Vienna is the kind of city a fanciful child might draw: a whirl of insanely lavish palaces, folly-filled parks, horse-drawn carriages clip-clopping along stately boulevards, and gilded, chandelier-lit concert halls and coffee houses as opulent as can be. Nowhere can touch the Austrian capital for all-out grandeur, but as such it can seem standoffish — a film set of a city that aims to impress rather than endear.
Wandering Vienna’s historic heart, the Innere Stadt, the 21st century can feel like a distant dream. But as with all good fairy-tales, there’s a twist.
The Vienna of classical music and Habsburg razzmatazz is surprisingly edgy when you deviate from the usual tourist trail. Dive into under-the-radar neighbourhoods, linger in backstreet cafés, feel the summer vibes on Danube Island, nose around farmers’ markets or hook onto socially minded tours and you’ll discover a far more progressive side to the city. It’s this ability to waltz between past and present, urban and outdoors that places Vienna firmly at the top of the charts time and again when it comes to the world’s greenest and most liveable, loveable cities.
This article contains links from which we may earn revenue. More information here.
What to do
If it’s your first visit to Vienna, you won’t be able to resist the pomp and ceremony of the Innere Stadt (1st District). This is Vienna’s beating heart, with its decorous baroque streets, parks and palaces. Rising above it all is St Stephen’s Cathedral, a gothic knockout with its filigree spires and chevron-tiled roof. If you’re feeling sprightly, race up the south tower’s 343 steps for a fabulous view over Vienna to the wooded hills beyond.
Advertisement
Ruling the roost for more than 600 years, the Habsburgs had the golden touch when it came to collecting palaces and art galleries to rival the world’s finest. Get an early start and pre-book to skip the queues at the big one: the Hofburg (Imperial Palace), for a look at the glittering state apartments and crown jewels. Time it right and you can also see Lipizzaner stallions prance around the Spanish Riding School and hear the cherubic Vienna Boys’ Choir sing Sunday mass at the Burgkapelle.
If one palace simply isn’t enough, jump on the U-Bahn for a quick ride to Prince Eugene of Savoy’s pad: the exuberantly baroque Belvedere Palace, with its Klimt masterpieces — including The Kiss — and Versailles-inspired formal gardens. Or tour the Unesco world heritage, 1,441-room Schönbrunn Palace and its regal folly- and fountain-filled gardens. The Mirror Room is where a six-year-old Mozart wowed Empress Maria Theresa with his first public performance.
You could never see all the art in Vienna in a lifetime, so pick wisely. This is a city where you can drift into a gallery for an hour and end up spending the entire day. The Albertina, showing a peerless graphic art collection in a Habsburg palace, and the neoclassical Kunsthistorisches Museum (Museum of Art History), with its outstanding stash of old masters of the Raphael and Pieter Bruegel the Elder calibre, are just the tip of the iceberg.
In the born-again imperial stables, the MuseumsQuartier moves to a more contemporary beat, its monolithic galleries, cafes and open-air courtyards sprinkled with colour-changing Enzo lounge chairs. The world’s largest collection of angsty Schieles hang out in the Leopold Museum, while the MUMOK presents an outstanding array of 20th-century art — from pop art to shock-horror Viennese Actionism.
Wrapping up the 1st district neatly is the Ringstrasse (or the ‘Ring’ as the Viennese call it). Emperor Franz Josef’s 19th-century showpiece boulevard runs for three miles around palaces, parks, grand hotels and coffee houses. Hop on tram 1 at Schwedenplatz as the city begins to twinkle at dusk for a spin past landmarks such as the neo-Renaissance Vienna State Opera, where waltz king Strauss once conducted.
Where to stay
Advertisement
Vienna’s 1st district, the Innere Stadt, places you in the historic thick of things in grand hotels with five-star trimmings. There’s the marble-and-stucco romance of Hotel Imperial in a palace on the Ring, the old-school opulence of Hotel Sacher (with its famed chocolate cakes), and the art nouveau sophistication of Park Hyatt in the revamped Bank of Austria, with a spa in its former bank vault.
But Vienna can do modern-day glam, too, for instance at Do & Co, sidling up to St Stephen’s Cathedral with its mirrored façade, sexily dark interiors and a dress-circle view of Vienna, or 1930s-style, gold-kissed Lamée, where a roof terrace opens up the city like a pop-up book.
