St. Anton has the distinction of being the only Austrian ski resort with a station in its centre served by express trains.
Though its location in The Tyrol on the western side of Austria means it is some distance from Vienna/Wien, hence both day and night trains being an option
When travelling between most cities by train there is only one logical option, though on other journeys there is a choice between different trains or alternative routes. If different options are available you can use the info to decide which is best for you.
5hr 25min
Daily
6 x trains per day
ShowMeTheJourney earns a small commission on Rail Europe ticket sales. It can be a particularly good option when booking international journeys with connections and for travellers who don't reside in western Europe. Use the easy options on its home page if you will be booking tickets with a railcard: Or purchasing rail pass reservations.
Exclusive for New Customers: Receive a 10% discount by using the code 24NOV on any purchase with a maximum total price of £100, until 28 November 2024 (11:59 pm CET). Limit one coupon per qualifying booking. Cannot be combined, transferred or exchanged.
Omio is an online ticket agency which offers tickets for rail journeys in France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy and Spain.
The three key advantages of using Omio are
The disadvantage of booking with Omio is that it often adds a booking fee to the final price; therefore when it does so without offering a price advantage, SMTJ doesn't tend to offer Omio as a booking option.
ShowMeTheJourney earns a small commission on Rail Europe ticket sales. It can be a particularly good option when booking international journeys with connections and for travellers who don't reside in western Europe. Use the easy options on its home page if you will be booking tickets with a railcard: Or purchasing rail pass reservations.
OBB is the national rail operator and its booking service offers journeys by express trains within Austria, as well as international journeys which don't involve making a connection outside of Austria.
It pays off to book online, as the discounted 'Sparscheine' tickets are only ever made available on the website, and when making international journeys to and from Austria, these Sparscheine tickets tend to be cheaper.
OBB can offer particularly good value for money when travelling with children on international rail journeys, but something to watch out for when travelling between Austria and Germany on daytime trains, is that reservations are an optional extra; but if you book 1st class tickets with the Germany railways website DB, the reservations are complimentary.
OBB often takes a unique approach to its booking path, but a key thing to keep in mind is that the first price you will see for any journey is that of a Second Class seat.
The costs of upgrading to first class, a reservation, or a sleeping cabin etc, is then added to this price.
Departing from Vienna/Wien:
Most of these Railjet trains between Wien/Vienna and Bregenz commence their journeys at Wien Flufghagen/Vienna Airport station.
If your journey in Vienna is commencing in the south west corner of the city, or the area on the ring road around the Opera House - then it's likely that you'll have a faster and more convenient journey if you join the train at Wien-Meidling station.
Wien Meidling is connected to line U6 of the Vienna Metro, which serves the western side of the city centre.
Final Destination: Bregenz or Zurich
All trains also call at: Innsbruck and Landeck-Zams
Arriving in St.Anton:
Listen out for the announcements, or keep an eye on the info screens on the train, because the approach to St.Anton station is in a tunnel, so you won't be aware of the train slowing down.
These trains to St.Anton, which are heading to Bregenz or Zurich, are usually joined to other trains heading for Munchen on departure from Wien Hbf.
The two trains are then separated from each other on arrival at Salzburg.
So if you haven't reserved, take care that you're boarding the part of the train which will be heading to St.Anton.
Instead of building an entirely new high speed railway, the decision was taken to upgrade and straighten the main Western Railway which crosses Austria.
So between Wien/Vienna and Linz the train will travel at up to 230 km/h (close to the high speed threshold).
Then between Worgl and Innsbruck a new line that's mainly in tunnel, saves around 20 mins on the old route.
However, the tunnels take the train away from what had been a scenic highlight of the journey.
Though the trains still travel by the banks of the River Inn near Kufstein and it's this view by Kuftstein which has been pictured above and showcased in this video.
Now that the Railjets spend most of the journey between Worgl and Innsbruck in tunnels, the most scenic part of the journey is after Innsbruck; the best of the views are on the right hand side
But the most spectacular views of The Arlberg Pass can only be seen, in this direction, from trains once they have continued beyond St.Anton.
