What to Do in Vienna: 22 Best Things to See, Visit & Experience
Vienna is one of the great capitals of Europe — a city of imperial palaces, world-class art museums, extraordinary music heritage, and a coffeehouse culture that has been UNESCO-listed as an Intangible Cultural Heritage. Austria’s capital was the centre of the Habsburg Empire for centuries, and that imperial legacy is embedded in nearly everything the city has to offer: the palaces, the opera house, the Ring Road, the art collections, and the sheer density of architectural grandeur concentrated in the First District.
This guide covers 22 of the best things to do in Vienna, organised by category with opening hours, admission prices, and practical tips for planning your visit.
Vienna at a Glance
| Detail | Information |
| Country | Austria |
| Language | German (widely English-speaking in tourist areas) |
| Currency | Euro (EUR) |
| Best time to visit | April–June or September–October for weather; December for Christmas markets |
| UNESCO listings | Historic Centre of Vienna (2001); Vienna Coffeehouse Culture (Intangible Heritage) |
| Day trip to Salzburg | Yes — approximately 2 hours 20 minutes by direct train |
| Famous for | Habsburg palaces, classical music, Sigmund Freud, coffeehouse culture, opera |
| Public transport | Excellent U-Bahn (metro), trams, and buses; Vienna City Card recommended for tourists |
Imperial Palaces and Historic Landmarks
1. Schönbrunn Palace — Vienna’s Most Visited Attraction
Location: Schönbrunner Schloßstraße 47 | Open: Daily 8am–5:30pm (summer until 6:30pm) | Admission: Grand Tour ~€26 adults; gardens free
Schönbrunn Palace is the former summer residence of the Habsburg imperial family and the most visited attraction in Vienna. The Baroque palace has 1,441 rooms (40 of which are open to the public on tours), and the grounds extend to 160 hectares of formal gardens, fountains, and parkland on the western edge of the city. The Great Parterre garden stretching away from the palace to the Neptune Fountain, with the Gloriette colonnade on the hill above, is one of the finest formal garden landscapes in Europe.
Entry to most of the gardens is free throughout the year. Palace tours are ticketed — the Grand Tour covers 40 state rooms and includes the Imperial apartments where Franz Joseph I and Empress Elisabeth (Sisi) lived. The separate Gloriette (viewing tower at the top of the hill) charges a small additional admission and offers panoramic views of Vienna.
Schönbrunn is on the U4 U-Bahn line at Schönbrunn station — approximately 15 minutes from the city centre.
2. Hofburg Palace — The Imperial Residence
Location: Michaelerkuppel, First District | Open: Daily 9am–5:30pm (Sisi Museum and Imperial Apartments) | Admission: ~€20 adults for Imperial Apartments/Sisi Museum/Imperial Silver Collection
The Hofburg was the principal winter residence of the Habsburg dynasty for over six centuries and remains the official residence of the Austrian President. The palace complex covers 240,000 square metres in the heart of the First District and encompasses the Imperial Apartments, the Sisi Museum (dedicated to Empress Elisabeth), the Imperial Silver Collection, the Spanish Riding School, and the Austrian National Library.
The exterior of the Hofburg — particularly the Michaelertor gate and the Heldenplatz (Heroes’ Square) — is freely accessible and extraordinarily impressive. The combined ticket for the Imperial Apartments, Sisi Museum, and Imperial Silver Collection is the standard visitor experience. The Spanish Riding School hosts performances and morning training sessions (separate ticketing).
3. Stephansdom — St. Stephen’s Cathedral
Location: Stephansplatz 3, First District | Open: Mon–Sat 6am–10pm; Sun 7am–10pm | Admission: Cathedral nave free; tower and catacombs ~€5–6 each
St. Stephen’s Cathedral (Stephansdom) is the most important religious building in Vienna and one of the great Gothic cathedrals of Central Europe. Standing at the heart of the First District on Stephansplatz, the cathedral’s multicoloured geometric tile roof and South Tower (at 136 metres, the tallest spire in Austria) are iconic city landmarks.
The main nave of the cathedral is free to enter. The South Tower can be climbed (343 steps) for views over the city rooftops. The North Tower is accessible by lift. The Catacombs beneath the cathedral contain the remains of Habsburg rulers and can be visited on guided tours. The Stephansplatz square around the cathedral is also the starting point for most Old Town walking routes.
