drive from prague to vienna- doable?
 

can you rent a car and drive from prague to vienna? anyone do it? or is rail the better way? we are 4 adults, and looking for the best alternatives and stops along the way.

www.mappy.com shows that its 339 miles from Prague to Vienna and it will take 4 hours plus to drive there.

I have no idea of train fares but there's much posted on that. Perhaps a search on trains Prague Vienna could help.

I did it by train. It was fast and not very expensive, though I cannot remember how much I paid (it was before the euro).

The bus is also a reasonable alternative. It takes about 20 minutes longer than the train but that time is made up by dropping you in a the center of Vienna. The cost is about a third of the price of the train. The bus is comfortable (better than Greyhound) but doesn't have a toilet. However, there is a rest stop halfway.

I think you'll find that the distance is actually 339 km - but the 4 hours is about right.

is it worth driving in terms of sightseeing?

I've driven the other direction - - but I ultimately returned the car to Austria - - and the (high) cost of a one-way drop will likely be your determining factor.

Sightseeing along the way? At the Czech borders, you will see ticky-tacky shops that sell ceramic trolls (including some "naughty" ones), and some hookers along what appear to be otherwise lonely country highway.

We made a superficial stop at Telc, which could occupy you for 15 minutes or a few hours, I think.

Knowing how this fits into an overall itinerary would help me to advise you better.

Best wishes,

Rex

we are arriving in prague- have 9 nights- until we fly home from Budapest. Looking to see if we should fly or take rail between Prague and Vienna- if there is other touring to do, and whatever else anyone can suggest for the nine nights to set our otinerary.

Because our visas were processed through the embassy in Vienna, my husband and I have made the Prague to Vienna drive multiple times.

Is it doable? Yes. Is there any interesting sightseeing? Not really. You'll drive through some beautiful countryside, some vineyards and some tiny towns.

As of May, there was some serious construction underway, and a large part of our drive was on two-lane roads (one in each direction). I'm pretty sure they aren't finished with it yet as it had been in the works since our first trek (December), and if the computation is still registering at four hours, it sounds like nothing has changed.

If you are looking primarily to save money and like natural scenery, it could be fine. Will it be a highlight of your trip? I doubt it.

Hope this helps!
--MP :)

cost of renting the car will be about $350 US- we are 4 adults- as we need a van or suv for luggage- so we are contemplating this drive vs rail if we can see something interesting-s omeone mentioned to be about stopping in salzburgmake sense to anyone. also cost of car might also be a 3 day minimum- would we use the car in vienaa?

Hi W,

www.railsaver.com estimates the cost of Prague/Vienna at $36 pp.

It's about 3 hr from Vienna to Salzburg.

((I))