Big Bus Vienna FAQ: Routes, Stops and Tickets

It is most useful when Schönbrunn and the Belvedere are on your list, because those palaces sit well away from the old town and the bus links them without a long tram or taxi plan. If you only want the Ringstrasse and the inner city, the sights there are close enough to explore on foot, so the bus adds less. Use it for the outer sights and walk the centre.

The ticket page is the place to check how long a full circuit takes on the route you are considering. Allow extra time at any stop where you plan to get off.

The Opera stops are also close to the State Opera itself.

The Blue Route serves Schönbrunn, with its Schönbrunn Palace & Zoo stop about 200 metres from Schönbrunn Palace. The stop is the one to remember when planning the palace visit.

Yes, the Blue Route has an Upper Belvedere stop directly at Belvedere Palace and a Lower Belvedere stop. Both are on the Blue Route, so the palace and its gardens are easy to combine with Schönbrunn in one day. Mornings are generally quieter at these stops.

Yes, the Red Route calls at the Prater, which is the stop to use for the giant Ferris wheel. The Prater is a stop on the Red Route. It makes the Red Route a good choice if you want a more relaxed stop in the middle of a city day.

Children can typically ride a hop-on hop-off bus as part of a family day, and the two routes suit families well: the Blue Route reaches Schönbrunn Palace & Zoo and the Red Route passes the Prater. Child eligibility is set per ticket, so check the ticket page for the age rules before you book.

The format lets you get off near the sights you want and pick up a later bus on the same route. Stops are listed in ride order, which makes it easy to plan a sequence through the centre or out to the palaces. The exact boarding rules belong to the ticket you buy, so read them on the ticket page.

Late spring and early autumn are generally mild and suit an open-top ride best. Winter can be cold on the upper deck, so dress for it if you visit in those months. Choose a morning if you want the palace stops quieter before the afternoon crowds arrive.

The central sights sit close enough to combine into one half-day on foot: the Hofburg, Rathaus, the Kunsthistorisches Museum, St. Stephen's Cathedral, Heldenplatz, the State Opera, the Spanish Riding School, the Albertina and the Historic Center of Vienna. A walking tour suits that core well, while the bus is the better choice for Schönbrunn, the Belvedere and the Prater, which lie well outside it.

The Hofburg has a stop on the Red Route, and Heldenplatz is about 200 metres from it. City Hall (Rathaus) has its own stop, and the State Opera and the Albertina are reached from the Opera stops. St. Stephen's Cathedral is about 450 metres from the Schwedenplatz stop.

Melk Abbey, which lies outside the city, has no stop within walking distance, so the bus will not get you there. Plan transport for Melk separately.

Yes, a separate evening tour leaves from the Opera / Walfischgasse stop, but it is not a hop-on hop-off ride, so you cannot get on and off along the way. It is sold separately from the daytime hop-on hop-off tickets. Compare it against those tickets before deciding.