Itinerary
Wed, Oct 14
Since we've been to Vienna before on another river cruise, we will skip the usual tourist stops. Click here for that trip, which includes Sacher's Cafe, riding school, Graben, Basilica, Schoonbron Palace.
Rainy, 10C, sunny 20C Steps -17,000
I got up at 8 and formulated a rainy set of plans. It turned out to be sunny and warm/
John was up at 9:30. We were out the door at 10 ready to brave the subway.
We felt pretty proud of ourselves as we easily figured out the Vienna subway system, which set the perfect tone for our day of exploring! My pre-trip searches had warned me that calling a Bolt ride would just be a total waste of time in Vienna’s city center traffic, and a 40-minute walk back and forth from our base would have been an absolute waste of time too. Going with the rails was definitely the smartest move. We walked into the station, used the ticket machine to buy our passes, and tapped through the gates without a hitch.
Interestingly, our ticket experience changed throughout the day. In the morning, we had absolutely no trouble at all with the subway's touch-and-pay system, breezing right through the gates.
We are at Wein Hbf on the red line. We went 2 (crowded) stops to the heart at Karlsplatz.
Our morning officially began by taking the U1 subway line right from Wien Hauptbahnhof, the city's massive main railway hub that spans over 50 hectares with its striking, futuristic diamond-shaped glass roof.
Conveniently located just across the street from this enormous transit center was our hotel, the Ibis Wien Hauptbahnhof.
We rode the train straight to Karlsplatz, where we couldn't find the exit for Secession.Nachtsmarket, so instead landed here.
Where we kicked off the day with lattes and traditional apple strudel right at the Wien Museum.
Look at that mille-feuille!
From there, we set out on foot, passing the legendary Hotel Sacher (approximately €650 to €1,350 EUR).
Unveiled on March 26, 2026, the installation features two monumental 5-meter-tall sculptures created by the internationally renowned Austrian artist Erwin Wurm. The artwork is part of a year-long cultural collaboration celebrating the 150th anniversary of Hotel Sacher.
The Artworks: "Step Big" & "Dancer"
The installation features two anthropomorphized pieces of luggage flanking the main portal of the historic hotel:
• "Dancer": An oversized, precious lady's handbag perched on top of incredibly long, slender, five-meter legs.
• "Step Big": A serious gentleman’s briefcase, also on long spindly legs, frozen mid-stride in a cartoonishly large step.
According to Erwin Wurm and art historians, the pieces serve two main purposes:
1. The "Invisible Baggage": They act as a poetic reflection on the emotional, historic, and personal baggage that every human carries with them, shaped by their origins and experiences.
2. A Parable of Consumerism: By merging human form with luxury accessories, Wurm comments on modern identity—exploring how we use physical items to "design" ourselves, perform gender roles, and project who we want to be seen as in society
The Albertina Museum is a world-renowned art museum located in the heart of Vienna, Austria. Housed inside the largest residential palace of the former Habsburg dynasty, it seamlessly blends breathtaking imperial history with masterpieces of global art.
The "rabbit" associated with the Albertina Museum is actually a wild hare, specifically referring to Albrecht Dürer's legendary 1502 watercolor painting, Young Hare (Feldhase). It is the museum's most famous masterpiece and serves as the official mascot and visual identity of the institution.
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Reformed City Church of Vienna (Reformierte Stadtkirche), a historic Protestant church located in the 1st district (Innere Stadt) at Dorotheergasse 16.
The Pension Neuer Markt is a historic, family-run 3-star bed and breakfast embedded within the storied Herrnhuterhaus building in Vienna. Unlike conventional, uniform chain hotels, it functions as a classic Viennese pension, occupying the upper floors of an apartment-style complex to give travelers the authentic feel of living like a local in the city center.
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We walked past the impressive curved wings holding the Sisi Museum. The monumental ceiling you pass underneath right before entering the ticket area is the inside of the Michaelerkuppel (St. Michael’s Dome).
We then wandered through the grand imperial grounds of the Hofburg Palace.
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And the breathtaking Austrian National Library, marveling at the towering statues, monumental gates, and the sheer scale of the old Habsburg empire.