4. Belvedere Palace — Klimt’s The Kiss
Location: Prinz-Eugen-Straße 27 (Upper Belvedere) | Open: Daily 9am–6pm | Admission: Upper Belvedere ~€16; Lower Belvedere ~€14; gardens free
The Belvedere is a complex of two Baroque palaces (Upper and Lower Belvedere) set in formal gardens, built as a summer residence for Prince Eugene of Savoy in the early 18th century. The Upper Belvedere houses the most important art collection in Vienna — its permanent collection includes Gustav Klimt’s The Kiss (1907-08), one of the most recognisable artworks of the 20th century, alongside other major Klimt and Egon Schiele works and a comprehensive survey of Austrian art from the Baroque period to Expressionism.
The formal gardens between the two palaces are free to enter and are among the finest Baroque gardens in Vienna. The reflecting pool in front of the Upper Belvedere, with the palace behind, is one of Vienna’s most photographed views.
5. Vienna State Opera (Wiener Staatsoper)
Location: Opernring 2 | Open: Performance evenings vary; standing tickets from €4 | Admission: Standing tickets from €4; seated performances from ~€30
The Vienna State Opera is one of the world’s finest opera houses and a cornerstone of Vienna’s musical identity. The neo-Renaissance building on the Ringstraße opened in 1869 and hosts approximately 50 operas and 20 ballet performances each year between September and June. The quality of performance is consistently world-class.
Standing tickets (Stehplatz) for the gallery and parterre are available from €4 on performance evenings and represent extraordinary value for attending a live performance at one of the world’s great opera houses. Queue approximately 80 minutes before the performance begins. Guided tours of the opera house interior are available on days without performances. The exterior of the building is free to view at all times.
6. The Ringstraße — Vienna’s Imperial Boulevard
Location: Ringstraße, First District surrounds | Open: 24 hours | Admission: Free
The Ringstraße is the grand boulevard constructed under Emperor Franz Joseph I between 1858 and 1865 to replace the medieval city walls, lined with monumental public buildings that represent the full range of 19th-century historical revival architecture. The Parliament building (Greek Revival), the Rathaus (Neo-Gothic), the Burgtheater (Neo-Baroque), the Natural History Museum and Kunsthistorisches Museum (both Neo-Renaissance), and the Vienna State Opera all line this approximately 4-kilometre ceremonial route.
Walking the Ringstraße — at least the section from the State Opera past the Kunsthistorisches Museum to the Parliament — is one of the most impressive architectural experiences in Europe and entirely free.
World-Class Museums and Galleries
7. Kunsthistorisches Museum — Best Art Museum in Vienna
Location: Maria-Theresien-Platz, First District | Open: Tue–Sun 10am–6pm (Thu until 9pm) | Admission: ~€21 adults
The Kunsthistorisches Museum (Art History Museum) houses one of the finest art collections in the world — the assembled treasure of the Habsburg imperial dynasty. The collection spans Ancient Egyptian and Greek artefacts, Renaissance and Baroque paintings (Bruegel, Raphael, Titian, Caravaggio, Velázquez, Rembrandt), an extraordinary decorative arts collection, and the imperial coin cabinet. The picture gallery on the first floor is one of the richest in Europe.
The building itself — a twin to the Natural History Museum across Maria-Theresien-Platz — is one of the finest 19th-century museum buildings in Europe. The café in the cupola is open to the public even without museum admission.
8. Natural History Museum (Naturhistorisches Museum)
Location: Maria-Theresien-Platz (facing the Kunsthistorisches Museum) | Open: Wed–Mon 9am–6:30pm (Wed until 9pm) | Admission: ~€16 adults; under 19 free
The Natural History Museum Vienna is one of the largest natural history museums in the world, housed in the twin building to the Kunsthistorisches Museum on Maria-Theresien-Platz. The collection spans minerals, meteorites, dinosaurs, ancient Egyptian artefacts, and human evolutionary history. Notably, the Venus of Willendorf (a 25,000-year-old limestone figurine, one of the most significant prehistoric artefacts in existence) is permanently on display. Children under 19 are admitted free of charge.
9. Albertina — Graphic Arts and Photography
Location: Albertinaplatz 1 (adjacent to the State Opera) | Open: Daily 10am–6pm (Wed and Fri until 9pm) | Admission: ~€17.90 adults
The Albertina houses one of the largest and finest graphic art collections in the world — over a million prints and drawings including works by Raphael, Michelangelo, da Vinci, Rembrandt, and Dürer. The permanent collection Monet to Picasso covers 19th and 20th-century painting. The Albertina building also contains the Habsburg State Rooms (Habsburg Prunkräume), preserved imperial apartments that are part of the museum visit. The museum is adjacent to the State Opera and the Burggarten.
