Below the cathedral are the Katakomben (catacombs), with their eerie collection of the deceased inside, a magnificent Gothic stone pulpit presides over the main nave and rising above it to dizzying heights is the South Tower with its viewing stage offering dazzling panoramas over town. The awe-inspiring cathedral lords over the city, topped by an intricately tiled roof, with its distinctive row of chevrons and Austrian eagle. StephansdomĪ Gothic reminder of another age, the Stephansdom is Vienna's heart and soul. The masterpieces on display are complemented by interiors so stately that they're worthy of a visit in their own right. Gustav Klimt's painting The Kiss is a highlight. Symmetrical, finely sculpted and manicured gardens overlooking Vienna's unfolding skyline connect two exquisite palaces dedicated to a who's who of Austrian art. Living up to its Italianesque name 'beautiful view', this 18th-century palace and garden ensemble is deceptively close to Vienna's city centre while still creating a feeling of being worlds apart. Hang out with locals at Copa Cagrana beach © Kirill Neiezhmakov / Shutterstock Schloss Belvedere One popular outfit founded by local couple Melinda and Thomas, Vienna Food Tours covers the variety of cuisines that influenced Viennese food: sampling appetizers, a sausage stand, mains, and of course something sweet to round it off over a whole afternoon. Bi-lingual local tour guides guide visitors to different, seasonally appropriate (Christmas market foodie tour anyone?) locations to show off the best the city has to offer. Whether it's coffee houses, local dining, or a pub crawl, there are a host of tours on offer to the best places to eat and drink in Vienna. The set-price Viennese three-course meal includes lift tickets. Who can resist booking a sunset meal at a rotating restaurant at 170m high? This is peak tourist, and we love it. From the top you’ll see the entire surrounding region of Vienna on a clear day. It’s also located in one of the most beautiful and largest parks in the city, the Danube Park making it doubly worth a visit. The newly renovated 1960s modernist Donauturm tower offers panoramic views across the city and the Danube river. Get the best view of Vienna from the Donauturm tower © photo.ua / Shutterstock Donauturm tower
The Roman gate leads the way to the Imperial Palace, the Hofburg. You’ll pass the Monument to the Victims of Fascism at the former Gestapo headquarters site, the neoclassical facade of Parlament, Austria’s parliament, the Athena Fountain, and Äusseres Burgtor (Outer Palace Gate).
The circular boulevard of imposing state buildings was carved out of the space once occupied by fortifications protecting Vienna from Ottoman Turk attack in the 16th century. Ringstrasse Tram Tourįor a spin around Vienna's architectural highlights, jump on a tram and travel along the Ringstrasse, one of Europe's most magnificent streets. You’ll get the chance to learn more about Vienna’s burgeoning street art scene, discover works from local and international artists, and find out what issues are shaping and challenging the city today. Founded almost a decade ago by Jakob Kettner, the festival brings together live paintings, street art works, guided tours, film screenings and workshops for urban aesthetics. The annual Calle Libre street art festival focuses on one guiding theme as celebrated artists respond across curated walls for a week each summer. Street art murals line the streets and back alleys of Vienna especially along the banks of the Danube and its canals © EQRoy/ Shutterstock Street art It’s also one of the key locations for the annual Wiener Festwochen (Vienna Festival) held over six weeks in May and June. Highlights include – including the Leopold Museum, MUMOK, Kunsthalle Wien, Architekturzentrum and Zoom but there are multiple micro-museums and creative spaces to explore. Have you had enough of culture yet? No? Good, because the MuseumsQuartier (MQ) is a 90,000 sq metre exhibition space encompassing 60 cultural institutions ranging from fine art, music, theatre, and dance to game culture, street art and photography. New-wave coffee houses are putting their own twist on the tradition. Many retain their opulent original decor, and often specialise in a particular cake, such as the Sacher Torte, an iced-chocolate cake with apricot jam once favoured by Emperor Franz Josef, at Café Sacher.
Patronised by luminaries such as Mahler, Klimt, Freud, Trotsky and Otto Wagner in their day, Vienna's Kaffeehäuser (coffee houses) were added to the Unesco list of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2011. Great works of art have been created in these 'living rooms' of the Viennese. © Krzysztof Dydynski/Lonely Plane Vienna’s coffee houses
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