We exited onto Michaelerplatz, arriving right as the church bells of the 13th-century St. Michael's Church began tolling at noon.
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Standing in the historic square, we peered into the fascinating open-air UNESCO Roman dig site right in the center of the plaza, marveling at the contrast of 2,000-year-old ancient ruins sitting right against the grand imperial facades.
Äußeres Burgtor (Outer Castle Gate, also known as Heldentor) viewed from the Ringstraße side looking toward Heldenplatz.
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From horse drawn carriage rides, to antique cars, to pedal driven cars to gigantic tours busses, there are many ways to get around town.
Maria-Theresien-Platz in Vienna, Austria, flanked by the Natural History Museum on the left and the Kunsthistorisches Museum (Art History Museum) on the right, two nearly identical mirrored museum buildings completed in 1889.
For lunch and a view, we headed back toward St. Stephen's Cathedral, affectionately known by locals as "Steffl".
We headed right into the famous Steffl Department Store and took the glass panoramic lift straight up to the 7th floor to dine at SKY Restaurant, Bar & Roofgarden.
The view from up there was absolutely exceptional! Through the floor-to-ceiling glass windows, we looked directly across the central rooftops of Vienna, getting a stunning up-close view of the cathedral's famous steep roof covered in its striking mosaic of over 230,000 colorful glazed tiles that depict the imperial double-headed eagle.
It was the perfect spot to sit back, relax, and take in the skyline without having to climb a single step.
South Tower ("Steffl"): Reaches 136.7 meters high; a strenuous climb of 343 steps leads to a panoramic watchman's lookout over Vienna's Old Town.
A beer and truffle parmesan garlic fries!
Afterward, we enjoyed a stroll down the famous Graben shopping street. While walking, we caught sight of the McDonald's nestled inside a magnificent, historic building. Like many buildings along this upscale promenade, it featured an elegant, grand nineteenth-century facade decorated with classic Viennese stone carvings and expansive windows that perfectly blended historical architecture with modern city life. Though we didn't go in, it was fascinating to see how even a fast-food chain adapts to look completely seamless inside one of Vienna's grand, stately structures.
McDonald's
We made sure to step inside the cathedral itself. Walking into the soaring, dim Gothic interior of St. Stephen's was absolutely breathtaking—the massive stone pillars, intricately carved altars, and the dramatic way the light filtered through the stained glass windows.
It was being renovated in 2012 when we walked by, covered in scaffolding.
I've churched John out over the years, too many ABC (Another Bloody Church/Castle) tours! So we dispensed with buying tickets. Plus they are expensive €20.00 – €25.00 for adults, that's $32-$40 CAD.
I've churched John out over the years, too many ABC (Another Bloody Church/Castle) tours! So we dispensed with buying tickets. Plus they are expensive €20.00 – €25.00 for adults, that's $32-$40 CAD.
St. Stephen’s Cathedral (Stephansdom) is Vienna's most iconic Gothic landmark and the spiritual heart of the city.
We then walked down toward the bustling Naschmarkt. The history of this vibrant market dates all the way back to the 1770s, when it first started out as a humble local dairy market outside the old city walls. We spent some time strolling around the colorful, energetic market stalls, taking in the sights and doing a bit of shopping—John bought a cozy winter cap to replace the one he had lost, and I picked up a beautiful Klimt-inspired scarf. We also did some cheese samplings.
We think we will come back here tomorrow.
From the market, we went over to the iconic Vienna Secession Building. Built in 1898 by architect Joseph Maria Olbrich, this striking white, starkly geometric Art Nouveau landmark was constructed as a rebellious architectural manifesto after Gustav Klimt and a progressive group of artists broke away from the conservative fine arts establishment. The building's absolute crown jewel is its jaw-dropping dome: an intricate, openwork hemisphere made of roughly 2,500 gilded iron laurel leaves that gleam brilliantly in the sunlight. While locals affectionately nickname this shimmering sphere the "golden cabbage" (Krauthappel), it serves as a powerful symbol of artistic victory and eternal youth. The stark white walls beneath it are adorned with intricate details, including carved owls symbolizing wisdom, sculpted Gorgon masks representing the arts, and the movement’s bold golden motto inscribed right above the entrance: "To every age its art, to art its freedom".
