Advent 2025: Vienna Relies Again on Proven Bus Concept

On the shopping Saturdays during Advent, there is an increase in day tourists traveling by bus to Vienna to visit the numerous Christmas markets and stroll through Vienna's shopping streets. However, this development also brings a significantly increased volume of traffic in the inner-city area on these days.

Proven Measures in Vienna's City Center

To better coordinate this influx and minimize traffic jams in Vienna, the proven bus concept will be applied again this pre-Christmas season. The aim is to achieve a satisfactory solution for both visitors and residents. On one hand, the concept provides the enormous number of day guests traveling to Vienna by bus with a secure access, as well as boarding and alighting options, while on the other hand, the burden on residents and disruptions to individual traffic caused by bus traffic should be kept as low as possible.

Bus Concept in Advent in Vienna: The Regulations in Detail

On the Advent Saturdays, there is a general bus driving ban in Vienna's districts 1 and 6-9 from 06:00 to 20:00, except for buses with a valid entry permit and line buses. The affected area is within the Lände, Franz-Josefs-Kai, Uraniastraße, Vordere Zollamtsstraße, Am Stadtpark, Am Heumarkt, Lothringer Straße, Wienzeile, Gürtel, and the Nordbergbrücke-Lände (excluding these streets).

Further Measures in Vienna

This year, access to Vienna's Schwedenplatz will also be closed to buses without an entry permit. This affects access from the south as well as from the east and north. The buses will be redirected (coming from the south) to the boarding and alighting point at Praterstern and (coming from the north) to the Gürtel (near Westbahnhof). This measure aims to significantly improve the complex traffic situation at Schwedenplatz on the Advent shopping Saturdays, as in previous years.

In Vienna's 1st district, if necessary, the police will close access to the Rotenturmstraße area in addition to the previous closures of Bauernmarkt from Hoher Markt, Tuchlauben, and Lichtensteg for general traffic. Access for resident traffic, delivery traffic, line buses, taxis, and horse-drawn carriages is possible. In the online city map of the city of Vienna, the bus parking spaces and boarding and alighting points can be accessed online at www.wien.gv.at/stadtplan.

Without a bus entry permit, there is no access to the bus zone on the Advent Saturdays: Entry into the mentioned areas is only permitted for bus drivers with a valid entry permit. Due to capacity reasons, a maximum of 350 entry permits are available per day from the city of Vienna. Secured free parking spaces are available for this number of buses. Buses with a special entry permit for the city center (details on the pages of the Vienna Chamber of Commerce) are allowed to enter the zone but may not use the boarding and alighting points at Museumsplatz.

Application for Cards Online from 27.10.2025

The cards can be applied for online at www.buseinfahrtskarte.wien.at and must also be paid for in advance by credit card.

After filling out an electronic form, you will receive the bus entry card for Advent 2025 as a PDF file via email, print it out, and then attach it visibly behind the windshield of the respective bus. The control of the bus entry cards is carried out by the police.

The bus entry cards are restricted to the respective license plate and authorize on the defined day for:

- Approaching the drop-off and pick-up points at Museumsplatz

- The use of a free parking space (assigned during the application process)

- Picking up guests at the chosen time slot at Museumsplatz

For picking up guests at Museumsplatz, there are three selectable time slots: 15:30-17:00; 17:00-18:30; from 18:30 onwards. These must also be specified when applying for the card.

Options for Buses That No Longer Receive Day Cards

Buses with day guests that can no longer receive a day entry card will be redirected to subway stations. At the stadium, transferring to public transport is mandatory.

Pick-Up and Drop-Off Points for Buses Without Entry Permits

If bus drivers have not received the appropriate entry permit, the following pick-up and drop-off points are available around the restricted traffic zone, especially for those coming from the north or west:

- Karlsplatz, ONr. 5 (in front of the Künstlerhaus)

- Vorgartenstraße (U2 Stadium)

- Pierre-de-Coubertin-Platz

Parking Options in Vienna for Buses Without Entry Permits

For bus drivers without the appropriate entry permits, Pierre-de-Coubertin-Platz (U2) is available as a parking option.

From there, visitors can conveniently reach the city center in no time via the nearby U2 subway line. Reference is made to the services of Wiener Linien at www.wienerlinien.at.

Area of Vienna's Schönbrunn Palace

For tour buses entering Vienna via the western entrance to Schönbrunn Palace, the following pick-up and drop-off points as well as parking options are planned again this year:

Boarding and Alighting Points: In front of Schönbrunn Palace, boarding and alighting, as well as parking for buses, is now only possible at the new parking lot opposite the Orangery. On the parking lot itself, there is no parking available for cars on the four Advent Saturdays (29.11., 06.12., 13.12., 20.12.) as well as on 31.12.2025 and 01.01.2026.

Further information and tips are also provided by the Vienna Bus Drivers' Guide.

Useful Links:

http://buszufahrt.wkoratgeber.at/

http://b2b.wien.info/de/reisebranche/busguide

More about Christmas in Vienna

(Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.