Save money in Vienna: Eat, travel, explore on a budget!
Tip 1: Use the ÖBB train or S7 from Vienna airport to the city center
If you want to save money, on your trip to Vienna - this is my first tip : If you arrive by plane, make sure, to use either the öbb train or the schnellbahn S7. These are by far the cheapest options to get from the airport to the city center. Other connections such as the City Airport Train, the Vienna Airport Lines buses or even cabs and Uber cost significantly more. How the journey from the airport to the city works exactly, I have already explained in this video, which I will link in the description below!
Tip 2: Eating on a budget
Let’s find out how to eat well in Vienna without spending too much money and still having the full Viennese experience!
For breakfast I recommend to go to a bakery. Many bakeries in Vienna have little coffee corners where you can enjoy a classic Viennese breakfast. This usually includes 2 rolls with butter and honey or jam, along with tea or coffee. And it will only cost you only a few EUR.
Popluar bakeries in Vienna are Anker, Ströck and Felber. Diese bakeries have many shops all over Vienna, where you can enjoy your breakfast :)
For lunch, you might want to go to a restaurant and try the lunch menu or dish of the day. This is a special offer of the day, and these dishes are significantly cheaper than regular meals. Some dishes of the day are as cheap as 8,50 EUR!
And another idea for eating out: you can get a percentage off your bill, if you book your table via the online platform "the fork".
Even less expensive and very Vienna-like is eating at a "Wuerstelstand”. This is a sausage stand, where - as the name claims - you can get different types of sausages with bread, dips, and pickles. I had my favorite sausage, a "Kaesekrainer," which is filled with cheese, and I had it with bread, mustard, horseradish, and a pickled cucumber.
If you're looking for an even cheaper option, you could get a sandwich at a supermarket. Many supermarkets have a fresh counter where they prepare you a sandwich according to your wishes. There's no extra charge for putting it together, and you only pay for the bread, sausage, and cheese. If you want to try a typical Viennese sandwich, order an "Extrawurstsemmel". This is a roll filled with slices of a bologna type sausage. And usually, it is served with pickled cucumber.
Another option to cut down your food expenses, is to use the too good to go app. This app helps to save unsold food. You just search for a restaurant or supermarket and buy the unsold food for a cheaper price.
Tipp 3: How to get around Vienna on a budget.
The cheapest way to do that is just to use the public transport or, if you're feeling sporty, you can also use the Wien Mobil Bikes. I already made blog articles on both. You can read more here:
Tipp 4: Low-cost sightseeing
Your sightseeing Vienna should include the beautiful Ringstraße. This street encircles the city center and along it are some of Vienna’s most iconic buildings like the State Opera, the Majors office or the Museum or Art History. A trip around Ringstraße can be pricey if you use one of the sightseeing busses. The cheaper option is just to go by tram or by bike.
By tram: Many tram lines run along Ringstraße. If you want to do a full circle, you could start at the State Opera and take the tram line 1 into the direction of “Prater Hauptallee” to Schwedenplatz. At Schwedenplatz change into tram line 2 into the direction of “Dornbach”. This line will take you back to the State Opera.
By bike: Use the bike lane, that goes along Ringstaße. The lane will be marked with signs and also on the floor. You can also check this map!
Another low cost sightseeing idea, which I personally really love to do, is going up the towers of St. Stephens cathedral. You can either take the elevator up the smaller tower or walk up the 343 steps to the taller tower. Both options only costs a few EUROS (6 EUR for the smaller and 5,50 for the taller tower), and you'll get an awesome view over Vienna's city center.
And, of course, you can also visit St. Stephen's Cathedral itself, which costs 6 EUROS, unless you follow my tip on how to see it for free. If you want to know more about that, please check out my article how to visit Vienna for free!
If you are already on your way, and want to do some more sightseeing, you might also want to check out my audio guide. Which is a lot cheaper much cheaper than booking a guided tour. Plus, you can customize Also you can customize the tour according to your interests and also your schedule. More infos as well as an audio sample can be found on the my audio guide page.
Tipp 5: Get super cheap tickets for concerts and shows.
To save money, you should look for standing room tickets. Even the most prestigious places like the State Opera, the Spanish riding school and the Musikverein do offer these super cheap tickets. As the name claims: with these tickets you have to stand during the performance, but they only cost a few euros.
More Information and booking for the venues mentioned:
State Opera: For most venues you can book standing room tickets online, but for the state opera you need to buy them on the same day, 80 Minutes before the performance starts.Please note that the standing room box office opens 120 minutes before the performance on evenings with expected large crowds. In any case you should be there a lot earlier, since there is usually a super long que.
Tipp 6: Save money when visiting museums.
If you want to visit a museum, dont forget to check for discounts! Many museums offer lower prices for students and senior travelers and in some museums, children under the age of 19 can enter for free!
You can also look for combo tickets that let you visit multiple places with just one ticket, which saves you money overall. For example, there's a combo ticket called "Sisi Ticket" for Schönbrunn Castle, the imperial palace, and the furniture museum. And here's another tip: go online to get your ticket for the Belvedere Museum, where you can see the famous painting "The Kiss" by Gustav Klimt. If you book online, the ticket will be cheaper.