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Travel On Train ÖBB Railjet (RJ/RJX) (Austria/International)
A side view of a Railjet train - the top tier OBB trains

ÖBB Railjet (RJ/RJX) (Austria/International)

If you will be taking a journey by Railjet trains our guide will tell you all the key things you need to know, from boarding, to making the most of the journey experience.

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At a Glance

Travel Pass Supplement

Rail Pass Reservation Fees
Reservations

Available
Time of Day

Day
Catering

Food services available

Restaurant
Bistro (bar food and take away meals)
Accessibility

Accessing the train

Wheelchair Spaces
Bikes Allowed
Train Specification

Attributes of the train

Has a Conductor
Country

Which country these trains operate in.

Austria
Germany
Hungary
Czechia
Switzerland
Travel Passes
Eurail
InterRail

On Board

First Class:

Perks
WiFi

A complimentary WiFi portal is available throughout this train.

Power Socket

The power sockets on this train are compatible with standard E.U. two point plugs.

Trolley Service:

A catering trolley with hot and cold drinks and snacks should be taken through the train at some point during its journey.

1st class seating on an OBB Railjet 1st class seating on an OBB Railjet
Note that some seats (those nearest the camera) don't have a good window view Note that some seats (those nearest the camera) don't have a good window view
A general view of a First Class seating saloon A general view of a First Class seating saloon

If you’re in First Class you can order food or drink from the catering staff that will pass through the train and have it delivered to your seat - the full restaurant menu is available.
You will need to pay for the items before you leave the train.
If you’re not sat at a table seat, the menu should be in the pocket on the back of the seat in front of you.

Business Class:

Perks
WiFi

A complimentary WiFi portal is available throughout this train.

Power Socket

The power sockets on this train are compatible with standard E.U. two point plugs.

At Seat Catering

According to the time of day of travel, passengers will be able to choose from a menu of catering options, which will then be served at their seats.

Business Class on an OBB Railjet Business Class on an OBB Railjet

If you’re in Business Class you can order food or drink from the catering staff that will pass through the train and have it delivered to your seat - the full restaurant menu is available.
The items you order will need to be paid for prior to leaving the train.

Seats are automatically assigned when booking Business Class tickets, so reservations will be included in the ticket price.

Rail pass users can pay a €15 supplement to travel in Business Class.

Economy

Perks
WiFi

A complimentary WiFi portal is available throughout this train.

Power Socket

The power sockets on this train are compatible with standard E.U. two point plugs.

A Railjet at Feldkirch station A Railjet at Feldkirch station
A 1st class seating saloon on a Railjet A 1st class seating saloon on a Railjet
The at-seat service menu available in 1st and Business Class on OBB Railjets The at-seat service menu available in 1st and Business Class on OBB Railjets
A Railjet train arrives in Wien Hbf A Railjet train arrives in Wien Hbf

Railjet travel guide:

The info screens on a Railjet train The info screens on a Railjet train

Austria’s premier express trains operated by OBB are easy to spot, as they have ‘Railjet’ spelt out in huge letters on the side of the coaches.

Although someone has realised that having the Railjet lettering over the windows, can spoil some of Europe’s fabulous train journeys, so on the most recently repainted coaches the ‘Railjet’ logo is now beneath the windows.

Internally OBB’s Railjets are amongst the most comfortable trains in Europe and they’re getting faster too, as they’re taking advantage of the higher speeds on the re-routed lines between Wien/Vienna and Innsbruck.

The on board announcements are in German and English, but a particularly useful feature of these trains are the easy to understand, bi-lingual electronic info screens, which can be found in all coaches.

The luggage space is also comparatively generous, so travelling by Railjet is comparatively stress free.

Routes:

OBB Railjets now operate on all express train routes in Austria and many journeys also extend over the borders into neighbouring countries.

The services used on these THREE routes are now branded 'Railjet Express' - which is usually shortened to RJX.

(1) Bregenz - Feldkirch - St Anton - Innsbruck - Salzburg - Linz - St Polten - Wien/Vienna - Wien Flughafen/airport

(2) Zurich - Buchs - Feldkirch - St Anton - Innsbruck - Salzburg - Linz - St Polten - Wien/Vienna - (Budapest or Bratislava)

(3) Munchen/Munich - Salzburg - Linz - St Polten - Wien/Vienna - Wien Flughafen/airport or Budapest

The 'Railjet-Express' branding is being used because these services make fewer station calls between Salzburg and Wien, than other Railjet services.

However, the trains used for those RJX services are no different to those used on the these SIX other Railjet (RJ) routes:

(1) Salzburg - Attnang-Puchheim - Wels - Linz - St Valentin - St Polten - Wien/Vienna - Wien Flughafen/airport
Look up a journey between Salzburg and Wien/Vienna, in either direction and these trains, which make more station calls between the two cities are the RJ services, but the faster alternative trains (see above) are the RJX services.

