Home » Austria

Austria isn’t one of the first countries that comes to mind when people are planning their European holiday, but its central location means that many people pass through the country without even planning on it. And fortunately, there is plenty to keep visitors busy if they are wise enough to stop for a few days. Hotels tend to be expensive compared to southern and eastern Europe, so it’s fortunate that there are many hostels in Austria to keep things affordable for budget travelers.

Vienna is the capital and largest city, and also home to more Austria hostels than any other location. It’s a grand city with a royal past, but it’s not really known for its abundant nightlife. The Schönbrunn Castle is the city’s single most visited attraction, but it’s on the outskirts of town. There are a few Austria hostels located in this general area, but unless it’s the only thing you are planning on seeing it might be best to stay at one of the hostels in the city center.

The Blue Corridor Hostel boasts the most central location of all the Vienna hostels, and their prices are quite reasonable as well. Beds in their 10-bed dorm rooms start around €15 per night, with beds in their 4-bed dorms starting around €20 per night. The best deal might be their private twin and double rooms with shared bathrooms starting around €22 per person per night. The location is right in the middle of the nightlife and museum areas, but they have their own bar with cheap drinks for those who want to get the party started before they even hit the streets.

Salzburg is a charming small city at the foot of the Alps with plenty of attractions around it, but the city itself seems to be obsessed with Mozart and the Sound of Music, which was filmed in the area although was barely seen in Europe. There are only a couple of actual Austria hostels in Salzburg, but there are quite a few budget hotels you can also check out. The city center is the best location, but it tends to be expensive. Many of the better attractions in the area are well outside of the city anyway, so it’s debatably whether it’s worth paying more to stay in the center.

The Yoho International Youth Hostel has cheap beds and a reasonably central location. They are near the main train station, which is just across the river from the historic city center. Their cheapest beds are in their 6-bed dorm rooms starting around €18 per night. They’ve got a bar and various activities always scheduled, but their most notable is that they show The Sound of Music every morning at 10:30 a.m., and they have Sound of Music tours leaving every day at 9 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. If you’ve never been to Salzburg you should know you can’t escape tours like this, so you might as well get it over with right from your Austrian hostel’s front door.