Destination Guide : Vienna
Hey Vienna, could we get a redo? I feel like we got off on the wrong foot.
We heard so many wonderful things about Vienna, but between Trent being sick in bed and only three days to get to know a city, we weren’t so sure what we thought about our experience.
As much as I would like to return and try again, I don’t think this is a city that would top our list of favorites. We tend to enjoy more relaxed cities that are a bit unpolished with lots of casual places to eat or grab a beer. Vienna, at least the Vienna that we experienced, was not that.
Here are a short travel guide of our favorite things about the city. But I think this post is more of a request for recommendations. Have you been to Vienna? What do you love about the city?
SEE
Vienna Operahouse and St. Stephen’s Church - a walk through the city may be full of tourist, but Vienna does have some beautiful landmarks. If we had visited without kids, we would have gone to see an opera. I heard that standing room tickets are inexpensive and they include the entrance to the building, which usually comes with its own cost.
The Danube - this was our first sighting of the Daube River! The kids loved learning which countries the river runs through.
Augarten - a beautiful, large park near our Airbnb. Like so many main parks in Europe it is complete with a museum, playground, rose garden. Vienna is full of huge, amazing parks some filled with amusement parks (Prater) and some with the city’s most popular landmarks.
Wasserspielplatz Donauinsel - a water playground that was hands down our favorite thing we did in Vienna. Free to enter and a similar size to the larger playgrounds that we visited in Europe. Except each area has water to play in! A raft to pull across a pond, shallow water to splash in, sand to build with and even a tiny waterfall. Our kids LOVED this place. I have never seen anything like it and would love to know of more parks like it.
EAT
Cafe Central - Vienna is known for its cafes. Cafe Central may be the most important cafe with its history that includes many famous regulars (Sigmund Freud among them). The food was fine, but the dessert are the main reason for visiting. The line is usually long, but we felt like a visit to Vienna wasn’t complete without an experience here.
Said the Butcher to the Cow - probably the most modern restaurant that we visited. They’re known for a great gin list and the kids had a schnitzel burger. Very close to the Operahouse.
Blumenwiese - located along the Danube canal, Blumenwiese was the perfect spot for lunch during our summer visit.
Max & Benito - a Chipotle style restaurant that was probably the best Mexican food that we’ve eaten outside of North America.
The list of what we didn’t see could go for miles. So much musical history, the markets, museums, more cafes! If you’ve visited, what’s your favorite thing to do or restaurant in Vienna?