Beyond the centre, there’s more spice, social enterprise and sustainability in the mix: from retro-cool Magdas at the Prater, run by refugees, to Grätzlhotel, where architects have transformed abandoned shops into hip suites near the Karmelitermarkt. Rooftop beehives, in-house bakeries, small-batch wines and street art — this is how Vienna hotels tick today. For arts and edge, base yourself in the city’s 2nd, 7th and 8th districts.
Food and drink
Vienna’s food scene has exploded recently. The worldly Austrian capital never misses a trick when it comes to embracing the latest culinary trend: farm-to-fork, plant-based, vegan, zero-waste, slow, organic, foraged and fermented — you name it. Dip into the neighbourhoods beyond the 1st district and you’ll find the lot —but that’s not to say you can’t still order an enormous wiener schnitzel.
For traditional food, there are wood-panelled Beisln (taverns) all over Vienna, where you can cosy up over cheap lunch specials and hearty grub such as Tafelspitz (braised beef with horseradish). Food markets like the Naschmarkt and Karmelitermarkt are great for inexpensive lunches, picnics and snacking on the hoof. Or grab a wurst with mustard or Käsekrainer (smoked pork sausage stuffed with cheese — Vienna’s answer to the dirty kebab) at a sausage stand like Bitzinger, right behind the Vienna State Opera on Albertinaplatz.
Advertisement
No Vienna trip is complete without spending an hour chatting, scoffing cake, people watching and setting the world to rights in a Kaffeehaus (coffee house). Freud, Klimt and Trotsky hung out in the city’s coffee houses a century ago and some have changed little since then, such as marble-columned Café Central and atmospherically faded Café Sperl.
See out the day in style over a rooftop spritzer or cocktail and skyline views at Hotel Lamée or Das Loft at the Sofitel. On summer evenings, follow the Viennese up to the Heurigen (wine taverns) in the hills on the city fringes for sunset drinks and dinner with views over the vines.
Don’t miss
Nobody is denying the big-hitters are magnificent, but you’ll get a truer feeling for Vienna if you go beyond the Imperial Palace and St Stephen’s Cathedral. Detour into neighbourhoods full of indie shops, galleries and boho cafés in the 7th district, Neubau, or the Freihausviertel near the Naschmarkt, and you’ll see a distinctly more relaxed side to the city.
More than half of Vienna is parkland, making it one of the world’s greenest cities, so when you’ve had your fill of sightseeing, make for the chestnut-lined avenues of the Prater, where the Riesenrad Ferris Wheel of The Third Man fame gently turns, or the Danube Island — a 13-mile ribbon of greenery where the Viennese go to swim, cycle, skate, surf, flirt, party and sunbathe naked in summer.
Vienna channels its interest in the weird and offbeat into more obscure sights, including the Museum of Art Fakes and the wonky, colour-splashed Hundertwasserhaus, bearing the hallmark of Austrian artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser, who called the straight line ‘godless’. For alternative guided tours, try Whoosh, who organise Ugly Vienna and olfactory Smells Like Wien Spirit walks, as well as Coffeehouse Conversations, where you can talk to a total stranger about life’s big subjects.
Advertisement
The city is blazing ahead when it comes to social tourism: Shades run guided tours of Vienna’s backstreets led by homeless guides, and generation-bridging Vollpension café employ a team of Omas (grannies) to bake some of Vienna’s tastiest cakes, giving them a social outlet and boosting their pensions.
Know before you go
Summers can be hot and winters bitterly cold with occasional snow. Avoid holiday times to sidestep the biggest crowds. Spring can be a glorious time to visit, with parks in full bloom, while autumn brings golden days and Sturm (young wine) to Vienna’s vineyards and Heurigen (wine taverns). Summer spills outdoors at parties, gigs, dance festivals and in Schanigärten (pavement cafes). These peak at September’s Donauinselfest, when the world’s largest free open-air music festival rocks the Danube Island. Visit in December for Christmas markets, and January and February for the balls in full swing.
Getting around Vienna is a breeze, thanks to the efficient, extensive Wiener Linien public transport network. Buy tickets online or in situ and validate when boarding. The City Airport Train runs half hourly to Wien Mitte in 16 minutes; the S7 is much cheaper but takes 25 minutes. Major hotels and restaurants accept card payments, but keep cash handy for bars and cafés. Tip around 10 per cent when paying your bill.
The Viennese aren’t ones for small talk, but a friendly “Grüss Gott” (hello) as you enter a place is a good ice-breaker.
Take me there
Inspired to visit Vienna but yet to book your trip? Here are the best packages from Tui and Jet2 Holidays. These are the best tours of Vienna from our trusted partners.
Advertisement
Sign up for the Times Travel Newsletter here.