nandshah

My parents would like to travel from Hallstat to Venice by train and I see from other posts that this either involves also a bus journey or 2 changes by train before reaching Venice. I am not sure whether they will be able to manage this. So, I was checking whether there is a direct train (either day or night) between Hallstat and Venice?

PalenQ

There is no direct train, day or night - the best rail link I can find (using www.bahn.de/en) leave Hallstatt most days at 8:28, arrives in Attnang-Puchheim 9:45

10:01 leaves there for Innsbruck arrives 12:56 - next train EC train leaves Innsburck 13:27, arriving in Venice at Santa Lucia (main station on a main canal so water taxis and public vaporettos take you right from the steps of the station to your hotel (water raxi).

Fairly easy with enough time to change without running. Other links have 3 or more changes. Some other trains may have you change at Villach to a bus in which case they'd have to walk from train station outside to the bus - 5 minutes bahn.de says about that walk.

For lots of good info on European trains check these fine sites: www.seat61.com; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com.

greg

The train travel described by the previous poster is a 9 hours 42 min trip. On top of this, you have to add boat trip from Hallstatt village to the Hallstatt train station on other shore as well as the Santa Lucia train station to hotel. What they looking at is an 11 hour trip day!

I noticed they land in Vienna from your other thread. If they are arriving early in the morning, one option is to go straight to Hallstatt upon landing. It would be a 5 hour trip from VIE to Hallstatt village. Then return to Vienna city for stay, then take a direct train from Vienna to Venice, a no train change required 7 hours 35 min trip.

Either way, the total travel time is the same. The alternate option redistributes the travel time into different size buckets.

PalenQ

And there is an overnight train rolling between Venice and Vienna and v.versa.

nytraveler

Hallstatt is a tiny town not on major rail lines - so getting to Venice is going to be a trek - unless they either rent a car or hire a private diver - since the trip seems to be about 6 hours (without stops) by car.

PalenQ

Hallstatt is just a few minutes off a major rail line and the sideline it is on - really Obertraun sp? across the lake is on has hourly trains - Hallstatt has superb rail links.

PalenQ

The reason it takes so long to go from Hallstatt to Venice is that there are no high-speed rail lines involved but conventional ones, through at times rugged Alpine terrain, so by train it is most of the day.

Man_in_seat_61

Just use www.oebb.at to see times and fares.

Ignore options which include an 'ICbus' as it's a long-distance bus. Look for options that are all train with just 3 changes, there's a departure around 08:30 and another around 11:00 as I recall, changing Attnang-Puttheim and Innsbruck, arriving 18:10 and around 21:40 respectively, both departures taking you on a comfortable EuroCity train with restaurant car through the scenic Brenner Pass.

Man_in_seat_61

...you'll see Hallstatt to Venice fares from as little as 39 euros.