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Six Days in Vienna (First Time) and Would Love Some Feedback

We are traveling to Vienna for six days in late November 2023. I have spent hours researching, reading everything I can find on this forum and others plus websites and etc, and I’d love any advice from more experienced travelers or locals!

The briefest overview I can give of our plans: We are staying near the ring road and plan to buy a 7-day transit ticket. We do not plan to purchase any of the discount passes or cards. Most of our plans revolve around Vienna’s many great museums and events. We plan to visit the Belvedere, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Albertina, Leopold Museum, MAK, WestLicht, Austrian National Library, Burgtheater, Vienna Secession, Opera House (already booked timed tour in English), St. Stephens Cathedral, several architectural sites of interest (mostly Otto Wagner), and possibly some other places. We are less interested in the palaces, so will likely skip those. We plan to wander around to the various Christmas markets in the evenings and take in a concert or two. We want to savor and enjoy our time in the city, enjoying the city walks and cafes between sites.

Here are my questions:

  1. I noticed the main Wien Museum is closed until December. Does anyone know if they happen to be exhibiting any of their major artworks elsewhere until they reopen? I found their website somewhat difficult to navigate and there seemed to be no discussion of temporary exhibits elsewhere, so that may not exist.

  2. We’re vegetarian (NOT vegan) and would love some recommendations that maybe aren’t in the big lists. If you know a great Asian place or falafel cart, tell me all about it! We’d like to do some cafes but not the very crowded ones.

  3. I’d love recs for less well-known places to wander around or sites to visit, even tram routes that might be enjoyable! I think given the time of year and the weather, we will skip things like the Prater that might be nicer during the warmer months.

Thank you to anyone who offers advice.

Posted by
5689 posts

A regular contributor here, Emily, lives in Vienna and posts helpful info on a regular basis. I would just do a Search here for Vienna, and look for her very valuable contributions.
Have a wonderful trip !

Posted by
10 posts

A regular contributor here, Emily, lives in Vienna and posts helpful info on a regular basis. I would just do a Search here for Vienna, and look for her very valuable contributions.

Thanks, Pat! I spent about two hours reading through Emily’s comments here earlier this week. You’re right, she’s very knowledgeable.

Posted by
10 posts

Xu's Cooking - excellent Asian vegetarian restaurant

YES! Thanks! Looks like a great option when we go to WestLicht!

Posted by
2274 posts

The Wien Museum is already bringing back all exhibits into the renovated building, to be opened on December 7. I guess there is no chance anymore to see them elsewhere.

Have a look at the various sites operated by the museum: https://www.wienmuseum.at/locations

Posted by
10 posts

The Wien Museum is already bringing back all exhibits into the renovated building, to be opened on December 7. I guess there is no chance anymore to see them elsewhere.

Ok, thank you! Maybe we will get to return again someday and see them then.

Posted by
1223 posts

I think given the time of year and the weather, we will skip things like the Prater that might be nicer during the warmer months.

The Ferris wheel at Prater Vienna is open year round, and we found it to be a memorable experience. Arrange your visit at dusk, so you can see the lights of the city come on. The carriages are enclosed, so it's not like you're exposed to the elements. Obviously go on a clear day.

Posted by
4874 posts

An easy option for anyone but especially vegetarians is a Spar market, they have lots of prefab salads and sandwiches for takeaway. The one at Schottenring is is an old bank and is so cool even Rick calls it out, we went several times. Also has a good sitdown restaurant attached to it.

It didn't work for my recent visit but I wish I had done the Melk Danube day trip and or some of the wineries on the edge of town. Get out of the city.

Posted by
10 posts

The Ferris wheel at Prater Vienna is open year round, and we found it to be a memorable experience.

If it’s not raining, we will definitely do this! I did not realize the cars were enclosed, so thank you for the recommendation!

Posted by
10 posts

An easy option for anyone but especially vegetarians is a Spar market, they have lots of prefab salads and sandwiches for takeaway. The one at Schottenring is is an old bank and is so cool even Rick calls it out, we went several times.

I love exploring places like this, so we’ll have to look for it! Thanks!

