The scenery begins to get more dramatic after departing Wiener-Neustadt

Wien / Vienna to Graz by train

How to take a train journey from Wien/Vienna to Graz

When the epic Semmering Base Tunnel opens in 2027 the journey by train from Wien/Vienna to Graz will be transformed, but until then trains will be taking one of the most scenic rail routes between two European cities

Share

Routes

From Wien Hbf/Hauptbahnhof to Graz Hbf

Travel Information

Final Destination: Graz (or Ljubljana or Zagreb)

All but two of the direct trains between Wien/Vienna and Graz are Railjets; these are the trains which are terminating at Graz.
Some of the Railjets on this route are the Czech version and not the Austrian (they will have travelled from Prague), but they're more or less the same train internally.

The EC trains continue on beyond Graz to Ljubljana or Zagreb.

Departing from Wien/Vienna:

If your journey in Vienna is commencing in 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 join the train at Wien-Meidling station.

Wien Meidling is connected to line U6 of the Vienna Metro, which serves the western side of the city centre.

Every two hours (in the odd hours) these trains commence their journeys at Wien Flufghagen/Vienna Airport station.

1 x train per hour

Tickets

Book early and save: Yes

Online bookings open: 6 months ahead of the travel date

The discounted tickets are the 'Sparscheine' tickets and they can be booked online up until the day of departure, but they CAN'T be booked at stations, so booking last minute at the station is always more expensive.
Though you'll usually need to book the 'Sparscheine' tickets at least a couple of days ahead to obtain them at the cheapest possible price.

Trains departing at different times can also be cheaper than others leaving on the same day, so you may need to look through the day's departures to find the cheapest fares

Where to book
Ticket Provider Approximate Cost
OBB from €9

OBB Guide

OBB is the national rail operator and its booking service offers journeys by express trains within Austria, as well as international journeys which don't involve making a connection outside of Austria.

It pays off to book online, as the discounted 'Sparscheine' tickets are only ever made available on the website, and when making international journeys to and from Austria, these Sparscheine tickets tend to be cheaper.
OBB can offer particularly good value for money when travelling with children on international rail journeys, but something to watch out for when travelling between Austria and Germany on daytime trains, is that reservations are an optional extra; but if you book 1st class tickets with the Germany railways website DB, the reservations are complimentary.

OBB often takes a unique approach to its booking path, but a key thing to keep in mind is that the first price you will see for any journey is that of a Second Class seat.
The costs of upgrading to first class, a reservation, or a sleeping cabin etc, is then added to this price.

Trainline from €9

Trainline Guide

Happyrail from €9

Happyrail Guide

Happy Rail is a Netherlands rail ticket agency which sells tickets for both national and international journeys within a range of countries including Belgium France, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland.

HappyRail doesn't charge booking fees in the conventional sense, but if you're not Dutch you can expect to pay additional transaction fees, which will be added to the total cost.
That's because the most common form of online payment used in The Netherlands is 'iDEAL' and HappyRail doesn't charge a transaction fee for 'iDEAL' payments, but only Dutch residents can sign up to 'iDEAL'.
Other forms of payment include Visa debit cards will incur a fee.

On this journey

Journey Features

Scenic - YesMountain viewsNot High Speed
The scenery begins to get more dramatic after departing Wiener-Neustadt The scenery begins to get more dramatic after departing Wiener-Neustadt
The ascent up to Semmering begins when the train crosses the River Schwarz The ascent up to Semmering begins when the train crosses the River Schwarz
Looking down towards the railway line from Vienna Looking down towards the railway line from Vienna
Crossing a viaduct between the tunnels on the Semmering Pass Crossing a viaduct between the tunnels on the Semmering Pass
The view from one of these viaducts on a grey day The view from one of these viaducts on a grey day
Passing one of the castles which can be seen from the train Passing one of the castles which can be seen from the train
Beginning to descend after Semmering station Beginning to descend after Semmering station
The view later on near Bruck an der Mur The view later on near Bruck an der Mur

This journey includes the passage over the fabulous Semmering Pass, so wonderful that it's a U.N.E.S.C.O. World Heritage Site, though that's partially due to the construction methods and not just because of the scenery.
Though aside from when the train is travelling over the numerous viaducts, the trees tend to obscure the views, particularly in the summer.

The best views can be seen from the left of the train (when facing the direction of travel) between Wiener Neustadt and  Murzzuschlag.

This video gives a sense of the journey experience, on a grey day, it was filmed travelling in the opposite direction, towards Wien/Vienna.

The part of the journey south of Wiener Neustadt has been included on Go Go Places' list of Europe's Most Scenic Train Rides  AND on Far And Wide's list of the Most Remarkable Train Journeys in Europe.

Take the stress out of your journey Everything planned to your specification, so sit back and relax… Try Concierge

Newsletter

Sign up to receive the latest travel news stories and to hear about what we've been working on for you.

See if there’s a unique journey guide for your trip, featuring info on the trains, tickets & stations.
Leaving From
Going To
ShowMeTheJourney

This is one of more than 1000 journey guides available on ShowMeTheJourney, which will make it easier to take the train journeys you want or need to make. As always, all images were captured on trips taken by ShowMeTheJourney.