10. Sigmund Freud Museum
Location: Berggasse 19, Ninth District | Open: Daily 10am–6pm | Admission: ~€15 adults
The Sigmund Freud Museum is located in the apartment where Freud lived and worked from 1891 until he was forced to emigrate to London in 1938 following the Nazi annexation of Austria. The museum covers Freud’s life and the development of psychoanalysis, with exhibits including original furniture, photographs, books, and personal artefacts. The apartment’s waiting room and consulting room are displayed as they appeared during Freud’s practice. The museum is about 20 minutes on foot from the city centre.
Music, Coffeehouses, and Culture
11. Vienna Coffeehouse Culture — A UNESCO Heritage
Location: Throughout the city | Notable examples: Café Central (First District), Café Hawelka, Café Landtmann | Open: Varies by establishment
Vienna’s coffeehouse culture was inscribed on UNESCO’s list of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2011 — a recognition of a social institution unique to Vienna. The traditional Viennese coffeehouse (Kaffeehaus) is characterised by an expectation that customers may remain for hours over a single coffee, with newspapers available on reading racks, marble tables, bentwood chairs, and waiter service. The culture of the coffeehouse as a place for reading, writing, conversation, and lingering — not efficiency — is genuinely different from any other European café tradition.
Café Central (Herrengasse 14) is the most architecturally spectacular coffeehouse — a former palace hall with vaulted ceilings, now a landmark in its own right. Café Hawelka (Dorotheergasse 6) is a more authentically bohemian institution, associated with Vienna’s 20th-century artistic community. Café Landtmann (Dr.-Karl-Lueger-Ring 4) is the most famous literary coffeehouse, frequented by Freud and other cultural figures. A coffee at any traditional Kaffeehaus is one of Vienna’s most characteristically Viennese experiences.
12. Naschmarkt — Vienna’s Famous Open-Air Market
Location: Between Linke and Rechte Wienzeile, Sixth District | Open: Mon–Fri 6am–7:30pm; Sat 6am–5pm | Admission: Free
The Naschmarkt is Vienna’s largest and most famous open-air market, stretching for over 1.5 kilometres along the Wienzeile. Approximately 120 market stalls sell fresh produce, cheeses, meats, fish, spices, olives, and food from around the world. The market has existed in various forms since the 16th century. On Saturdays the regular market is extended by a flea market section at the western end. The Naschmarkt is one of the best places in Vienna to experience the city at street level, away from the imperial grandeur of the First District.
13. Musikverein — Home of the Vienna Philharmonic
Location: Musikvereinsplatz 1, First District | Open: Performances vary; guided tours available | Admission: Standing tickets and gallery seats from ~€10
The Musikverein is home to the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra — arguably the finest symphony orchestra in the world — and the venue for the annual New Year’s Concert broadcast to over 50 million viewers globally. The Golden Hall (Großer Saal) is considered to have the finest concert hall acoustics in existence. Attending a concert at the Musikverein, even in the standing areas or gallery, is one of the finest musical experiences available in Europe. Tickets for regular season concerts are available at accessible prices. Guided tours of the building are available daily.
Parks and Green Spaces
14. Prater and the Riesenrad
Location: Prater, Second District | Open: Park 24 hours; Riesenrad daily 10am–9:45pm | Admission: Park free; Riesenrad ~€14 adults
The Prater is a vast public park covering over 60 square kilometres on the edge of the First District, created as an imperial hunting ground and opened to the public by Joseph II in 1766. The Hauptallee — a 4.5-kilometre chestnut-lined boulevard — provides one of Vienna’s finest walking and cycling routes. The Wurstelprater funfair area at the park entrance contains the Riesenrad, a 65-metre Ferris wheel built in 1897 that is one of Vienna’s most iconic landmarks and one of the oldest operating Ferris wheels in the world. The park itself is entirely free; the Riesenrad charges admission.
15. Burggarten — Mozart and Franz Joseph Statues
Location: Opernring/Burgring, First District | Open: Daily 6am–10pm | Admission: Free
The Burggarten is a formal park immediately behind the Hofburg Palace, created in 1819 as a private imperial garden and opened to the public in 1919. The park contains several famous statues including the celebrated seated marble statue of Mozart (one of the most photographed subjects in Vienna) and an equestrian statue of Emperor Franz Joseph I. The park is a quiet green space in the heart of the First District.
Day Trips from Vienna
16. Salzburg — Austria’s Baroque Jewel
Distance: Approximately 2 hours 20 minutes by direct train | Frequency: Multiple times daily from Wien Hauptbahnhof
Salzburg is the single best day trip from Vienna — the birthplace of Mozart, the main filming location of The Sound of Music, and a UNESCO World Heritage Old Town of exceptional Baroque architecture. The direct OeBB train from Wien Hauptbahnhof takes approximately 2 hours 20 minutes. Salzburg’s compact Old Town can be thoroughly explored in a single day, covering Mirabell Gardens, Getreidegasse, the Cathedral, Residenzplatz, and views of Fortress Hohensalzburg. Booking train tickets in advance significantly reduces the fare.
