Austria 2 Day Itinerary

Two days is not enough time for Austria. That said, you can do Vienna and Salzburg in 48 hours without feeling like you rushed, as long as you are honest with yourself about how many palaces a person can reasonably absorb before switching to coffee and cake.

Getting into Vienna

Vienna International Airport (VIE) is 19 km east of the city centre. The cheapest option that is also fast is the S-Bahn S7 train: 5.40 EUR one-way, runs every 30 minutes, arrives at Wien Mitte/Landstraße station in about 25 minutes, and the same ticket covers your onward U-Bahn or tram ride within Vienna. The City Airport Train (CAT) does the same route in 16 minutes for 14.90 EUR but does not include onward connections, so you end up at Wien Mitte anyway and then buy another ticket. Unless you are in a serious hurry, the S7 is the better deal. A taxi to the centre runs around 35 to 45 EUR and takes 30 to 50 minutes depending on traffic; the motorway approach can back up badly during morning peak hours.

Day 1: Vienna

The Innere Stadt (1st district) is where the main monuments are concentrated, and you can cover the essentials on foot. Start at Stephansdom, the Gothic cathedral that has dominated the skyline since the 14th century. The south tower costs 5 EUR to climb (200 steps) and gives a view across the rooftops and the Ringstrasse that most visitors miss because they assume the cathedral is just for looking at from the outside.

From there, walk south along the Ringstrasse, the broad ceremonial boulevard that Emperor Franz Joseph built in the 1860s to replace the old city walls. The Opera House, the Parliament, the Kunsthistorisches Museum, and the Natural History Museum all face each other across this circuit; you do not need to enter any of them to appreciate how deliberately staged the whole thing is. It is one of Europe’s most intact pieces of 19th-century urban planning.

For lunch, the Naschmarkt is the city’s main open-air market and runs for about 600 metres along the Wienzeile. Go on a weekday to avoid weekend crowds. The stalls sell everything from Austrian sausage and fresh bread to Turkish and Middle Eastern food; eat at the market rather than the restaurants at the edges, which cater mostly to tourists.

In the afternoon, Schönbrunn Palace is a short U-Bahn ride on the U4 (Schönbrunn station). The palace itself is enormous - the Habsburgs had 1,441 rooms - but most visitors come for the formal gardens behind it, which are free and rise up to the Gloriette hilltop monument with the best panoramic view of Vienna. Resist buying a tour of 40 imperial rooms unless you have a genuine interest in Rococo interiors; the gardens and the hill are the thing.

For dinner, Figlmüller in the 1st district is the most famous address for Wiener Schnitzel in the city. The schnitzel is breaded veal, the size of a dinner plate, and technically brilliant; expect to pay around 25 to 30 EUR for a main. It is a tourist restaurant but an honest one. If you want something less visited by tour groups, Reznicek in the 9th district serves similar Viennese classics in a genuinely local atmosphere at slightly lower prices. The weekday lunch menu (Mittagsmenu) at most Viennese restaurants is two or three courses for under 15 EUR and is one of the best value eating strategies in the city.

Vienna is famous for its coffee house culture, and spending an hour in a proper Kaffeehaus is genuinely worth doing. Cafe Hawelka near Stephansplatz has been operating since 1939 and still feels like a functioning literary bar rather than a museum exhibit. Order a Wiener Melange (espresso with steamed milk and foam) and take your time.

Day 2: Salzburg

Trains from Wien Hauptbahnhof to Salzburg Hauptbahnhof run regularly and take 2 hours 20 minutes on the fast Railjet service; a second-class ticket booked a few days ahead costs around 29 to 49 EUR. Book in advance on the OBB website or app for the best prices. The train goes through the eastern Alpine foothills for the last hour and is worth a window seat.

Salzburg’s old town (Altstadt) and the left bank are both UNESCO-listed and compact enough to explore on foot. Start at Getreidegasse, the narrow main shopping street with its wrought-iron guild signs overhanging every doorway. Mozart was born at number 9 in 1756; the apartment is now a museum (12 EUR entry). It is small and gets crowded quickly - arrive when it opens at 09:00 to have space to actually look at the exhibits.

Hohensalzburg Fortress dominates the hill above the old town and is the most complete medieval castle in the German-speaking world. It has been continuously inhabited since 1077. The fastest way up is the Festungsbahn funicular from Festungsgasse, which takes about one minute. An all-inclusive ticket covering the funicular, all fortress rooms, and the museums costs around 15 EUR. The fortress is open from 08:30 to 20:00 in summer (May to September) and from 09:30 to 17:00 in winter. Views from the ramparts south over the city and north toward the Salzburg plain are the best in the region; allow 90 minutes to do it properly.

Mirabell Palace and its formal gardens on the right bank are free to enter and are where Mozart performed as a child prodigy. The gardens are well-maintained and photogenic without requiring a ticket. Walk across the Staatsbrucke bridge back to the Altstadt and you have covered the essential geography of the city in one loop.

For dinner, Salzburg is smaller than Vienna and the tourist density around the old town means restaurant prices are higher for what you get. Walk ten minutes from Getreidegasse toward the Linzergasse neighbourhood on the right bank, where you will find a different cluster of cafes and small restaurants that are more local in clientele and better value.

The Salzburg Card (27 EUR for 24 hours, 36 EUR for 48 hours) covers free entry to most museums and free use of all public transport including the Festungsbahn. If you are planning to visit more than three attractions it pays for itself.

Visa and Practical Notes

Austria is a Schengen country. Citizens of the EU, USA, Canada, Australia, and most other Western nations do not need a visa for stays under 90 days. Check requirements specific to your passport before travelling.

Cash is widely expected in Austrian restaurants and smaller shops. Many places that appear to accept cards do not, or have a minimum spend requirement. Carry at least 50 EUR in cash.

Tipping works differently here than in the UK or US: rather than leaving money on the table, you round up or add the tip when you tell the server the total you are paying. Say “Machen Sie dreißig” (Make it thirty) and hand over the note. A 10 percent tip is generous; 5 percent is fine for a normal meal.