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Schönbrunn Zoo

The world's oldest zoo in the palace park: pandas, elephants, polar bears and the warm rainforest house when fingers get cold.

🕘 Best time

At opening from 9 am, when the animals are awake and the paths empty. In winter it usually closes mid-afternoon.

📍 Where

Hietzing, U4 to Hietzing, then to the Hietzinger Tor gate.

💡 Tip

Buy tickets online and use the Hietzinger Tor, the shortest way in. Go to the pandas first while they are still eating.

Half a dayAll ages€€Online ticketSource

Giant Ferris Wheel

One turn in the red wooden cabins from eighteen ninety-seven, a good ten minutes above the Prater.

🕘 Best time

In Advent after dark, from about 5 pm, when the city and the wheel are lit. Weekdays are calmer.

📍 Where

Prater, U1 or U2 to Praterstern, then five minutes on foot.

💡 Tip

Buy online ahead and skip the ticket queue. Put the kids by the window on the city side.

One hourAll ages€€Source

Christmas market at Rathausplatz

The big market in front of City Hall with a multi-storey carousel, a reindeer train and a kids’ hut in the park. Next to it, the ice rink.

🕘 Best time

Mid-November to late December. Weekday early afternoons, before offices close at 5 pm.

📍 Where

First district, U2 to Rathaus or tram to Rathausplatz.

💡 Tip

Order kids’ punch in the deposit mug; each year has a new design to take home. Bring your own skates to skip the rental queue.

Two hoursAll agesFree entrySource

Art Advent at Karlsplatz

Crafts market in front of St. Charles Church with organic food. In the Star Workshop kids do supervised crafts, plus children’s theatre and a carousel made of found objects.

🕘 Best time

Late November to just before Christmas. The craft workshop usually opens in the afternoon, at weekends from midday.

📍 Where

Fourth district, U1, U2 or U4 to Karlsplatz.

💡 Tip

Drop the kids at the workshop and browse the stalls in peace. All the food here is organic.

Two hoursAge four and upFree entrySource

Schönbrunn Palace Christmas market

Stalls in front of the yellow palace façade, with crafts, a carousel, a craft workshop, curling lanes and children’s theatre.

🕘 Best time

Early November to Christmas Eve. Best right after the zoo at midday; evenings get crowded.

📍 Where

Hietzing, U4 to Schönbrunn, right in front of the palace.

💡 Tip

Combine zoo and market on the same day: animals in the morning, market at noon, no long walks.

Two hoursAll agesFree entrySource

Spittelberg Christmas market

Stalls in the narrow Biedermeier lanes behind the MuseumsQuartier, with crafts and punch between old houses.

🕘 Best time

Mid-November to just before Christmas. On weekdays it opens in the afternoon; loveliest at blue hour around 5 pm.

📍 Where

Seventh district, U2 or U3 to Volkstheater, then three minutes on foot.

💡 Tip

Tight for pushchairs, bring a carrier. Then eat in the seventh district, where restaurants are less touristy.

One hourEveningsFree entrySource

Upper Belvedere

Baroque palace with the largest Klimt collection. The Kiss hangs here, big and golden.

🕘 Best time

At opening from 9 am or the first time slot, when you have The Kiss almost to yourselves.

📍 Where

Third district, tram D to Schloss Belvedere.

💡 Tip

Book a time slot online; it is required. Kids eight and up can play the augmented-reality game Fantastic Palastics.

Ninety minutesAge eight and up€€Time slotSource

Kahlenberg

Vienna's hill in the Vienna Woods: from the panorama terrace you see the Danube, St. Stephen's and on clear days the Schneeberg.

🕘 Best time

On a clear winter day in the early afternoon; in December the sun sets around 4 pm.

📍 Where

Nineteenth district, U4 to Heiligenstadt, then bus 38A through Grinzing to the last stop.

💡 Tip

Warm up at Café Kahlenberg at the top. Then bus back down and stop at a Heuriger in Heiligenstadt.

