I went to Vienna for the first time. These 4 mistakes drained my energy and bank account.

• It all started when I picked the wrong train.
• Booking the wrong Airbnb didn’t help either.
• My mistakes in Vienna had a ripple effect on my health and my wallet.

Booking the wrong room on a sleeper train left me scrambling to find a hotel room at 7 a.m.

Intrigued by the opportunity to easily explore on foot and have an unusual stay, I booked the Airstream for $300 for two nights.

On night one, I realized I’d made a mistake. The Airstream was parked in front of the hotel, right next to the street. Sounds of honking cars, passing footsteps, and strangers’ loud conversations bled into the trailer and kept me up way past my bedtime.

I also struggled to sleep because I felt exposed. On the second night, I was startled by pedestrians taking photos in front of the trailer, banging on the door, and attempting to pry it open.

A representative for Hotel Daniel told Business Insider that the Airstream can be noisy throughout the night due to its location. A hotel manager added that this was their first complaint of strangers banging on the trailer door and apologized.

In the future, I’ll book a stay inside a building when staying in city centers.

I shouldn’t have tried to squeeze so many sights into a two-day trip.

I have to give myself credit — I covered a lot of ground in just 48 hours, especially considering how much I slept on day one.

I visited multiple 17th-century palaces, frolicked through hedge mazes, and admired street art along the Danube Canal. I traveled from north to south to see the city’s most whimsical buildings up close.

In the moment, I felt like I was making great use of my limited time, but in reality, I was missing out on in-depth experiences. Hopping from place to place, I didn’t have time to go inside any palaces, cathedrals, or museums — I merely viewed their exteriors.

Booking a longer trip would have solved this problem, but that’s not always possible.

If I could have a do-over on my first trip to Vienna, I’d pick one palace and book a tour inside. I’d travel to a couple of whimsical buildings and take time to explore the surrounding blocks. And I’d sit on a bench along the Danube Canal rather than rushing past.