Salt Lake City to Vienna Flights (SLC to VIE): Connections, Flight Time and Arrival Guide

A one-stop trip, usually through a European hub

There is no nonstop between Salt Lake City and Vienna. SLC is a Delta hub with its own transatlantic flights, and those flights make the trip a clean one-stop with a short European connection at the end. Austrian Airlines serves the US from New York, Newark, Washington and Chicago, but not Utah, so its routings need a domestic first leg.

As of recent schedules, the realistic one-stop options are:

• Delta and KLM via Amsterdam. Delta flies Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, and KLM flies Amsterdam to Vienna several times a day. One ticket through the Delta-KLM-Air France joint venture.
• Delta and Air France via Paris. Delta's Salt Lake City to Paris flight connects with Air France to Vienna. Charles de Gaulle connections can be long walks, so allow time.
• Delta via London Heathrow. Delta has flown Salt Lake City to London in recent seasons; from Heathrow, British Airways and Austrian fly to Vienna. Check whether the London flight is operating for your dates.
• United or Austrian via a US hub. Fly to Chicago, Newark or Washington and connect onto Austrian or United to Vienna. Two long legs instead of one long and one short, but Austrian lands you in its home terminal.

If you see a two-stop itinerary priced below these, it is rarely worth the extra hours on a route with this many good one-stops.

Distance and travel time

Salt Lake City to Vienna is roughly 5,500 miles (about 8,900 km) on the great circle. A nonstop would take around ten and a half hours; with one stop in Europe, expect 13 to 16 hours door to door. The Atlantic leg from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam or Paris is typically nine and a half to ten hours, and the hop to Vienna about two.

Eastbound flights leave Salt Lake City in the afternoon and land in Europe the next morning, with Vienna reached around midday or early afternoon. The return leaves Vienna in the morning, connects in Europe and lands in Salt Lake City the same afternoon or evening, with the Atlantic leg about an hour longer against the wind.

Leaving from SLC

Salt Lake City International's new single terminal opened in stages from 2020, with Concourse A and Concourse B linked by an underground walkway. Delta's international departures use Concourse A, and the walk from security to the far gates is long, so give yourself time even though there is no train. TRAX light rail's Green Line runs from the airport station to downtown Salt Lake City in about 20 minutes.

For an international departure, two and a half to three hours before the flight is comfortable. Ski season brings heavy weekend traffic through the airport from December to March, and winter storms can delay departures, so avoid a short connection in Europe during those months.

Arriving at Vienna International and getting into the city

Vienna International has one main terminal building with Terminal 3 handling Austrian Airlines and Star Alliance flights and Terminal 1 most other carriers; arrivals from Amsterdam or Paris are Schengen flights, so you clear passport control at your first European stop and walk straight out in Vienna. If you came via London, you clear Schengen passport control in Vienna.

The airport is about 18 km south-east of the centre, and the rail links are the best way in:

• City Airport Train (CAT). Nonstop to Wien Mitte in about 16 minutes, every half hour. Fast and comfortable, but the most expensive option.
• S-Bahn S7. The regular suburban train to Wien Mitte and other city stations in about 25 minutes, at a fraction of the CAT fare.
• OBB Railjet. Direct trains to Wien Hauptbahnhof in about 15 minutes, with onward connections to Salzburg, Graz and Budapest.
• Taxi. 25 to 40 minutes to the Ring; pre-booked airport taxis are common and often cheaper than the rank.

Vienna's trams, U-Bahn and buses are among the best public transport in Europe, and a day or week pass covers most visitors' needs.

Entry rules for Austria

Austria is in the Schengen area. As of recent rules, US passport holders can visit for up to 90 days in any 180-day period without a visa, with a passport valid for at least three months beyond departure and issued within the last ten years. The EU's Entry/Exit System now records biometrics at your first Schengen entry point, and the ETIAS pre-travel authorisation is expected once it launches. Check the Austrian Foreign Ministry and the EU's official travel pages before you book.

If you connect in Amsterdam or Paris, your passport is checked there rather than in Vienna, so build that queue into the connection time.

When to go

Vienna rewards two very different seasons. May, June and September are warm and green, with outdoor heurigen wine taverns open in the vineyards on the city edge and concerts in the parks. July and August are hot and busier, and some of the big music venues take a summer break.

Winter is the other high point: Advent markets from mid-November, the ball season in January and February, and the opera and concert halls in full swing. Fares from Salt Lake City are highest in the US summer holidays and around Christmas, and demand from Utah also rises in ski season, when inbound visitors fill the westbound flights. January after the holidays, March and November are usually the best value. Book two to four months ahead for summer and Advent.

Time difference and jet lag

Vienna is on Central European Time, eight hours ahead of Salt Lake City for most of the year, with a week or two at seven hours in spring and autumn when the US and Europe change their clocks on different weekends.

Eastbound is the hard direction, because the overnight Atlantic leg is short and you land at midday after little sleep. A walk around the Ring in daylight and a normal Vienna bedtime fix most of it within two days. Westbound is easier: you arrive in Salt Lake City in the afternoon and can sleep early.

What travellers on this route get wrong

The common mistakes are taking the CAT when the S-Bahn or Railjet would have been as quick for their hotel, booking a tight Paris connection without allowing for Charles de Gaulle's long transfers, and arriving at the opera or a ball without checking the dress code. One more: Sundays in Vienna are quiet, with most shops closed, so plan your arrival day around that.