We went inside specifically to see Gustav Klimt's famous Beethoven Frieze—a monumental, 34-metre-long allegorical wall painting wrapping around the lower level—though we honestly found the €13 entry ticket a bit of a waste of money!
No photographs allowed. Internet photo.
Looking at Klimt's Beethoven Frieze downstairs, the vast stretches of empty, white plaster wall are a crucial part of the artwork's composition.
Klimt painted the frieze for a temporary 1902 exhibition using cheap, light materials (casein paint, plaster, and reed mats). It was meant to be torn down after the show closed. Because it was ephemeral, Klimt did not waste time painting heavy backgrounds; he utilized the raw white wall as his canvas.
Klimt designed the frieze to mimic Ludwig van Beethoven's 9th Symphony. In music, silence and pauses are just as important as the notes. The long, blank, empty sections represent visual silence and tension. They give the viewer "breathing room" as they walk along the 34-meter wall, building anticipation before hitting the densely detailed, chaotic "Hostile Forces" or the golden climax of the "Ode to Joy".
(Note: If you notice localized, patchy discoloration or textures within those white spaces, that is a result of the frieze's turbulent history. It was cut into seven pieces, rolled up, hidden in storage for decades, and heavily damaged before being meticulously restored by the Austrian state.
In the hallway.
We grabbed the elevator next to the museum which took us down to the subway.
When it came time to head back in the afternoon, we hit a small transit snag. Unlike our easy experience earlier that morning, we had to get physical tickets from the machines this time, and to make things slightly more stressful, the first machine we tried didn't even work!
Fortunately, we sorted it out, hopped back onto the U1 line, tapped our tickets, and returned straight to Wien Hauptbahnhof before walking right across the street back to our hotel.
Before going back to the hotel we scooped out a few restaurants just behind us, then put our feet up for a while.
Etiler Smash Burger (often written as Etiler)It is a smash burger spot located in the 11th district at Quellenstraße 181, which sits directly in the neighborhood right behind the ibis Wien Hauptbahnhof hotel and the main train station.
Its distinct logo features a man in a smart suit holding a goose on his arm,
More about the subway:
Vienna’s subway system (U-Bahn Wien), operated by Wiener Linien, is internationally recognized as one of the most efficient, clean, and highly utilized rapid transit networks in the world. Serving as the backbone of the city’s public transit, it moves hundreds of millions of passengers annually.
Key System Metrics
Annual Ridership: The subway network moves 352.4 million passengers annually (out of Wiener Linien's total 903 million transit passengers).
Network Length: The total operating track length is 84 kilometers (approx. 52.2 miles).
Stations: There are 109 active stations spread across the city.
Fleet Size: The system operates with 774 subway vehicles.
Intervals: Trains arrive every 2 to 5 minutes during daily peak hours, and every 15 minutes during overnight weekend service.
🚇 The Lines at a Glance
Vienna currently operates 5 color-coded subway lines, which originally began transitioning from a historic metropolitan railway (Stadtbahn) into a modern metro system in 1976.
The Vienna U-Bahn is not deeper than the London Underground.
• London Underground Depth: The deepest station is Hampstead tube station on the Northern line, which sits 58.5 metres (192 feet) below ground level. Unopened sections like North End run even deeper at 67 metres.
• Vienna U-Bahn Depth: The deepest parts of Vienna's network reach a maximum depth of about 30 metres below ground level (at Altes Landgut on the U1), while its deepest station platforms (such as Karlsplatz) are around 25 metres down.
Toronto's subway system is shallower than London's, but it is comparable in depth to Vienna's.
Most of Toronto's original rapid transit network was built using the shallow cut-and-cover method, keeping stations relatively close to the surface. However, its baseline shifted with the opening of the Line 5 Eglinton project.
• The Deepest Station: Avenue Station on Line 5 holds the record as Toronto's deepest station, reaching 32 metres (105 feet) underground. It had to be mined deep beneath the surface due to the hilly terrain of Eglinton Avenue West.
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