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Paris to Wien / Vienna by train
How to take the optimum rail journey from Paris to Wien/Vienna
It's some distance from Paris to Wien/Vienna hence a lack of direct trains between the French and Austrian capital cities.
Though it is a very straightforward journey by train, whether you opt to travel during the day or overnight, only one connection is required.
Of the numerous daytime options you will likely see when looking up the train journey from Paris to Vienna/Wien on the ticket booking services, this option via Frankfurt (Main) has been singled out because:
- the usual connection is easily timed, so there will be contingency in the event of the train from Paris being delayed.
- Frankfurt (Main) hbf is an easy station in which to change trains
- there is no need to make more than one connection when making a Paris to Wien/Vienna rail journey.
Of the overnight options, the suggested routing via Zurich has been prioritised for similar reasons; an easily timed connection in a station that's simple to navigate.
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Routes
Option 1: travel during the day via Frankfurt
Journey Summary
11hr 50min
Daily
Travel Information
Final Destination: Frankfurt (Main)
This train takes takes the route via Strasbourg
1 x optimum connection per day
Change trains in: Frankfurt (Main)
This routing via Frankfurt (Main) isn't the fastest option for a daytime journey by train from Paris to Wien/Vienna.
It isn't generally the cheapest either, so here's why we recommend travelling this way:
- It's the fastest option which only has 1 x change of train
- The connecting time between trains at Frankfurt (Main) is more than an hour, so making the transfer on to Wien/Vienna is virtually guaranteed.
- The faster/cheaper journey options with more than one change of train all have connecting times between trains of less than 15 mins. (Making those connections on that alternative routing is a gamble not financially, but it terms of making the journey much more stressful).
- Frankfurt (Main) is an exceptionally easy station at which to change trains.
Tickets
Book early and save: Yes
Online bookings open: 4 months ahead of the travel date (usually)
Reservations are optional on the ICE train between Frankfurt and Wien/Vienna, but reserving seats on this leg of the journey is highly recommended.
This connection via Frankfurt (Main) is the journey option which departs Paris at 07:08.
Thou can save usually save money if you opt to change trains more than once and travel via Munchen or Salzburg.
Though when looking up those journeys check the connecting time between trains, those options sold by the ticket agents typically have connecting times of less than 20 mins in either Mannheim, Stuttgart station or Munchen/Munich
Making these connections between trains in Germany is not guaranteed, you won't incur a financial penalty as tickets/reservations can be transferred to a later departure in the event of a late arriving, but it's a hassle that is much more likely to be avoided if you travel on this route via Frankfurt.
Where to book
| Ticket Provider | Approximate Cost | |
|---|---|---|
| Trainline | * |
Train 1
Travelling On
Journey Features
Via: Kaiserslautern
This is a journey of four distinct phases.
- Around 13 minutes after departure the train will move on to the high speed line, on which between Champagne-Ardennes and Lorraine, it should travel at more than 300 km/h (faster than the speed achieved by ICE trains in Germany).
- Shorty after passing Lorraine TGV station, the train will move on to conventional tracks.
- Between Kaiserslautern and Neustadt the train will travel through a series of forests in the valleys, this is the most scenic part of the journey.
- After passing through the cities of Ludwigshafen and Mannheim, the train will pass through the commuter towns to the south of Frankfurt.
Via: Strasbourg
This is a journey of three distinct phases.
- The train will take the same high speed line from Paris, but will remain on it until around 5 minutes before arrival in Strasbourg.
- On departure from Strasbourg the train will travel fairly slowly on a route it will share with local metro trains.
- Then it will speed up, but remain on conventional railway tracks as it passes through Karlsruhe and Mannheim.
Train 2
Travelling On
Journey Features
Good to Know
Final Destination: Wien Hbf
This train also calls at: Linz and [St Polten](https://goo.gl/maps/ffv7fnVNBbaEdyVF7 and Wien-Meidling
Arriving in Wien/Viennna:
Check the location of your final destination in Wien/Vienna.
If you're heading to the south west corner of the city, or the area on the ring road around the Opera House - then it's likely that you'll have a faster and more convenient journey if you leave the train at Wien-Meidling station.
This is a journey of nine distinct phases:
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Between Frankfurt (Main) and Aschaffenburg the railway passes through a string of commuter towns.
-
Then east of Aschaffenburg, is a scenic and slow part of the trip as the railway follows a series of valleys.
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As the River Main comes into view on the right, the train will speed up before bridging the river and entering a tunnel which will link it to the high speed line.
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The train will spend around 10-15 mins on the high speed line as it nears Wurzburg, just before the station look out on the right for a brief panorama over the river and city.
Because the train will spend such a small percentage of the journey on the high speed line, this hasn't been classed as a high speed trip -
On to Nurnberg the train will be on conventional railway tracks.
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Between Nurnberg and Regensburg the train travels across a rolling landscape of hills.
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Between Regensburg and Passau the railway line is beside the River Danube, which can be seen on the left.
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The highlight of the journey comes to the south of Passau, between there and the Austrian border, the railway line is by the banks of the River Inn, but on this part of the journey the river is over to the right.
-
Between Wels and Vienna the train will race across the Austrian countryside either side of Linz, this railway isn't a high speed route, but it has been straightened so that trains can travel at around 200 km/h
Option 2: Travel overnight via Zurich
Journey Summary
14hr 12min
Nightly
Tickets
Book early and save: Yes
Online bookings open: Around 3 months ahead of the travel date
Look for the journey which departs Paris around 16:23 and has one change of train
Where to book
| Ticket Provider | Approximate Cost | |
|---|---|---|
| Trainline | * |
Train 1
Travelling On
Journey Features
Good to Know
Note that this train departs from the Gare De Lyon in Paris.
Final Destination: Zurich,
This is a journey of four distinct parts.
1: Initially the train will travel on the high speed line south from Paris.
2. The train switches to conventional tracks north of Dijon - the most scenic part of the journey
3. Between Dijon and Mulhouse there is another high speed line.
4. The final part of the journey from Mulhouse to Zurich is on conventional tracks.
Train 2
Travelling On
Journey Features
Good to Know
Final Destination:
Wien Hbf - the OBB Nightjet
Budapest - the EuroNight train
These trains also call at: St.Pölten, Wien-Meidling
In Zurich, the two trains are joined together, so they both depart at 21:40.
They're seperated during the journey across Austria and the EuroNight train arrives in Vienna/Wien first at 06:35.
The OBB Nightjet train is the slower of the two services and it is scheduled to arrive in Wien Hbf at 07:55
Both the OBB Nightjet train and the Nightjet train convey;
- Compartment Seats (Sitzwagen)
- Couchettes (Liegewagen); 4 berths AND 6 berths
- Standard sleeping cars (Schlafwagen) with 3 bed, 2 bed and 1 cabins
But the OBB Nightjet train also conveys Deluxe sleeping cars with showers in the cabin.
The first of the daytime trains doesn't arrive in Wien/Vienna until 14:30
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