Rail Holidays in Austria

F rom coffee houses to concert halls, Mozart & Haydn to Rodgers & Hammerstein, Alpine meadows to Baroque palaces, Austria has a wealth of history, culture and fabulous scenery to discover. Watch the famous Lipizzaner horses on parade at the Spanish Riding School, take a tour of the Sound of Music sights of Salzburg, explore the Austrian Lake District from heavenly Hallstatt, take the spectacular Arlberg or Semmering Pass routes through the Alps and then stop for a meal in a cosy Austrian Weinstube.

Recommended Itineraries

Tailor Made Rail

Destination Austria

Tailor Made Rail

Located in the very centre of Europe, Austria brings together some of the continent’s most celebrated qualities, offering visitors beautiful scenery, inspiring art and amazing history. Whether you want to spend your holiday exploring the wonderful cities of Vienna and Salzburg, or instead strap on your walking boots and head up into the country’s snow-capped mountains and alpine meadows, Austria has something for everyone.

Vienna is not only the political and economic heart of Austria, but also perhaps its cultural soul. Located on the banks of the Danube and crammed full of Baroque architecture, palaces and museums, as well as cafés and cake shops, even a short stay in this charming city is sufficient to help visitors understand how it inspired famous residents like Beethoven, Mozart and Sigmund Freud. Salzburg is equally attractive and once you have had your fill of culture (and delicious Sachertorte!) the beautiful Alps are just a short train ride away. Many visitors to the region base themselves in Innsbruck, the so-called ‘Capital of the Alps’, and from this lovely town with its many traditional wooden buildings you can easily head into some spectacular scenery, including the Semmering, Arlberg and Brenner passes.

Thanks to its location, Austria is very well connected to the rest of Europe’s railways, making it an easy destination for UK-based travellers. You can travel via Germany, making your way into the country at either Salzburg, Passau, or just south of Munich. One of the Continent’s last sleeper services runs between Cologne and Vienna. Alternatively, it’s possible to get there via Paris and Zurich, taking in the spectacular Arlberg Pass route through the Tyrol region. Once in Austria, ÖBB offers a wide-range of services to help you explore the country, including trains with panoramic windows which snake through Alpine passes, providing you with perfect views of the magnificent Alps

Austria Highlights

Tailor Made Rail
Vienna At the heart of the Habsburg Empire for more than six centuries, Vienna offers a treasure-trove of Imperial palaces, elegant boulevards and dazzling art collections. View More
Innsbruck The capital city of the Austrian Tyrol region and one of Europe’s most important winter sports destinations, Innsbruck also has a wealth of history to be discovered. View More
Salzburg & the Austrian Lake District Salzburg has two huge musical draws: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and The Sound of Music. If you’re a fan of the composer or the film, you will love Salzburg. View More

Itineraries in Austria

Tailor Made Rail
12 Days
  • Baden Baden
  • Innsbruck
  • Merano
  • Bressanone
  • Lienz
  • Munich
Enjoy a rail journey into the beautiful and fascinating region of Tyrol, straddling Austria, Germany and Italy, on this relaxing holiday. You'll have stops in Tyrolean capital Innsbruck, the pretty towns of Merano and Bressanone as well as East Tyrolean capital Lienz before heading home via Munich.
From £1,499
  • Berlin
  • Prague
  • Vienna
  • Budapest
  • Salzburg
  • Frankfurt
Indulge in a luxurious First Class rail holiday, taking in Europe's majestic Imperial capital cities on this 11-night itinerary with stops in fascinating Berlin and stunning Salzburg en route.
From £2,599
Offer
  • Cologne
  • Salzburg
  • Chur
  • Zermatt
  • Strasbourg
Make the most of your winter holiday with a scenic journey through the Alps. Travel from Cologne, through the Rhine Gorge to Salzburg, by panorama coach to Chur, across Switzerland to Zermatt with the Glacier Express and then back to London via Strasbourg.
From £1,499
9 Days
  • Heidelberg
  • Salzburg
  • Zell Am See
  • Innsbruck
  • Heidelberg
Experience the beauty of the Austrian Alps via Heidelberg, Salzburg and Zell am See, before indulging in the luxurious Venice Simplon-Orient-Express from Verona to London, via Paris.
From £4,899
Offer
  • Zermatt
  • Chur
  • Innsbruck
  • Lake Bled
  • Graz
  • Stuttgart
Travel from Zermatt, in the shadow of the Matterhorn, through the best of the Swiss and Austrian Alps, to picture-perfect Lake Bled in Slovenia's Julian Alps.
From £2,099
12 Days
  • Cologne
  • Innsbruck
  • Zell Am See
  • Salzburg
  • Graz
  • Vienna
Combine stunning rail journeys with fabulous Alpine destinations on this essential tour of Austria, taking in Innsbruck, Zell am See, Salzburg, Graz and capital city Vienna.
From £1,699
Offer
  • Munich
  • Budapest
  • Vienna
  • Prague
  • Regensburg
Combine the imperial cities of Prague, Vienna and Budapest on this central European adventure by rail. Stop along the way in historic Munich and return home via the wooded hills of Bavaria, with a night in Regensburg.
From £1,199
11 Days
  • Vienna
  • Graz
  • Ljubljana
  • Trieste
  • Munich
Follow in the footsteps of Michael Portillo as you travel from Vienna, through the Semmering Pass to Graz and onwards to Ljubljana, ending on the shores of the Adriatic Sea in Trieste.
From £1,499
Offer
7 Days
  • Turin
  • Venice
  • Vienna
Combine two fabulous destinations with the stunning Semmering Pass rail route across the Alps on this 6 night holiday to Venice and Vienna. Our suggested itinerary includes a night en route in Turin and an exciting overnight sleeper journey from Vienna back to Cologne.
From £999
Offer
6 Days
  • Cologne
  • Lindau
  • Vienna
Take the train to Cologne and then down the Rhine Valley to Lindau at beautiful Lake Constance. Continue through the stunning Arlberg Pass high in the Alps and across the length of Austria all the way to Vienna. At the end of your rail adventure, catch a sleeper back to Cologne.
From £999

Blogs About Austria

22 May, 2020
Salzburg is one of the most popular city destinations in Austria, drawing music lovers from all over the world who want to tour the filming locations associated with The Sound of Music or visit the birthplace of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
8 Jun, 2020
Enjoying a meal on board a train around Europe is one of the pleasures of travelling by rail.  Many trains around Europe have excellent catering facilities and are a wonderful way to pass the time while taking in the scenery as you move from one city to the next.