I am hopping over to Salzburg from Vienna on a Wednesday afternoon in the dead of January and staying over until Thursday to take that SOM tour, then catching the train back in time for an opera in Vienna at 7pm. I can't make heads or tails of the rail times tables. Need much help. I am a major budget traveler with no German. If it's going to cost too much I will scrap the whole thing and stay in Vienna. But if anyone can help me find a train I'm game! Thanks in advance!
Posted by
Bellevue, WA, USA
811 posts
you may want to just skip salzburg - your time is tight and since you're on a budget you might as well save the money for something else in/around vienna - vienna has a lot to offer. i haven't taken the som tour but to really appreciate salzburg you need to climb the castle and wonder the old town a little bit. salzburg is pretty quiet in the evenings so you could do it on a day trip, but making back to vienna for a 7pm show will be hard.
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32353 posts
Betsy, Which SOM tour are you planning to take, and what time does it start? In the same situation, I'd probably depart Vienna in the morning and take an afternoon SOM tour on Wednesday afternoon. The rail trip is about 2H:45M and you should be able to get there in time for the tour. There's a departure from Wien Westbahnhof at 10:14, arriving Salzburg HBf at 12:59. After the tour ends, go to your Hotel and then spend a bit of time exploring Salzburg. The next morning, have a leisurely breakfast and then explore a bit more. Your Hotel should be willing to store your luggage for a few hours after you check-out. Depart for Vienna at ~14:01, arriving back in Vienna at 16:44. That should be enough time to stop at your Hotel for an early dinner and then get to the Opera. There are earlier departures if that would be preferable. Of course if you wanted to stay with your original plan, it would also be possible to take the SOM tour on Thursday morning (if it ends by about 13:30) and still make the 14:01 departure back to Vienna. I obtained the train information from the bahn.de website. Happy travels!
Posted by
Lakewood, Colorado
19274 posts
If you book online with the Austrian Rail website (www.oebb.at) you can get a Railjet from Vienna to Salzburg in 2¾ hr for €19 each way. But I question taking an SOM tour. Most of that movie was filmed on sets in Hollywood and other sets in Salzburg were temporary and no longer there. Most of what is still there (Mirabella Palace, old town) you can see without a tour.
Posted by
OP
Bronx, NY
9 posts
Thanks all. I'm not married to the SOM I just thought since RS said it was a good overview I'd try it but I'm open to any overview and even more open to one i can do cheaply and on my own.