Practical Information

 

Time

Vienna’s time zone is: Central European Time (CET). During the summer, there is a shift to Central European Summer Time (CEST), which is two hours ahead of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC).

Currency

The official currency in Austria is the euro (EUR). You can find the exact exchange rates with your local currency at www.xe.com.
 

Language

German is the official language. Most Austrians speak English as a foreign language.
 

Payment methods

The most common means of payment are cash and debit card.Usually all major credit cards are accepted, but sometimes there is a minimum amount for payments by credit card.
Withdrawing cash is possible with debit or credit card at every ATM. The cheapest way of changing currencies is at a bank, currency exchange offices sometimes charge high fees.
 

Electricity

The electrical current in Austria operates at 220 V/50 Hz and uses round, two-pin European plugs (type F).
 

Business hours

  • Shops are usually open on Monday–Friday from 9:00am to 6:30pm and on Saturday from 9:00am to 5:00/6:00pm. There are a few shops at big train stations and at the airport, which are also open on Sundays.

  • Most banks in Vienna are open on Monday–Friday from 8:00am until 12:30pm and 1:30pm until 3:00pm.
     

Telecommunications & Internet

The international access code for Austria is +43. The outgoing code is 00, followed by the relevant country code.
Restaurants and hotels usually offer free WiFi.
 

Public transport

Vienna has a well-developed public transport system. By metro, bus or tram every part of the city is easily reachable within a short amount of time.

  • The metro is the easiest way to get around Vienna. All metro lines operate from 5:00am until midnight; on Friday and Saturday, they operate 24 hours.

  • Busses and tramlines have usually shorter operating hours.

  • Night busses operate daily from 0:30am to 5:00am.
     

Restaurants

Restaurants are normally open every day. Some restaurants may be closed on certain days of the week, as well as on Sundays. Fast food shops like the typical Viennese sausage stands usually stay open until late night.
 

Tipping

Tipping is not compulsory but quite usual in most service-oriented sectors Austria. The amount of tipping usually lies around 5–10%, but depends on the satisfaction of the costumer.