Vienna Airport

Vienna-Dublin 26 April. Departed from what was the non-Shengen area of the terminal and found it to be overcrowded with a lack of sitting space. It was mid-morning so there was quite alot of long haul departures at the time. The toilets had an awful smell and no paper towels to dry your hands but I imagine this was just a temporary thing. Staff were pleasant and certainly helped the situation but a far cry from the likes of FRA and DUS.

Good airport arrived at Vienna after an unpleasant experience at Frankfurt and it was like chalk and cheese. Vienna is clean spacious well sign posted and efficient. Took no time at all to get through various checks and retrieve baggage. Pleasant experience at this airport.

Passed through the main terminal last month and found it to easy to use. If coming from Vienna city there is a direct train service from the city air terminal you can also check in for all Star Alliance flights and some others at the downtown terminal. Useful if you have a late flight as you can get rid of your bags early. Check in at the airport for my Swiss flight was carried out by Austrian airlines and the lady who checked me in was basically unhelpful she checked my bag through to Singapore but refused to issue my Zurich -Singapore boarding pass saying I could get it latter. When I asked where the business lounge was located I was told " in departures". Access to the departure area is easy as the security checks are carried out at the entrance to the gate lounge. The departure lounge is divided into two segments Schengen / Non Schengen the majority of the shops and eating facilities are in the Schengen area. These retail outlets are the standard high end shops you find in most airports. The restaurants are mostly of the self service type but the wine bar does have a good selection of Austrian wines available by the glass. If your flight departs from the A gates remember to leave enough time to clear immigration as this can get very busy during the morning and evening rush hour periods

Transit through VIE is an easy experience as walking distances are short. There is no need to rush when flying from C-gates as security checks are performed at each boarding gate. More time must be planned when flying from B-gates which have a central security checkpoint: it is quite busy around 5pm or 8pm with a lot of connecting flights. VIE suffers from a lack of seating areas which is quite noticeable during morning and evening peak hours.

Nice Airport with short walking distances effective checkin. Seating and waiting area at the gates could be bigger especially on the bigger international flights its sometimes too crowded. The lounges are very nice and offer good service but beware if you arrive before 05:00: they are still closed (for example coming from Mumbai). Otherwise pleasant to airport.

Earlier comments are agreed but to add to them note that on arrival we took the City Air Terminal train (branded as 'CAT') to the city just 16 minutes away and buying a return saves a euro or so on two singles. Ticket purchase is from machines in the arrival hall or on the platform but 50 Euro notes are not accepted so if paying cash have some lower denominations. You can also use a slightly slower but less expensive train on the same route - a bit like Gatwick Express v Southern from Victoria I guess. Some airlines including Austrian allow check-in at the City Terminal and this was real boon on the return leg meaning that we were unencumbered with baggage at an early stage. Note that taxis seemed reluctant to stop immediately outside the city terminal and we found it easier to cross to the rank diagonally opposite where there were more taxis passing however they also pull in at the rear of the terminal for dropping-off so keep an eye out in that direction as well.

Smoking in the bar and restaurant a bit of a nuisance. Lots of shops and a few bargains to be had. Security followed the Singapore model at the gate. It seemed to be a bit cramped. The gate lounge could also get crowded. A nice airport though.

This is the only airport I have been to that has a porn store (sorry adult entertainment store) in the duty free area. Lots and lots of duty free shops. Several discount airlines have check-in counters in a separate building across the street from the main terminal but boarding is in the main building. Having separate security check-in for each gate has its plusses and minuses but we found it strange that we were made to stand in the terminal's corridor until 40 minutes before our flight at which time we were allowed to go through security and sit down in the boarding area until actual boarding was announced. There is a train from Vienna's town center but we opted for a cab in order to avoid changing Metro trains twice and then getting on the 9 Euro train (prices ended up being close).

Arriving at Vienna was simple enough. We were bussed to the terminal straight through the door to passport control and then a very short walk to baggage reclaim. Short walk to the exit and the bus to Schwedenplatz. I had expected chaos because of the building works (see Warsaw). Leaving Vienna T1 was pleasant. There are two large duty free shops more retail outlets than you need and ample eating and drinking facilities. Security was at the gate but this was less chaotic than I first feared. All in all a good airport

I travelled through in transit. If you land at terminal C you need a bus to the rest of the airport. The worst thing about this place is the number of people smoking especially in the restaurants. One good thing wireless Internet is free!