‘Guten Tag’

Destination: Vienna
Dates: November 2018
Nights:2 nights
Hotel: Hotel Alpha Wien
Highlights: Clean, safe, classy, history and The Travel Time Museum
Low lights: Prater and expensive coffee.

Day 1

Vienna is a slow-paced city, full of history, art, music, and class. With coffee houses, museums and beautiful architecture, it’s best enjoyed on foot, with a melange.

We arrived in Vienna around noon. We took the CAT (City Airport Train) into the city centre as it takes 16mins, non-stop and we didn’t have time to waste. Buying the tickets from the airport costs 21 euros return and it takes you to Wien Mitte Station. Note: The CAT offers free Wi-Fi and once you reach Wien Mitte, be sure to pick up your free city guide and map.

We grabbed a quick bite in the Wien Mitte Mall, then it was off to explore Hunderwasserhaus as it was only 8 minutes away.

Hunderwasserhaus 

One of the most visited buildings in Austria.

Opposite the building is Hundertwasser Village.

From here we walked to our hotel, 4km away, through the city to see what Vienna had to offer.  We stopped in various locations to eat and take photographs.

We found the Anchor Clock

St. Stephen’s Cathedral

Fiaker- a horse-drawn carriage ride.

St. Peter’s Catholic Church

Grechenbeisl is one of Vienna’s oldest inn and restaurant first opened in 1447. You get a rustic feel in the restaurant and it’s nice to know they only use Austrian produce.

On the street of Kohlmarkt, we were intrigued by the cake display in the window of a bakery called Demel.

By the time we reached our hotel, we were all cream-crackered as every corner, street, building, park etc had something to see.

Our hotel was located in Josefstadt, in district 8, a trendy, densely populated inner-city. The hotel was off the main road with plenty of restaurants, shops, and quirky stores. Hotel Alpha Wien was a perfect stay, for a 3- star hotel it was very basic, clean and offered 24 hours of free tea and coffee. 

We decided to stay close and eat at Rosnovskyundco. We didn’t have reservations but luckily the Viennese’s eat later than us Brits. I would definitely recommend the wild cod with potatoes and for dessert, the homemade pear strudel washed down with 0.5l of their local beer, Zwettler. 

After dinner, we got the train from Rathaus to Praterstern. The train system is pretty easy to use, you will have to collect your ticket from the screens and validate it before you enter. A single ticket is 2,40.

Prater- The Amusement Park is a large park in Vienna that is opened 24 hours. It is also home to The Giant Ferris Wheel, built in 1945 and still has the wooden cabins. That was our main purpose for visiting the park, we wanted to see Vienna at night from the top view. We arrived at Prater and headed straight in to find the wheel. It cost €10 per person. It took around 30 minutes to go all the way around, the wheel goes extremely slow. 

The park wasn’t that impressive as only certain things were open and it seemed to be run down, I doubt that was purposely done. We queued for 30 minutes. The wheel seemed to be the most popular attraction in the park. You share the experience with other people unless you can fork out 230-350 euros for a private wagon for the hour. The views from the top were OK. Vienna is not a lit-up city, the bright lights you can see are all from the park. I suggest going on the Ferris wheel during the day to witness the true beauty of Vienna. We headed back to Rathaus to grab a drink and meet the locals.

Day 2. Going back in time

Breakfast at Hotel Alpha Wien was great. Sunday, a lot of shops were closed, especially all the Supermarkets. We headed off toThe Time Machine, which was probably the highlight of the trip. It gives you a lot of information on Vienna’s history through a 5D Cinema ride and 6 other different stations. If you want to save 20% on your tickets, pre-book online.  

After a great day of learning about Vienna, a worker from The Time Machine told us to go to a coffee house and order a melange. Your guide to ordering coffee in Vienna: 

The coffee house we decided to go with was Café Hawelka. We wanted to get the full experience of the long wait, rude service and rushed feeling and we weren’t disappointed. The worker at The Time Machine had pre-warned us, so we were prepared. Standard coffee and a slice of strudel in a coffee house cost us around €12. There are cheaper options for coffees and cakes off the beaten track. We went to grab lunch at Zum Goldenen Wurstel. It’s a hot dog stand on Seilergasse street, near the Leopoldsbrunnen historical landmark (Leopold’s Fountain), where you can get a large dog and a beer for around €5, definitely worth a visit. 

If, like us, you were short for time, then get a Lime Electric Scooter to go around the city. You will have to download the app and register beforehand to locate and unlock your scooter. Remember to follow and obey traffic rules- found here

As it was our last night, we decided to grab dinner at Veggiezz as we fancied a change. None of us were vegans, but thoroughly enjoyed the meals they provided. Restaurants were usually filled with families, friends and couples dining. After dinner, we walked around for a few hours, absorbing the beauty and the surprising tranquillity of this major European city. 

Day 3.

Our flight was in the afternoon, so we didn’t have much time to explore. We decided to walk back to the station to catch the CAT. We managed to find and photograph new places. In general, Vienna is a family-friendly, safe, clean and great place to visit. It is rich in art music and history. They are definitely not short of museums, palaces or historical buildings. I have truly enjoyed the slow-paced city and the best thing about Vienna is the character that each building represents. Vienna is an expensive city, if like us, you are going on a budget then look at going in March or November. Hotels are reasonably priced in low seasons. You can stay in the heart of Vienna for under £40 each, per night.