2 days in Vienna

Day by day

1. Day 1: Schönbrunn Palace and Tiergarten Schönbrunn

   Schönbrunn Palace, Tiergarten Schönbrunn, Hofburg Imperial Apartments and Sisi Museum and Spanish Riding School, then Prater and the Giant Ferris Wheel in the evening.

   1. Morning

      Schönbrunn Palace

      The vast baroque gardens, free to enter, climb to the Gloriette colonnade, with a view back over the palace and the city.

   2. Late morning

      Tiergarten Schönbrunn

      Its enclosures radiate from a baroque imperial breakfast pavilion, and modern houses include a rainforest and a polar area.

   3. Lunch

      Lunch: Wiener Schnitzel

      Traditional Beisl restaurants and schnitzel specialists across the city, especially in the 1st district.

   4. Afternoon

      Hofburg Imperial Apartments and Sisi Museum

      One ticket covers the Imperial Silver Collection, the Sisi Museum about Empress Elisabeth and the Imperial Apartments of Franz Joseph and Sisi. Elsewhere in the complex, the Imperial Treasury displays the crown of the Holy Roman Empire.

   5. Late afternoon

      Spanish Riding School

      Gala performances are the highlight; morning training sessions with music are a cheaper way to see the horses.

   6. Evening

      Prater and the Giant Ferris Wheel

      Ride the Riesenrad just before sunset, then walk or cycle along the Hauptallee.

2. Day 2: St Stephen's Cathedral and Kunsthistorisches Museum

   St Stephen's Cathedral, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna State Opera and Albertina, then MuseumsQuartier and Leopold Museum in the evening.

   1. Morning

      St Stephen's Cathedral

      A lift in the north tower reaches the Pummerin bell, and the catacombs hold urns containing the organs of Habsburg rulers.

   2. Late morning

      Kunsthistorisches Museum

      The Habsburg art collection fills a palatial building of 1891 on the Ring, with the world's largest group of paintings by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, including Hunters in the Snow and The Tower of Babel, Vermeer's The Art of Painting, Caravaggio, Titian and Rubens, plus an Egyptian collection and the Kunstkammer of curiosities.

   3. Lunch

      Lunch: Tafelspitz

      Classic Viennese restaurants and Beisln; a few specialise in boiled beef in many cuts.

   4. Afternoon

      Vienna State Opera

      Guided tours show the grand staircase and auditorium, and inexpensive standing-room places, released shortly before performances, make world-class opera affordable.

   5. Late afternoon

      Albertina

      Housed in a Habsburg palace behind the State Opera, the Albertina combines restored imperial state rooms with a permanent collection running from Monet and Degas to Picasso, and one of the world's great collections of prints and drawings, including Dürer's Young Hare, shown only occasionally.

   6. Evening

      MuseumsQuartier and Leopold Museum

      Even without a ticket, the courtyard is a free and lively place for a drink in the warmer months.

Before you go

• Schönbrunn Palace: Palace tours use timed tickets that sell out in summer and at weekends; book online in advance.
• Spanish Riding School: Performances sell out weeks ahead; book on the official site.
• Vienna State Opera: Seated tickets for popular performances sell out; book online well ahead.

If it rains

• Swap in Belvedere (Landstraße): The gardens are free and give the classic view of the Upper Belvedere reflected in its pool.
• Swap in Ringstrasse by tram (Ringstrasse): Ride the regular trams 1 and 2 with an ordinary ticket for most of the loop, hopping off at the Parliament and City Hall.
• Swap in Secession Building (Wieden): Read the motto over the entrance — 'To every age its art, to art its freedom' — then go straight down to the Beethoven Frieze.

Where to stay for this itinerary

Pace and daylight

The sights in this plan add up to roughly 20–26 hours of visiting over 2 days, before meals and getting between them. Daylight runs from about 8.4 hours in December to 16.1 hours in June, so in winter start early and keep museums for the afternoon.

Getting between stops: Metro. The U-Bahn connects the centre with Schönbrunn (U4), the Prater (U1 and U2) and the main stations.

More or fewer days

• One day in Vienna
• 3 days in Vienna
• 4 days in Vienna
• 5 days in Vienna
• 7 days in Vienna

Questions travellers ask