Half a dayAll agesFreeSource

Café Sacher

The café opposite the State Opera serves the Original Sacher-Torte with whipped cream.

🕘 Best time

Mornings from 8 am or late evening; at lunch and in the afternoon there is usually a queue.

📍 Where

First district, Philharmonikerstraße, U1, U2 or U4 to Karlsplatz.

💡 Tip

Sit in the winter garden facing the Opera. For cake to go, head straight to the shop next door.

One hourAll ages€€€Source

Café Sperl

Coffee house since eighteen eighty with billiard tables, marble tables and newspapers. A scene from Before Sunrise was filmed here.

🕘 Best time

Sunday afternoon, when there is piano music. Closed on Sundays in July and August.

📍 Where

Sixth district, Gumpendorfer Straße, U2 to Museumsquartier.

💡 Tip

Order the Sperltorte and a cocoa for the kids. Nobody rushes you, not even after two hours.

One hourAll ages€€Source

Naschmarkt

Vienna's best-known market: spices, olives, cheese, fruit and small restaurants along the Wienzeile.

🕘 Best time

Saturday morning, with farmers’ stalls and the flea market right next door. On Sundays only the restaurants open.

📍 Where

Sixth district, between Karlsplatz and Kettenbrückengasse, U4.

💡 Tip

Walk the whole length from Karlsplatz first, then taste. On Saturdays hit the flea market first while it is still full.

Two hoursAll ages€ to €€Source

Mayer am Pfarrplatz wine tavern

Heuriger in the Beethoven house in Heiligenstadt: cold platters, wine from its own vineyard, grape juice for the kids.

🕘 Best time

Weekends from midday, weekdays from 4 pm. Live Heuriger music usually starts at 7 pm.

📍 Where

Nineteenth district, Pfarrplatz, about fifteen minutes on foot from U4 Heiligenstadt.

💡 Tip

Combine with the Kahlenberg: views up top, Heuriger below. Book at weekends.

Two hoursAll ages€€Book aheadSource

Haus des Meeres

Aquarium in an old flak tower: sharks, an Atlantic tunnel, crocodiles and a tropical house where little monkeys climb freely.

🕘 Best time

Weekday mornings; at weekends and on rainy days the lift gets crowded.

📍 Where

Sixth district, Fritz-Grünbaum-Platz, U3 to Neubaugasse.

💡 Tip

Check the feeding times at the entrance and plan around them. Finish at the rooftop terrace.

Two hoursAll ages€€Source

Natural History Museum

In the dinosaur hall a life-size Allosaurus roars. Plus meteorites and the tiny Venus of Willendorf.

🕘 Best time

At opening from 9 am; closed on Tuesdays. Usually open into the evening on Wednesdays.

📍 Where

First district, Maria-Theresien-Platz, U2 or U3 to Volkstheater.

💡 Tip

Right after opening head to the dinosaur hall first, while it is empty. With older kids book the rooftop tour.

Two hoursAge four and up€€Source

ZOOM Children's Museum

Touching is allowed: an ocean play world for the smallest, a studio for painting and building, an animation lab for older kids.

🕘 Best time

Fixed start times; morning slots go fast in Advent.

📍 Where

MuseumsQuartier, Museumsplatz, U2 to Museumsquartier.

💡 Tip

Book online up to ten days ahead. Ocean from eight months, studio from four, animation from eight years.

Ninety minutesFrom eight months€Book aheadSource

Haus der Musik

Hands-on sound museum: explore noises and conduct the Vienna Philharmonic as a virtual conductor.

🕘 Best time

Open daily until late evening, good for the afternoon when it gets dark outside.

📍 Where

First district, Seilerstätte, U1 to Stephansplatz or Karlsplatz.

💡 Tip

At weekends from 2 pm there are usually kids’ tours and children’s concerts; check the programme online first.

Two hoursSchool age€€Source