You only have one day to visit Vienna? That's enough time to get a nice overview of the beautiful city! Romantic city strolls, coffee and cake in the most authentic places and enjoying culture and wonderful art in one of the city's many museums: This is how a typical day in Vienna can look like. Here's our Ultimate City Guide on how to explore Vienna's main sights and popular activities within 24 hours:
How to get to Vienna
Viennese red tram | @8thdistrictphotographer
Vienna's only airport, Schwechat is located 19km (12 miles) southeast of the city center. From there you can take the airport train CAT (City Airport Train), which runs every 30 minutes (5:35am to 11:35pm) to and from Wien Mitte Station every day, including holidays. The tickets can be booked here or at the counters at the airport. (14,90€ + you have to pay for the city ticket in Vienna if you want to use the public transport there)
But we really recommend to take the ÖBB Railjet train to Vienna Central Station. It runs from 6:33am to 11:03pm every 30 minutes as well. But the ticket is much cheaper! The ÖBB Railjet train ticket only costs 4,40€ from the airport to the center. You can book it here or at the counters at the airport as well. If you want to use the public transport in Vienna (Wiener Linien) add a 1 Day ticket (8€) to your purchase at the airport or online.
Start Your Day Right: Coffee and Cake
Café Glaser
Being a tourist in Vienna has one obligation attached to it: having viennese coffee and cake - there is just no way around it. No worries, we got you covered! Let’s start this day in the 9th district, where you’ll find some nice shops in Vienna.
Next to Votivkirche, a beautiful church, which gets often mistaken for being Stephansdom (which it is not), on Währinger Straße you will find one coffee shop after another - some more classic, some a bit more modern and hip. After having found your stop and making an order either stay inside, have a table outside on the street or take a walk to Sigmund-Freud-Park right next to it and have a little picnic in the greens, while enjoying this amazing view to Votivkirche.
Morning Glory ... with a historic touch!
Burggarten | @vienna_alexxandra
Being fueled by these sugary Viennese treats you are now ready to explore the city. Next Station? Burggarten - a beautiful park with a lot of history inside - and around it! However, the journey is the reward.
Heading from Votivkirche to Burggarten you will pass many historic buildings in the heart of Vienna. We recommend walking along Wiener Ringstraße, which is Vienna's 5.3 km circular main street that serves as a ring road around the historic first district of Vienna.
From there you will pass the historic University of Vienna, Vienna's City Hall, Burgtheater, the newly renovated Parliament, romantic Volksgarten with its thousand flowers as well as famous Heldenplatz. Stop at those sights that interest you the most!
Walking just a bit further you can go through one of the entries to beautiful Burggarten, our next stop. The first thing you’ll see, entering the park is the backside of Hofburg which houses the Austrian National Library. A bit further in the back you'll see the Palm House. This building was used by emperor Franz who himself was an educated gardener who liked to grow plants from all over the world.
After a short break in the greenery go further along the Ring to Vienna State Opera. From Albertina you have a picturesque view to that building! After your photoshoot walk to Vienna's symbol, St. Stephen's Cathedral. From there you can reach our next stop easily.
Lunch like Schwarzenegger
Schnitzel at Figlmüller
Of course the line between lunch and dinner is quite thin in Vienna, as we like our Wiener Schnitzel any time of the day. This thinbreaded and pan-fried veal cutlet is traditionally served with either a classic potato salad or buttered parsley potatoes. However: a dollop of lingonberry jam is a must, otherwise it’s just not the “real deal”.
Being served at almost every Austrian restaurant, the first district is where you want to go! Our tip? Head to Bäckerstraße 6 and look for the green sign! They even offer a vegan alternative! PS: Arnold Schwarzenegger even went this far as to call his own dog “Schnitzel” - now that we call commitment!
If you're not a big Schnitzel fan, there are also many other options to try typical Viennese food! Here you can read everything about the dishes and where you find them.
Afternoon tours & coffee
Electric Oldtimer Tour
After the lunch break (and and if you have enough time left) you can deepen your knowledge about Viennese history by booking a tour. If you want to relax while hearing some lesser-known stories about the city, we recomment our Electric Oldtimer Tour.
If you want to learn more about Viennas symbol book the tour „Secrets of St. Stephen’s Cathedral“. Still nothing for you? Here you‘ll find a special selection of interesting tours in Vienna!
Before continuing our tight sightseeing program, you may have another short break at the famous Café Demel or Café Central to enjoy Viennese coffee house culture.
The most Viennese afternoon activity? Visit Sisi, Klimt or Strauß!
The Kiss, Belvedere Palace
Vienna offers a variety of art and culture not only including artworks like Picasso’s "Woman in a Green Hat", Monet’s “The Water Lily Pond” or Klimt's "The Kiss" but also imperial residences of the Habsburgs and famous monuments.
Not a fan of art? No problem! Here's a list that shows how diverse Viennese museums and activities can be:
Schönbrunn Palace (Ticket)
Belvedere Museum (Ticket)
Art History Museum (Ticket)
Natural History Museum
Albertina (Ticket)
Mumok - Museum of modern art (Ticket)
House of Music (Ticket)
Spanish Riding School (Ticket)
Technical Museum (Ticket)
Madame Tussauds (Ticket)
Sisi Museum
Wien Museum
Imperial Treasury (Ticket)
Austrian Film Museum
Museum Of Illusions (Ticket)
Haus des Meeres (Aqua Terra Zoo)
Folter Museum
MAK - Museum of applied arts (Ticket)
Mozarthaus Vienna (Ticket)
Museum of Art Fakes
End your Day Right
Lamée Rooftop | @oli8ia
After a long day you deserve a refreshing cocktail and a snack with an amazing view above the city! One of the top rooftop bars in Vienna is "Dachboden". It's a part of the 25 Hours hotel, but open to the public and has a glorious view into the historic city centre, looking across to Museums Quartier and the Hofburg.
Another famous rooftop bar is Lamée Rooftop. The trendy bright rooftop bar is in the centre of Vienna with a view directly to St. Stephen's Cathedral. They specialise in cocktails and wines here, so your best bet to order is a Kaiserspritzer or Hugo.
Atmosphere Rooftop bar at the top of Ritz Carlton, Aurora Rooftop Bar, Das Oben or Das Loft are worth visiting as well.
We hope you enjoy your stay!
Main pic: @jbm_visuals
1 Day in Vienna
6 mins reading time
Sep 6, 2022
Hendrik Obleser
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