Vienna U-Bahn, trams and night buses

Vienna's metro has five lines – U1, U2, U3, U4 and U6 – each identified by its colour and by the terminus shown on the platform signs. The key interchanges in the centre are Stephansplatz (U1/U3), Karlsplatz (U1/U2/U4), Schwedenplatz (U1/U4), Volkstheater (U2/U3), Westbahnhof (U3/U6) and Praterstern (U1/U2). Trains run from about 5 am until just after midnight, every few minutes at busy times. A new line, U5, is under construction.

Station entrances have no gates: you simply need a valid ticket, and paper tickets without a printed date must be stamped at the blue machines at the entrance.

Trams go where the U-Bahn does not, and are the nicest way to see the city: lines 1, 2, 71 and D run along parts of the Ringstraße past the Opera, the Hofburg, Parliament and the City Hall, and line D continues to the Belvedere and the Hauptbahnhof. City bus lines are numbered with an A, such as 13A; the small 1A, 2A and 3A buses squeeze through the narrow streets of the old town.

Stops show the name of the stop and the lines that call there, and screens in the vehicles and at many stops show the next departures in real time.

On Friday and Saturday nights and on nights before public holidays, the U-Bahn runs all night, roughly every 15 minutes. On other nights, the NightLine night buses (lines with an N, such as N25 or N66) take over from about half past midnight until the first trains around 5 am, running about every 30 minutes; many follow the routes of the U-Bahn lines, and Schwedenplatz is the main interchange in the city centre.

Night buses and the all-night U-Bahn cost no extra: normal tickets and passes are valid.

One ticket covers the U-Bahn, trams, buses and S-Bahn trains within the Vienna city zone, including changes along the way; the 24-hour and 7-day tickets are good value for visitors. The airport lies outside the city zone and needs a separate ticket or an extension.

Current prices and where to buy them are on the Vienna “Tickets” page.