Car rentals at Vienna Downtown

Part of our guide to car hire in Vienna.

How to Find Your Car Hire Desk at Vienna Downtown

• Book through eCarBookers first: Your booking confirmation from eCarBookers locks in your price and your vehicle class before you arrive. You pay the balance at the desk on collection, and the terms confirmed at booking are the terms you receive. Always confirm your hire in advance to guarantee your price from the moment you collect the keys.
• Where the branch is: The supplier places its Vienna Downtown branch in the historic centre of the city, in the first district, rather than at an airport or railway station. It suits a hire that begins after a hotel stay or a few days on foot, because the centre is compact and a car is not needed to see the main sights.
• Where the desk is: The supplier's listing refers both to meeting a representative and to finding a rental desk, and does not say which applies. The exact meeting point for your hire is shown on your booking voucher, which is the definitive source, so check it before you travel and follow it on arrival. Save the branch telephone number from your confirmation before you set out.
• Opening hours: Opening hours for this branch are not published on the listings checked. Confirm the hours for your date in your booking confirmation before you plan your arrival, particularly at weekends.
• Arriving by public transport: The centre is served by the underground, and the main sights lie within walking distance of one another. Arrive without a car and collect it only on the day you leave the city, because overnight garage parking in the first district is expensive.
• What to bring: The main driver should carry a valid driving licence, a passport, your booking details and a credit card in their own name with a limit high enough to cover the excess hold. An International Driving Permit is not needed for a licence issued in the EU or in English, and it is recommended for other licences.

Pick-Up, Drop-Off, and Refuelling at Vienna Downtown

• Returning the car: Return the car at the time and place shown in your booking confirmation, and confirm the drop-off point at collection. A key drop box for out-of-hours returns has not been confirmed, so arrange any early or late return with the supplier before you travel.
• Refuelling: No petrol station inside the first district has been verified for this page, and fuel stops in the historic centre are scarce. A bp station is listed at Triesterstrasse 68, 1100 Wien, in the 10th district south of the centre, with no opening hours on the listing. Refuel on the way back, and confirm the fuel type on your booking confirmation first.
• Garages in the first district: The Freyung Parkgarage on Herrengasse, the Garage Kärntnerring at Kärntner Ring 5-7 with its entrance on Mahlerstrasse, the Parkring Parkgarage at Parkring 12a and the Weihburggasse Parkgarage at Weihburggasse 32 all serve the old town. One guide lists the Kärntnerring garage at about €4.50 an hour with a daily maximum of €36.00.
• Lower-cost garages: The garage beside Karlsplatz, with its entrance at Mattiellistrasse 2-4, is listed at about €2.50 an hour and about €15 for the day, roughly 500 metres from the Staatsoper. The P+R Erdberg garage at the St Marx motorway exit is listed at about €4.10 a day, with the U3 station next door and Stephansplatz about 7 minutes away by underground. Prices are from guides, so read the signs on arrival.
• Street parking: Short-stay parking zones cover all of Vienna from Monday to Friday, 9:00 am to 10:00 pm, with a maximum stay of two hours and a charge of about €1.25 per 30 minutes. Paper tickets are sold at tobacconists, underground ticket machines and many petrol stations, and a parking app is the alternative.
• Driving in the centre: Parts of the first district are pedestrian zones, so follow the signs and your satnav and approach the garages by the marked entrances. Trams run on the Ringstrasse, so give way to them and keep clear of the tracks.
• Vignette and winter tyres: Rental cars in Austria usually include the motorway vignette, but the supplier asks you to confirm this at collection. Winter tyres are required from 1 November to 15 April in snowy or icy conditions, and winter hires normally come fitted with them.
• Before you drive away: Complete the vehicle condition report at collection, and photograph the car on all four sides, the wheels, the windscreen and the interior. Repeat it at return so that any mark is recorded on both occasions.

Top Car Hire Agencies at Vienna Downtown

Car hire at Vienna Downtown is available through Green Motion.

Every booking through eCarBookers shows the excess amount and full price before you confirm, and the balance is paid on arrival at the desk. Optional extras — such as additional drivers, supplemental tyre and glass cover, child seats, or out-of-hours fees — may be available from the supplier if required.

Getting from Vienna Downtown to Key Destinations

• Vienna Airport (VIE) — about 19 km south-east, in roughly 19 minutes without traffic. It is the quickest link for a hire that ends with a flight.
• Klosterneuburg — about 14 km north-west, in roughly 19 minutes. The town on the Danube is home to a large abbey and is the easiest short trip out of the city.
• Baden bei Wien — about 30 km south, in roughly 34 minutes. The spa town sits at the edge of the Vienna Woods and suits a half-day.
• Bratislava — about 67 km east, in roughly 58 minutes. The route crosses into Slovakia, so confirm with the supplier that your hire allows it, and check the motorway requirements on the Slovak side.
• Melk — about 88 km west, in roughly 59 minutes. The abbey town marks the start of the Wachau valley, and the drive suits a full day.

How Payment Works for Car Hire at Vienna Downtown

A rental prepayment confirms your booking online with Instant Confirmation, and you pay the balance directly to the supplier on arrival. The price and vehicle class shown at booking are the terms you receive, and cancellation is free. The supplier may place an excess hold on the main driver's credit card, so check that the card in the driver's name has enough available limit.