(2) Venezia/Venice - Treviso - Udine - Villach - Klagenfurt - Bruck an der Mer - Wien/Vienna

(3) Villach - Klagenfurt - Bruck an der Mur - Wien/Vienna - Wien Flughafen/airport

(4) Klagenfurt - Villach - Bad Gastein - Salzburg - Linz - Wien/Vienna

(5) Klagenfurt - Villach - Bad Gastein - Salzburg - Munchen/Munich

(6) Graz - Bruck an der Mer - Wien/Vienna - Breclav - Brno - Pardubice - Praha/Prague*

*Czech CD Railjets share this route with these OBB Railjet trains.

Reservations:

For journeys within Austria AND to/from Czechia, Germany, Hungary, Slovakia and Switzerland:

Reservations are only included automatically when booking seats in Business Class.

In 1st and 2nd class seats don’t HAVE to be reserved on OBB’s Railjets for and the seats are very rarely sold out - but reservations are recommended for the international journeys to/from Budapest and Munchen/Munich.
They’re also recommended when travelling to/from Wien/Vienna at business hours and either side of holidays.

When booking 1st and 2nd class tickets on ÖBB's online ticketing portal, the seat reservations are an optional 'extra' and the fee in 1st and 2nd class is €3.

Having the peace of mind of a guaranteed seat, when making comparatively long journeys, such as Wien/Vienna – Innsbruck, is also generally a good idea.

Some seats in both 1st and 2nd class don't line up very well with the windows - and on the busiest departures it tends to be these seats that are left unreserved

Travelling 1st class to/from Germany:

However, if you will be travelling from/to Munchen and book a 1st class journey ticket on DB Bahn (and not OBB), the reservation will automatically be included - so in effect it will be complimentary.

Reservations: Austria <> Italy journeys:

Reservations are now mandatory when travelling on a Railjet between Austria and Italy, the reservations will automatically be included when booking tickets but rail pass users will now need to pay a rail pass fee of €15 when travelling 1st class and €10 when travelling 2nd class.

Travelling Business Class with a 1st class rail pass:

If you will be travelling with a valid 1st class rail pass you can opt to reserve in Business Class at a cost of €15 per reservation - the fee is €33 on journeys in either direction between Austria and Italy.
Though it seems these upgrades to Business Class are not available on the Eurail and InterRail reservation services, but they can be booked on the OBB website.

Boarding:

Most of the stations that the Railjets call at have electronic displays on the gleis/platform/track that show the formation of the trains.
Use these to see the zones on the gleis, in which each coach will be located when the train arrives.

If you have reserved check the coach number in which your seat is located and wait in the appropriate zone.
Don’t be surprised if the zone you need is some distance from your entrance point to the gleis/platform/track - two Railjet trains are often joined together for some departures, meaning that the trains can be very long

If you haven’t reserved still check the electronic screens on the platform that show the zones in which the coaches will be located.
Head for the zones furthest away from the entrance to gleis/platform/track - fewer people will have headed to the far ends of each train, so you should increase your chances of finding a seat.

On the train:

Seat reservations are marked on electronic indicators by the seat numbers – find a seat number with no text and the seat will be free for the entire journey.

Travelling from Wien/Vienna to destinations west of Salzburg:

If you haven’t reserved and will be travelling from Wien/Vienna and Linz to destinations west of Salzburg, such as Innsbruck, Munich, St Anton or Zurich, pay particularly close attention to the departure info screens.

That's because between Wien/Vienna and Salzburg two Railjets trains are usually joined together.
On arrival at Salzburg they separate into two trains – one will head off to Munchen, while Innsbruck or Bregenz will be the other train's final destination.

So if you’re going on beyond Salzburg, you need to be sat in the correct part of the train - so take care particular care when boarding and then check the info displays within the train
Adding a reservation to a ticket booking will ensure that you will be sat in the correct part of the train!

Catering:

The bar/bistro on Railjets sells comparatively good hot and cold food that isn’t extortionately priced, but don’t overly rely on the full range of items being available.
A full restaurant facility is available and passengers travelling with 1st or 2nd class tickets can take seats in this restaurant car.

If you’re in 1st or Business class you can order food or drink from the catering staff that will pass through the train and have it delivered to your seat - the full restaurant menu is available.

Bicycles:

Folding bicycles can be taken on board as hand luggage, but all Railjet trains are equipped with bike racks which can accommodate up to five non-folding standard bicycles.

If you want to travel with a non-folding bicycle space must be reserved on these racks prior to boarding and the procedure for how to do this is explained on this guide to taking bikes on Austrian trains.

On board entertainment:

OBB has now equipped its Railjets with a complimentary on-board entertainment portal - 'Railnet' - the equivalent of the seat-back entertainment screens commonly found on long-haul aircraft.

As well as movies etc, the portal features live journey information - useful for connecting train info, such as which platform/track/gleis your onward train will be departing from.

The Wi-Fi on Railjets is free, and relatively easy to access and use.

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