See our full guide to things to do in Salzburg for a complete attraction and day-trip overview.
17. Hallstatt — Austria’s Most Beautiful Village
Distance: Approximately 3–4 hours from Vienna by train | Best combined with a Salzburg trip
Hallstatt is a small lakeside village in the Salzkammergut lake district, frequently described as the most beautiful village in Austria. The village is accessible from Vienna in approximately 3 to 4 hours by train (via Attnang-Puchheim, then a short ferry ride to the village) and is most practically visited as part of a two-day trip that includes Salzburg.
18. Klosterneuburg — Austria’s Oldest Monastery
Distance: Approximately 20 minutes from Vienna by S-Bahn | Easily done as a half-day trip
Klosterneuburg Abbey is a vast Augustinian monastery on the banks of the Danube, approximately 12 kilometres north of Vienna and reachable in 20 minutes on the S40 S-Bahn. The monastery complex, founded in 1114, includes extraordinary Baroque residential buildings commissioned by Charles VI, who intended it to be the Austrian equivalent of the Escorial. The abbey church is Romanesque with later Baroque additions. One of the easiest and most worthwhile half-day trips from Vienna.
Practical Tips for Visiting Vienna
Getting Around Vienna
Vienna has one of the best public transport systems in Europe. The U-Bahn (metro) covers all major tourist areas efficiently. Trams cover the Ringstraße and inner districts. The Vienna City Card (24, 48, or 72-hour unlimited travel) is recommended for visitors; it also includes small discounts at many museums. A single U-Bahn journey costs approximately €2.40; the 24-hour card costs approximately €8.
Free Things to Do in Vienna
- The Ringstraße walk is free and one of Vienna’s finest architectural experiences
- Schönbrunn Palace gardens are free; only the palace interior charges admission
- Belvedere gardens are free; the palaces charge admission
- The Burggarten and Prater are entirely free
- Stephansdom nave is free to enter
- The exterior of the Hofburg, State Opera, and all Ringstraße buildings is freely viewable
How Many Days Do You Need in Vienna?
Three days is the practical minimum to cover Vienna’s highlights without feeling rushed. One full day for Schönbrunn and the Belvedere; one day for the First District including the Hofburg, Stephansdom, and the Kunsthistorisches Museum; one day for the Naschmarkt, coffeehouse experience, and Ringstraße. A fourth day opens up Salzburg as a day trip. Vienna rewards extended visits; a week is not too long.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the best things to do in Vienna?
The top things to do in Vienna are visiting Schönbrunn Palace and its gardens, exploring the Hofburg and its Imperial Apartments, seeing Klimt’s The Kiss at the Upper Belvedere, attending a performance at the Vienna State Opera (standing tickets from €4), experiencing a traditional Viennese coffeehouse, walking the Ringstraße, visiting the Kunsthistorisches Museum, and taking a day trip to Salzburg. For music lovers, an evening at the Musikverein or State Opera is the defining Vienna experience.
Is Vienna worth visiting?
Yes — Vienna is consistently rated one of the world’s most liveable and visitable cities. The concentration of imperial palaces, world-class art and music, extraordinary architecture, and unique cultural institutions (coffeehouses, the opera, the Philharmonic) in a compact and easy-to-navigate city centre is unmatched in Central Europe. Vienna is relatively expensive compared to other Eastern European capitals but comparable to other Western European capitals, and many of the most impressive experiences (the Ringstraße, the palace gardens, the cathedral) are free.
What is Vienna most famous for?
Vienna is most famous for its musical heritage (Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Brahms, and Johann Strauss all lived and worked here; the Vienna Philharmonic and State Opera are globally pre-eminent), its Habsburg imperial legacy (Schönbrunn and Hofburg palaces), its Baroque and Ringstraße architecture, its coffeehouse culture, and Sigmund Freud, who developed psychoanalysis in Vienna. The city is also known for its New Year’s Concert, the Vienna Boys’ Choir, and the Spanish Riding School.
Final Thoughts
Vienna is one of Europe’s most rewarding capitals — a city where the density of history, culture, and architectural grandeur is genuinely overwhelming in the best possible way. The imperial legacy of the Habsburgs is embedded in the city’s palaces, museums, boulevards, and institutions, but Vienna is also a living city with extraordinary contemporary food, music, and cultural scenes built on top of that historic foundation. The Salzburg day trip is almost mandatory; the coffeehouse experience is irreplaceable; and the State Opera at €4 for a standing ticket is one of the great value experiences in European travel.