Travelling by train to Vienna
Vienna has direct connections to most European cities nearby, including Bratislava, Munich, Frankfurt, Budapest, Hamburg, Prague, Warsaw and overnight trains to Berlin, Venice, Rome, Warsaw and Zürich. Most long-distance trains run from the Hauptbahnhof (main station); many of these trains also serve Meidling. Some semi-fast services towards Salzburg start and end at Westbahnhof. Don’t confuse the main station (Hauptbahnhof) with the central station (Wien Mitte); the latter is only served by local and regional trains.
Travelling within Vienna
Vienna has an extensive public transport system (www.wienerlinien.at) that consists of five underground (U-Bahn) lines (U1, U2, U3, U4 and U6), trams and buses, which makes it easy to reach the conference venue, even if you are staying on the other side of the city. A single trip costs €2.40 and is valid on any reasonable route to your destination; changes are permitted. If you are going to spend time sightseeing or need to commute from your hotel, consider buying a pass. These are available for 24 hours (€8.00), 48 hours (€14.10) or 72 hours (€17.10). A weekly pass (€19.70 online or €22.60 paper) is also available. In common with many other European cities, Vienna’s public transport uses the honour system; the penalty for not having a valid ticket is €145. Note that physical tickets require validation (stamping) before entering the platform; these are marked “Bitte entwerten/Please validate”. Ticket can be bought online (recommended due to lower price) or in front of the metro stations.
Transfer from the airport to the city center
The Vienna International Airport (VIE) in Schwechat is about 20 km away in the southeast of Vienna. Taking a taxi directly at the airport is rather expensive (about €45), but you can get better value by pre-booking at airportdriver.at, flughafentaxi-wien.at (cost around €30), or myDriver.
Express trains (Railjet and Intercity) run at half-hourly intervals from the airport to the Hauptbahnhof (main railway station, line U1) and Meidling (U6) stations and take 15-18 minutes. If you are staying near the conference venue, you will probably want to use this service. A stopping service (S7) also runs across the city via Wien Mitte (Landstraße U3, U4), Praterstern (U1, U2) and Handelskai (U6), and connects with all underground lines; the travelling time to Wien Mitte is approx. 24 minutes. Regardless of which route you take, the fare within the integrated tariff system is €4.10 and this includes onward travel via subway, tram, bus, etc. to your destination in Vienna. If you already have a pass for Vienna, you need to purchase an extension ticket from the city boundary (ab Stadtgrenze, €2.20).
More information on the railway connections, including the timetable, is available in the following leaflet from the Austrial Federal Railways (ÖBB).
Premium services also include the City Airport Train (CAT, €14.90) and the Vienna Airport Lines buses (€10.50). The CAT runs non-stop to Wien Mitte, where it terminates; the main advantage is being able to check-in luggage at the railway station (select airlines only) on the day of your return flight. Departures are at 08 and 38 past the hour in both directions. Note that tickets purchased for these services are not valid for onward travel and are also not valid on the regular trains if you miss your connection.