Car rental in Vienna - A Classical Music Haven

Yes - a valid credit card under the main driver's name must be supplied during the pick-up process. Failure to do so may mean that the supplier doesn’t release the vehicle, and you may lose your booking. A credit card is used to hold a deposit on. Normally only one credit card is needed, but for certain car categories and luxury vehicles, two or more may be requested. Please make sure you have enough funds in order to cover the deposit.

The deposit amount varies and is dependent on the supplier, location, vehicle and duration of rental. All major credit cards are accepted, including Mastercard and Visa. For further information click on the blue info icon (i) next to the rental rate, or consult your booking vouchers terms and conditions. The security deposit will be returned back onto the same card once it is confirmed that the car has been returned in the same condition as when it left.

Upon placing a reservation for your vehicle, the base rental rate shown includes the minimum legally required insurance coverage for Austria. This is Collision Damage Waiver (CDW), Theft Protection (TP) and Limited Liability Insurance, with and without excess. This coverage does not protect every part of the vehicle nor in every eventuality.

If you’re interested in greater coverage, we recommend taking out our Full Damage Protection Coverage. For a small daily fee, your vehicle will have great parts coverage and across more eventualities. The fee is based on the vehicle type, location and rental duration. Information of which is available by clicking the blue info icon or consulting your rental voucher.

Local suppliers often offer insurance at location. This is optional and for the most part if you have already taken out our Full Protection Coverage - won’t be needed. Said insurances are Roadside Assistance, Super CDW, Travel Insurance, Breakdown Cover, Personal Effects Insurance (PEI), Personal Accident Insurance (PAI) and many more. These are all optional and will not be refunded even if deemed unnecessary afterwards. Read our full car rental coverage section to see all available insurance options for Vienna.

Traffic congestion in Vienna like in all capitals can be problematic, especially during rush hour. Much of downtown Vienna is pedestrianised with roadworks being frequent. Buses and trams share roads with vehicles. It is not uncommon for cars to use the same tramways. When this is the case, always remember that buses and trams have priority.

One-way streets leading off main avenues are common and are sign-posted with the word “Einbahn”. Cyclists are common in the city with some bicycle lanes running against the flow of traffic. On large avenues and motorways, you may see a sign that says “Rettungsgasse”. This is an Austrian law that enforces the need for vehicles to create an emergency corridor for emergency vehicles in case of traffic jams.

There are more than 2,800 kms of roads in vienna. To date, 51 are motorways and dual carriageways. The south-eastern bypass A23 cuts right through some busy areas - although can be busy itself during peak-times. If you drive through the A22 Kaiser tunnel, there are average speed cameras present within the tunnel itself. Lastly, make sure that your vehicle has a vignette as this is compulsory in Austria.

There are no free parking spaces in central Vienna. Many districts in Vienna are covered by a short-stay car parking policy. This means that you are permitted to park your car during certain times by paying a fee. Each district is appropriately sign-posted with active times of operation and costs,and how long you may park for.

Kurzparkzone signs set out the full parking restrictions. Generally, in central Vienna, you can park for a maximum of 2-hours, Monday to Friday, 09:00 until 22:00, and on Saturday from 09:00 to 23:59. You may pay for parking at any ATM machine, metro station ticking machine or newsagents. In either case, we highly recommend using an underground car park instead.

Underground parking is secure and often conveniently located. Some of the best car parking garages can be found at Prater, Kärntnerstraße and Hietzing, to name but a few. Lastly, a popular option is to park outside the city and utilise the Park & Ride facilities. This means parking outside and catching public transport into central Vienna. This is often cheaper, quicker and less stressful.

Yes - mostly all motorways in the country are tolled. This toll is paid for by purchasing a vignette, valid for 10 days and affixing it to the windscreen. Vignettes can be purchased at petrol stations and post offices. There is a digital vignette that can be purchased online at ASFiNAG (Austrian Highway Administration) website or on the Unterwegs app.

Most car rental suppliers already include the vignette on their rental cars and within the rental rate free of charge. Buchbinder is one such supplier. Other suppliers may have this option as an add-on and charge accordingly. This add-on is paid directly to the supplier during collection. Please contact our reservation team to find out more.

The law in Austria makes it compulsory to use winter tyres if the weather conditions require them - such as with snow, ice, etc. Unlike other countries, the law does not stipulate the exact dates. All our suppliers include winter tyres during the winter months. Generally, from the 1st of November until the 15th April. During this period, it is included in the rental rate. Outside of it you will have to pay.

If driving to the Alps, it is possible to add snow-chains to your booking or a ski rack. A small daily fee is applied, and it is subject to availability. These add-ons do not need to be requested during your online booking, instead you can request them during pick-up on the day. The fee is paid directly to the supplier. We do provide free winter tyres with some suppliers, so check our offers to see who's included.