One of the most visually stunning cities in Europe, we can’t put into words how much we recommend a trip to Vienna.
A romantic getaway for any age couple or even a cultural break for a group of friends, the Austrian capital is not a destination to miss on your travels.
Location: Austria
Language: German
Population: 1.9 million
Budget level: ££
Currency: Euros
This depends on how fast-paced your trip is. If you’re the type of person who likes to get up early and rush around the sights then one or two nights here might be enough for you. If you like relaxing and taking in the feel of a city then you could happily spend a bit longer here.
Prater Park is a theme park right in the heart of the city! It’s free to enter and has all sorts of rides and attractions, including terrifying roller coasters with loops, log flumes, haunted houses, ferris wheels and cafés and food. The rides cost around €4-5 each (mostly cash only) and it’s open 365 days a year. My personal favourite is the 90m freefall drop tower which gives you an incredible 360 degree view of the city…before you plummet back down to Earth.
This is a lovely little spot on an island on the Danube river. Just a short walk from Kaisermuhlen metro station, it’s a brilliant spot to sunbathe in the summer. The river is usually calm and peaceful, and you’ll often find locals going for a swim here – it’s the perfect place for a dip in the sun. Just around the corner there’s places where you can rent a stand up paddleboard for a reasonable price and go out for an adventure on the river. If you’re looking for a chilled day in Vienna, this is the spot to go.
A trip to Vienna isn’t complete without going to the Schönbrunn Palace. It’s an enormous 18th century building with even bigger grounds. The inside of the Palace is beautiful but if you’d rather avoid paying then you can access (almost) all of the gardens for free. They really are breathtaking and it’s well worth walking up the hill at the far end of the garden to get the best view.
St Stephen’s Cathedral with it’s iconic multi-coloured roof tiles is one of Vienna’s most famous attractions. At 136m high, the south tower has an incredible viewing platform if you fancy the 343 steps to the top. It’s definitely worth the effort for the stunning views over central Vienna!
This is a huge market with hundreds of stalls, selling all sorts of things from clothing to food. It’s a great spot to wander and find some cheap food for lunch if you’re on a budget.
If you love museums or architecture or both then the Museumssquartier is the place to go! It really does what is says on the tin – it’s the part of town where loads of museums are and it’s also a lovely place to wander around.
Why not head to Bratislava for the day? Either take the train or hop on the Twin City Liner and get a boat down the Danube River to the capital of Slovakia in just over an hour!
Being the capital of Austria it’s a very well-connected city. You’re only a few hours away from Prague, Bratislava, Budapest, Munich and Salzburg by train, plus there’s daily trains to Bled and Ljubljana in Slovenia. It’s also one of the best-connected cities by night trains – you can get into bed and wake up in Venice, Rome, Florence, Zurich or Cologne.
Vienna has a major international airport with loads of long and short-haul flights.
Vienna has a good public transport system with an extensive metro, trams and buses
