Vienna

2015

Cost: £ – not massively expensive
Rating: 7/10 – beautiful city well worth a visit
Trip length: 2 nights is ideal

Flights
I got mine for £35 using BA points (remember to always enter your frequent flyer number when you travel!!) There are flights for as little as £70 return on SkyScanner!

Accommodation
My friend was working in Vienna so I went to stay with her, but you can find some nice city-centre apartments for around £65 per night on AirBnb!

Currency in Austria is the Euro – check conversion rates before you go.

Transport
The public transport in Vienna was easy to use. You can take the bus / train / tram / underground to get to almost any point in the city.

Things to do…

1 – St. Stephen’s Cathedral
A symbol of Austria, it’s beautiful cathedral with one of the highest spires in Europe. It’s EUR 6 / £5.30 to take the lift to the top which (if the weather is clear) has gorgeous views of Vienna. As you can see it was foggy when I visited – can imagine it being even more stunning on a clear day.

2 – Vienna City Hall
This is where the local government of Vienna is located (including the mayor). It’s quite a spectacular building (even in the fog) and at Christmas there’s a large market in the grounds.

3 – Austrian Parliament Building
Quite different from the Gothic style of most of the architecture in Vienna, this is where the two houses of the Austrian Parliament conduct their sessions.

4 – Kunsthistorisches Museum
A large art museum in Vienna. We didn’t go in (more interested in eating our way through the Christmas markets) but if you’re into art, tickets are EUR 15 / £13.50!

5 – Austrian National Library
Another impressive Austrian building, it’s the largest library in Austria with more than 12 million items. We didn’t go inside but after looking at the pics on the website I wish we had!

There are many beautiful buildings with many different architectural styles you’ll discover as you walk the streets of Vienna. It might be handy to make yourself aware of the significance of each building before you go as we had no idea what was what.
Notable buildings not already mentioned:

• Schönbrunn Palace – lavish palace with gardens and a maze
• Hofburg – another palace
• Belvedere – 18th-century palaces
• Prater – park with old amusements including a giant wheel dating from 1897

Going out!
We went to some really cool bars in Vienna and particularly enjoyed an unusual night of ‘Rock-eoke’ (rock themed karaoke with a live band!) There are some massive clubs too if you’re keen to party.

Food 🙂
We ate a lot of food at the Christmas markets (Goulash in a bread bowl – yum!) If you’re a foody I’m sure there are plenty of tasty restaurants to eat in. If you’re there during the winter you’ll be eating a lot of goulash for sure.

Vienna was gorgeous. We didn’t have the best weather (freezing and foggy) yet the city still looked extraordinary. I’d recommend going in November / December as the Christmas markets definitely add a sparkle.