So you won't miss out on experiencing an exceptionally beautiful journey if you opt to take the overnight train.
Book early and save: Yes
Online bookings open: 6 months ahead of the travel date
Take care when looking up these journeys online. Cut and paste the spelling of St.Anton that we've used as the station name into 'To' box on OBB's ticket booking service, it can't find St Anton or St. Anton.
The discounted tickets are the 'Sparscheine' tickets and they can be booked online up until the day of departure - but they can't be booked at stations, so booking last minute at the station is always more expensive.
Though you'll usually need to book the 'Sparscheine' tickets at least a couple of days ahead to obtain them at the cheapest possible price.
Trains departing at different times can also be cheaper than others leaving on the same day, so you may need to look through the day's departures to find the cheapest fares
It can pay off to take a look at the guide to Austrian train tickets - it should help you save time and money and confusion.
Exchanges
No tickets sold for journeys by Railjet trains within Austria can be exchanged in the typical sense, instead the policy is that the more expensive type of tickets can be refunded - and then having done so, you can re-book for an alternative departure.
Refunds
Seat reservations
Seat reservations are optional, but they're particularly recommended for this journey.
Note that reservations will also be required any children aged 5 to 15 - children aged 4 and under don't require tickets, but the expectation is that they will be travelling in the adult's lap
Child tickets
When booking 'Sparschiene' tickets each adult (aged 15 and over) can take up to four children aged 14 and under for free!
These children will still require tickets, but there will be no charge for them.
When not booking 'Sparschiene' tickets;
Bike tickets
You will need purchase both a bike ticket AND a reservation for your bike prior to boarding; more info on how to do this is available on the [bikes on trains guide](/travel-info-and-tips/taking-a-bike-on-a-european-train/).
Dog tickets
If your dog is too large to be taken in a pet carrier you will need to add a dog ticket when making your booking;
Rail pass users
Rail pass users don’t have to make reservations.
However, in SMTJ's experience, it's a good idea to reserve when:
7hr 41min
Nightly
1 x train per night
OBB is the national rail operator and its booking service offers journeys by express trains within Austria, as well as international journeys which don't involve making a connection outside of Austria.
It pays off to book online, as the discounted 'Sparscheine' tickets are only ever made available on the website, and when making international journeys to and from Austria, these Sparscheine tickets tend to be cheaper.
OBB can offer particularly good value for money when travelling with children on international rail journeys, but something to watch out for when travelling between Austria and Germany on daytime trains, is that reservations are an optional extra; but if you book 1st class tickets with the Germany railways website DB, the reservations are complimentary.
OBB often takes a unique approach to its booking path, but a key thing to keep in mind is that the first price you will see for any journey is that of a Second Class seat.
The costs of upgrading to first class, a reservation, or a sleeping cabin etc, is then added to this price.
The train is usually scheduled to depart Wien Hbf at 22:55 and arrive in St.Anton am Arlberg at 06:46
If the timings of this overnight train don't suit, you can take one of the daytime trains from Wien/Vienna to St Anton.
On Mon-Saturday the first train of the day will arrive in St.Anton at around 10:30.
The train also calls at: Landeck-Zams
Final Destination: Bregenz
Book early and save: Yes
Online bookings open: 6 months ahead of the travel date
The train conveys:
- Compartment Seats (Sitzwagen)
- Couchettes (Liegewagen); 4 berths AND 6 berths
- Standard sleeping cars (Schlafwagen) with 3 bed, 2 bed and 1 cabins
- Deluxe sleeping cars with showers (Schlafwagen) with 3 bed, 2 bed and 1 cabins
Take care when looking up these journeys online. Cut and paste the spelling of St.Anton that we've used as the station name into 'To' box on OBB's ticket booking service, it can't find St Anton or St. Anton.
Click the train guide below for more info including the rail pass reservation fees:
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