Posted by
10 posts

Speaking as a tourist, I thought the Vienna Pass was the rare tourist pass that made sense

I think it definitely does make sense for folks who can pack a lot into one day. We’re lingerers, especially in museums, so when I did the math it did not make sense for us to get the pass. Especially for places that require advance reservations, like the limited number of English-language tours of the Opera House, the pass isn’t applicable. But it’s a great idea for people who can pack several sites into a couple of days.

Posted by
539 posts

Haus der Musik always gets a plug from me. Wonderful museum that empties out in the evenings

Posted by
5513 posts

You have a great list of museums. I love Otto Wagner. I can highly recommend a visit to Kirche am Steinhof, probably his most important building. The main Post Office (Postsparkasse) on the Ring is also extraordinary.

https://www.wien.info/en/art-culture/art-nouveau/post-savings-bank-355552
https://www.wien.info/en/see-do/sights-from-a-to-z/church-steinhof-343020#:~:text=The%20Church%20of%20St.,the%20pews%20and%20the%20altars.

To answer your questions:

  1. Wien Museum MUSA has been open during the renovation of the main Wien Museum. They have special exhibits and it is small. Unfortunate that you miss the opening of the Wien Museum by just a few days. I was invited recently to a pre-opening and it will be good.

  2. Finding vegetarian dishes at any restaurant in Vienna these days is no big trick. That said, I absolutely love Miznon, Restaurant Jonathan & Sieglinde, Motto am Fluss, Palmenhaus, Hildebrandt Café, Mochi Ramen, Ramasuri for good vegetarian. As for cafes without the crowds, check out Gerstner, Prueckel, Goldegg, Kaffee Alt Wien (and I'll send you a secret one). Also, the cafe in Kunsthistorisches is fab.

  3. I would also skip the Prater - too many other much better things. Of course, the Christmas Markets. Spittelberg and Karlsplatz are the two best. You really should visit Schonbrunn - there is also a great Christmas market there. I recently posted about some nice strolling streets, maybe check those out.

Posted by
10 posts

You have a great list of museums. I love Otto Wagner. I can highly recommend a visit to Kirche am Steinhof, probably his most important building. The main Post Office (Postsparkasse) on the Ring is also extraordinary.
https://www.wien.info/en/art-culture/art-nouveau/post-savings-bank-355552
https://www.wien.info/en/see-do/sights-from-a-to-z/church-steinhof-343020#:~:text=The%20Church%20of%20St.,the%20pews%20and%20the%20altars.
To answer your questions:
Wien Museum MUSA has been open during the renovation of the main Wien Museum. They have special exhibits and it is small. Unfortunate that you miss the opening of the Wien Museum by just a few days. I was invited recently to a pre-opening and it will be good.
Finding vegetarian dishes at any restaurant in Vienna these days is no big trick. That said, I absolutely love Miznon, Restaurant Jonathan & Sieglinde, Motto am Fluss, Palmenhaus, Hildebrandt Café, Mochi Ramen, Ramasuri for good vegetarian. As for cafes without the crowds, check out Gerstner, Prueckel, Goldegg, Kaffee Alt Wien (and I'll send you a secret one). Also, the cafe in Kunsthistorisches is fab.
I would also skip the Prater - too many other much better things. Of course, the Christmas Markets. Spittelberg and Karlsplatz are the two best. You really should visit Schonbrunn - there is also a great Christmas market there. I recently posted about some nice strolling streets, maybe check those out.

Thanks, Emily! I really appreciate your feedback as a local expert.

I think I have all of the Otto Wagner buildings on our itinerary. Kirche am Steinhof is a bit of a ride on transit (according to Google maps at least) but I think it's worth the travel time. Postsparkasse looks fantastic, too. I’m a fan of architecture as much as other art forms, so I’m excited to visit a city with such varied and unique examples.

I added your “strolling streets” to my Wanderlog map last week! I like to try to experience a city (as much as that’s possible as a tourist) by slowing down a little, and these will be great to explore.

Finally, thank you ever so much for the restaurant and cafe recs. I’m glad food will be easy to find and that we can soak up the cafe culture!

Posted by
10 posts

If Vienna isnt everything you imagined it would be, there are a lot of good day trips and a few good overnight trips.

We aren’t planning any overnight trips, but if we do find we have extra time, we’ve definitely considered day trips to Melk, Bratislava, and Linz. I doubt we’ll be disappointed by Vienna, but I know sometimes a city can seem “smaller” than one expects!