’s backyard (so you can bet it is beautiful). The Palmenhaus restaurant is housed in what looks like a greenhouse and is a vibey place to have lunch surrounded by palm trees while overlooking the palace garden.
Albertina Museum
There are plenty of museums to choose from in Vienna for your dose of culture. Our choice was the Albertina Museum. We are not super artsy people, but the Albertina has a mix of Monets and Picassos (artists we were familiar with). We made it fun by each choosing a favorite painting and sharing what we liked about it (is that very nerdy? IDK it made for good cafe conversation).
More Cafes
Seems like a good time for another cafe stop! We enjoyed the cakes and atmosphere at Cafe Tirolerhof or another option is Cafe Demel. It is worth detouring to Cafe Demel to bring home some of their famous chocolates even if you don’t stop in for cake and coffee.
Alternate Side Trip: Schonbrunn Palace
We had the Schonbrunn Palace on our list, but ended up whiling away a lot of time in the cafes chatting and enjoying the cakes so we didn’t make it out there. The Schonbrunn Palace is about a 10 min subway ride from the old town. But since we already toured the Hofburg Palace we decided not to double up on palace tours and enjoyed the cafe life instead.
Day 3: Train to Salzburg and Mirabell Palace
There are two train companies that run the route between Vienna and Salzburg. The difference is which train station they depart from in Vienna, so choose the one more convenient to your hotel.
- The OBB train departs from Vienna Hauptbahnhof and the Westbahn train departs from Vienna Westbahnhof. Both arrive in Salzburg Hbf.
- Tickets can be purchased online at the links above, and buying tickets in advance for specific train times is usually cheaper.
- Getting from the Salzburg train station to the city center is very affordable by taxi, or you can take buses #1, #3, #5, or #6.
Mirabell Gardens and Palace
Strolling around the Mirabell Gardens and Palace is a relaxing free activity in Salzburg. There was a cute little Christmas market here when we visited in the winter. Since it was such a beautiful day when we visited, we had fun taking silly photo shoot pictures in this lovely garden setting.
Day 4: Explore Salzburg
Salzburg Old Town
After taking our fill of photos at Mirabell, we walked across the river on Mozartsteg bridge to start touring the old town. Salzburg is where Mozart was born and the museum in Mozart’s Birthplace has a collection of paintings, letters, and personal items that paint a picture of Mozart’s early life (tickets required, don’t need to be bought in advance). It’s one of the “things to do” in Salzburg, but if you are not a Mozart enthusiast and want to save some money, it is skippable. The building is located on Getreidegasse, the old town’s main street. There are many cute shops to browse on this street, and you’ll see some arcaded tunnels that connect Getreidegasse to the market square behind it.
Lunch at St. Peter’s Stiftskulinarium
St. Peter’s Stiftskulinarium holds the claim that it is the oldest restaurant in Europe. Not gonna lie, it’s pretty touristy, but we were drawn inside because the interior of the restaurant is completely decorated for Christmas and it is just so festive. We were really leaning into the Christmas theme on our trip, so we were here for the vibes more than the food.
Hohensalzburg Fortress
After lunch we took the funicular by the cathedral up to the Hohensalzburg Fortress. The views from the fortress give you an impressive panorama of Salzburg below. We spent the rest of the evening soaking in the festive atmosphere at the Christmas markets below.
