As the capital city of one of the world’s richest nations, you might expect Vienna to be expensive. But it’s not when compared to the likes of London and usually slots into the EU at just above average, price-wise.
For guidance, here are some *very rough* prices as of late June, 2023. Changes possible, of course, especially in the current times (don’t get me started on my supermarket shopping bill).
- See also:
Food & drink
(Coffee: the national drink)
Warning: these are “normal” Viennese prices – expect to pay more in tourist or city centre areas. In the very central traditional coffee houses, for example, a cappuccino can easily exceed your average yearly mortgage repayment (not really, but over €6 is not unusual).
- Coffee:
- A single espresso (German: kleiner Schwarzer): €2.80
- A cappuccino: €4.20
Tip: Look for breakfast deals in coffee houses that include a hot beverage. These combos can work out really quite cheap compared to buying everything separately.
- Beer and wine:
- A beer (half litre) in a bar: €4.90 (though I just paid €6.90 for one in a well-known coffee house in the centre, which I’m still fuming about)
- A 500ml tin of beer in a supermarket: €1.09 to €1.49 (for popular Austrian brands)
- You can get perfectly drinkable wine in a supermarket for under €5 a bottle and very decent wine for €5-€7 a bottle
- Other drinks:
- 1.5 ltr bottle of mineral water in a supermarket: €0.33 to €0.85 for standard brands
- 330ml can of coke in a supermarket: €1.19
Note that the tap water is rather good in Vienna, since most of the city’s water supplies come direct from the Alps.
- Food:
A couple of tips:
- Food and drink is quite inexpensive in supermarkets, especially the discounters like Hofer (the Austrian version of Aldi), Lidl or PENNY Markt
- Many tourist places sell marzipan balls (Mozartkugeln) and Mozart-themed marzipan chocolate as souvenirs. You can get more or less the exact same thing much (much) cheaper in the conventional supermarkets
- Schnitzel is a useful menu item for comparing prices between restaurants, since nearly every place offers them. Just be sure you’re comparing like with like, since veal schnitzel (the original) costs significantly more than pork schnitzel or turkey schnitzel (the more common dishes)
- A lot of restaurants offer inexpensive fixed-menu options, particularly at lunchtimes
Travel
(A municipal tram)
- Road:
- Taxi transfer from airport to city: from around €38
- Petrol/gasoline: at the time of writing, petrol prices at the cheapest locations are around €1.55/ltr for Super (standard lead-free), but expect significant fluctuations, of course
- Compare car hire prices here*
- Public transport:
- 24-hour travel card for Vienna: €8
- 7-day travel pass for Vienna: €17.10
- Return ticket to/from the airport on a dedicated non-stop train: €24.90
- Return trip to/from the airport on a standard S-Bahn train: €8.60
- Sightseeing bus:
- Basic 24-hour ticket: from around €32
The city transport system is fantastic, by the way: fast, frequent, and inexpensive…especially if you get one of the network passes. Another alternative is the Vienna City Card: a tourist pass with numerous discounts and a built-in public transport network pass.
Entertainment
(Schönbrunn palace)
- Adult entrance ticket to the…
- Zoo: €26
- Kunsthistorisches Museum: €21
- Albertina art museum and staterooms: €18.90
- Grand tour of Schönbrunn Palace: €29
- Ride on the Giant Ferris Wheel: €13.50
(If you intend to visit a lot of tourist attractions, then consider a sightseeing pass.)
- Movie theater tickets at an English-language cinema: start at €8.50 to €10.50 (with surcharges for 3D etc.)
- Theater/opera tickets: Prices begin as low as the cost of a cup of coffee if you’ll stand, even in the most prestigious locations like the State Opera House. The best seats can cost anything from €50 to €200+.