Vienna is a fascinating city. The capital of Austria, it’s incredibly atmospheric with a huge amount of history. It’s packed with everything you’d expect from a major city. Shops, restaurants, parks, hotels, museums, cathedrals and famous stadiums. It also has fantastic transport links to other nearby places to visit such as Salzburg as well as a great public transport system within and around the city.
The centre of Vienna is fairly compact but there there are a few tourist attractions which are spread over the City. We managed to get around several times during our visit.
Before we went we made a priority list of the things to do in Vienna that appealed to us and then worked out the best way to combine at least a couple of them on each day. It worked quite well and we managed to get around all the places we wanted to see and things to do in Vienna we wanted to.
Here are some of our favourites which we hope will help you plan what you’re going to do when you visit.
Natural History Museum
The Natural History Museum Vienna, in the Museum Quarter of the city is well worth a visit. From minerals to mammoths, there’s something for everyone here. It’s bigger than we expected covering a few floors so you can easily spend quite a few hours here.
Ticket prices were very good value for money with children (those under 19) free of charge. www.nhm-wien.ac.at
Schloss Schonbrunn
The former Summer residence of the Hasburg rulers, Schonbrunn Palace is truly stunning. Inside and out. It’s located outside of the city centre but, in our opinion, is well worth the trip.
Entry to most of the gardens at Schloss Schonbrunn Palace is free. Certain tours and exhibitions are chargeable. We found that the grounds are so vast that it was quite enough for us.
We did however pay to visit the Maze and Labryinth which was a lot of fun.
National Stadium
One of us always enjoys the opportunity to visit a stadium. Especially if it’s the National One. And, as it was within walking distance of our hotel it would have been rude not to.
Ernst Happel Stadion is home to the Austrian National Football team and hosted the Final of Euro 2008. It’s also used for the domestic cup final and European matches featuring Rapid Vienna or FK Austria Wien as well as concerts on a regular basis during the Summer.
Stephansdom
Right in the centre of Vienna stands the magnificent Stephansdom, St. Stephen’s Cathedral. You can visit part of the interior for free but charges apply for certain other areas. It is spectacular inside and the architecture is incredible. www.stephanskirche.at
Vienna State Opera
Just a few minutes walk away from Stephansdom is Vienna State Opera. It is worth seeing the outside as you may recognise it as a movie location. Surprisingly tickets can be obtained to see some operas for as little as 4 Euro for standing tickets. www.wiener-staatsoper.at
Hofburg Palace
Very close to the Museum Quarter is the Hofburg Palace. A truly stunning building, Vienna’s former Imperial Palace now houses the offices of the Austrian President.
Take the train to Salzburg
Yes, take a day trip to Salzburg. It’s great to see the beautiful Austrian countryside and the double-decker train is comfortable and convenient. The City itself is beautiful and well worth a visit. We will definitely be going back to spend some more time in Mozart’s birth place.
Planning your trip
- Check Skyscanner to see who flies to Vienna and the latest and best prices on flights.
- Search Booking.com to see what’s available in terms of accommodation.
- We always use Holiday Extras for airport parking and hotels as well as transfers in the UK.
- We love the DK Top 10 guidebooks
Thoughts
Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links. Clicking on them will result in no additional cost to you but may earn us a small commision.
1 thought on “Things to do in Vienna”
That day trip to Salzburg is everything. Hard to leave a place like Vienna, but ohhh those hills and castles. Great post!