Short vacation in Vienna, 30. June to 03. July 2023
We had already planned our long weekend in Vienna since the beginning of the year and booked it in advance.
Our short trip to the Black Forest at the end of May, on the other hand, was relatively spontaneous.
Here, however, we didn’t have to worry about tickets or accommodation either.
Thanks to the early bird bonus, for example, the ticket with the Westbahn from Salzburg to Vienna or the other way round cost us less than 20€ per person and direction.
Normally, the tickets would have cost around 60€ per person on the day of departure.
Below is a short travel report of our short trip to Vienna.
All photos from this trip can be found in the corresponding album in the gallery.
Day 1: Drive from Salzburg to Vienna – Friday, 30.06.2023
As mentioned at the beginning, we took the Westbahn from Salzburg to Vienna. Around noon we reached the Westbahnhof in Vienna. In order to be as independent as possible, we decided to stay in a holiday flat. After dropping off our luggage at the holiday flat, we went to the city centre, such as St. Stephen’s Cathedral – also known as “Steffl”.
Stephansdom – also known as “Steffl”
Viennese Fiaker
In order not to drag out the day unnecessarily for our child, we drove back to the flat in the early evening.
On the way there we were able to see many sights from the underground, such as the Spittelau district heating plant designed by Hundertwasser.
Information on this building is available on the Hundertwasser website.
Hundertwasser – Spittelau district heating plant
View from the window of our flat in the 20th district.
Day 2: Naschmarkt and Prater – Saturday, 01.07.
As today’s highlight we have chosen a visit to the Naschmarkt.
Unfortunately, the weather situation was not so clear-cut. At times the sun came out, then the sky was covered in clouds again.
Unassuming but steeped in tradition – the Naschmarkt.
Arriving at the Naschmarkt, it at least stayed dry. Apart from the obvious – the stalls with sweets – there are also numerous restaurants, fruit and vegetable stalls, souvenir shops etc.
There is also a flea market every Saturday. For more information on the Naschmarkt, visit the Internet page of the Wiener Touristinfo.
Fresh fruit and vegetables
Arabic delicacies
As our next and last destination for the day, we had chosen the Ferris wheel at the Prater. When planning the route, we realised that the Hundertwasserhaus was on the way to the Prater. Without further ado, it was set as an intermediate destination.
Comprehensive background information on the Hundertwasser House in Kegelgasse can be found on the Internet page of the Hundertwasser Private Foundation.
Next to the Hundertwasser House is the Hundertwasser Village, where various small shops are located.
There is also more information about this building on the Hundertwasser website.
After the Hundertwasserhaus, we made our way along the Danube Canal to the Prater to please our child with various rides. We also wanted to take a ride on the Ferris wheel and enjoy the view over Vienna.
At the end of the day, there was a sunset between the clouds.
Day 3: Sunken City – Sunday, 02.07.
There was no specific plan for today, Sunday. Since the weather was relatively good, we spontaneously took the tram to the nearby Donauinsel.
There was a lot for our child to discover. Be it on the playground or off the paths. The spirit of discovery was always challenged.
Playground with the Millennium Tower in the background.
From the playground at Floridsdorfer Brücke, we leisurely made our way towards the southeast. If you discover a lot, you will get hungry at some point. Conveniently, “Sunken City” was not far away, so we stopped at the Tavern Sokrates. We didn’t know at the time that major renovation plans are in the works for “Sunken City” from autumn 2023, so we will probably find the area completely different next time we visit.
Danube City in Kaisermühlen
A special feature is the “Ponte Cagrana” – a pedestrian and cyclist bridge connecting the Danube Island with Donaustadt.
“Ponte Cagrana”
View from the “Ponte Cagrana” towards the north over the sea-like New Danube.
After crossing the “Ponte Cagrana” you reach #COPABEACH.
From here on, we walked further southeast along the Danube embankment, hoping that our little companion would take his nap. In addition, since the Reichsbrücke we were looking for a pram-friendly way from the Danube bank up onto the embankment to reach an underground station. When we passed Kaisermühlenbucht, we decided to turn back, as we finally found a ramp to get back onto the embankment.
Just before Kaisermühlen Bay
Unfortunately, there was neither a tram nor an underground in that area that we could have used. So we walked all the way back to the Copabeach and took the underground from the Donauinsel back to our flat. Before the train arrived, we had another view from the “Sunken City” over the “Ponte Cagrana” to the COPABEACH.
Somewhat unusually, we then evening had another ice cream at the Polly ice cream parlour before dinner from the delivery service.
Day 4: Falco’s and return journey – Monday, 03.07.
Our last day in Vienna was first of all determined by packing. One last time we went to the underground. Our train to Salzburg was deliberately booked for late in the evening so that we could spend the day of our departure in Vienna. We left our luggage in a locker at the Westbahnhof. We then went to St. Stephen’s Cathedral again and to one or two shops. As noon approached, we headed for my personal highlight: lunch at “Falco’s“.
Falco’s – Restaurant, Bar, Club
As you might have guessed, this restaurant is all about Falco. Accordingly, records, photos and paintings by and about Falco can be found everywhere.
After an extensive stay at Falco’s, we discovered a playground in the nearby city park. Our child was able to let off some steam there before we headed back home for about 3 hours.
City Park Vienna
After our arrival with the Westbahn in Salzburg, we had to change to our connecting train within a few minutes. We only managed to do that because I had bought the tickets online in advance. Our connecting train, a Meridian of the Bayerische Regionalbahn (BRB), was already waiting. Unfortunately, the rear part of the train was completely locked, so we had to hurry along the platform to the front part of the train. If we have had to buy tickets at the ticket machine, we would not have reached our connecting train and would have had to wait 20-30 minutes for the next train.
Vienna is also a suitable destination with a small child. Trams and undergrounds are easy to use even with a stroller. There is enough space for a stroller on the trams even during rush hour. However, lifts are not always easy to find or are not always in the immediate vicinity of the platform. Again and again you have to use several different lifts to actually get from the underground platform to the surface.
