Page 356 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide 2016 - Austria

354  Sur viv al Guide

Travelling by Train

Situated in the heart of europe, with vienna as its main railway
hub, austria has excellent rail links with every important
centre on the Continent, and there is a good network of lines
within the country itself. The trains are comfortable, clean
and safe; they run frequently and regularly. Punctuality is
one of the main benefits – the old adage that you can set
your watch by an austrian train is largely true, although a few
minutes’ delay can occur. unfortunately railway tickets are
expensive. The largest railway line is the ÖBB – Österreichische
Bundesbahnen, the austrian Federal railway lines, and there
are also 12 smaller, private railway lines.

Vienna’s Franz-Josefs-Bahnhof, the
Trains
trains. Motorists can also travel terminal for trains from the north
Österreichische Bundesbahnen – by rail with their cars from
ÖBB – runs several types of Vienna, Graz, Feldkirch and carriage number when you
services. The modern EuroCity Villach. It costs €98 to transport are boarding, and again at
trains (marked with the letters a car from Vienna to Feldkirch. the compartment door. Seat
EC) cover long-distance routes reservations are included in
in record time. Night passengers Seat Reservations the price of first-class tickets.
travel on the EuroNight (EN) or
CityNight-Line, with sleeping In Austria, it is not compul sory Railway Stations
cars and couchettes. to reserve a seat, even on express
Comfortable or international The German word for a railway
InterCity (IC) and routes. It is entirely station is Bahnhof, and the main
SuperCity trains up to you, though railway station is Hauptbahnhof.
connect major trains can become The capital city of each province
towns and tourist busy, particularly has a Hauptbahnhof, Vienna has
resorts. Every seat during the peak two. Railway stations are some-
on the InterCity tourist season in times sited away from the city
Express has a radio summer or when centre. They have bureaux de
with headphones Bundesbahn logo there is snow. change, luggage deposits and
installed, and the Reservations can information desks, with English-
first-class carriages are be made at the ticket offices speaking staff. If there is no ticket
equipped with videos as of any of the larger stations, office, you can buy a ticket from
well as power points for laptop at the ÖBB Reiseservicecenter the machine on the platform.
computers. Domestic lines are or online at www.oebb.at. The
also served by the D-Züge (D), computerized system allows Arriving from Britain
long-distance trains running staff to check which seats are
every day, at greater or lesser still available on any given train. The most direct form of rail
speed. More recently, the local Reserved seats are marked on travel to Austria from Britain
routes have acquired modern, the door of each compartment; is by Eurostar from London to
double-decker City Shuttle you should take note of your either Paris or Brussels. From
Paris you can take a German
sleeper train to Munich and
connect there for travel on
to Graz, Innsbruck, Klagenfurt,
Salzburg or Vienna. From
Brussels, take a Thalys train
to Cologne then travel on to
either Linz or Vienna on a
CityNight-Line overnight
sleeper. For further details
visit www.seat61.com/Austria.
htm. The travel agency
(Reisebüro) at Westbahnhof
is open from 8am to 7pm
on weekdays and 8am to
1pm on Saturdays; staff will
Railway line passing through Zell am See, Salzburg be able to provide information

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