Vienna - winter city break 2023

St. Stephan Cathedral

Our 3-day itinerary in Vienna in late November, including the Christmas markets.
Dates: 24-27 November 2023
Group: 4 adults, 4 kids ages 4-12

Day 1

We arrived on a Friday afternoon and after checking in, headed straight to the St. Stephan Platz, for the first feel of the city. There is a Christmas market around the cathedral, with lots of local hand-crafted products, food and drinks. We visited the cathedral, enjoyed its Christmas illumination from the outside, and then took a walk via Graben, then main pedestrian street, also beautifully decorated for Christmas. We passed by the Spanish Riding School and, as a big part of our group are horse lovers, enjoyed a sneak at the horses standing in their stalls in the school’s back yard. We were interested in booking a training session to watch them in action, but unfortunately there were no sessions taking place during our stay (the calendar can be checked on their website).

St. Stephan Cathedral - gingerbread model :)

Graben

It was already evening when we made our way to the Haus of Musik – the first museum on our list for this trip. It’s a highly interactive place, which explains how sounds and instruments work, as well as introduces you to the work of the great composers of Vienna. It’s a place where stairs work as piano keys, and where you can become a conductor of the Viennese philharmonic orchestra, who will play according to your gestures! Haus of Musik was a real highlight of the trip and the biggest hit with our kids, who claim it was their favourite Viennese museum. I dare to say that the adult part of our trip equally enjoyed it 😊.

Haus of Musik

Haus of Musik

Haus of Musik

Day 2

We started this super cold day with a visit at another museum – Natural History Museum, which probably never goes wrong with kids. The Viennese museum is really impressive, not only due to the collection, but also the stunning architecture of its 19^th century building. The smallest kids enjoyed the dinosaurs, especially the interactive one, the eldest ones learned quite a bit about the Earth and the climate change.

The Natural History Museum faces an identical building of the Museum of Fine Arts, and there is a small Christmas market in between. The whole area looks so charming at this time of the year.

Natural History Museum - lobby

Natural History Museum

We headed back to the apartment for lunch and a little afternoon rest, to recharge for the evening. This time we went to the main Christmas market at the Viennese Rathaus (city hall). Unfortunately, going there in the evening at the weekend is probably not the best idea, especially if you want to visit with kids. The whole place was packed with people, it was hard to move or get access to any attractions, so if I ever visit again, I would choose to go earlier in the day, even for the price of missing the Christmas lights. It was still lovely to have a glass of mulled wine and for the kids to enjoy a candy apple on a stick, while the snowflakes were falling around.

Rathaus - Christmas market

Candy apple

Day 3

We spent the morning in the Children’s Museum at the Schonbrunn Palace. It’s a place designed for the kids to discover how the life of a royal family was like in the Austrian imperial times. While the kids quite enjoyed it, I think I expected a little more. We all had the most fun there trying on the different clothes from the epoque and taking pictures in them.

There is a Christmas market in front of the Schonbrunn Palace. We tried some baked potatoes and goulash in bread bowls, as well as bought some Christmas ornaments.

Children's Museum at the Schonbrunn Palace

Then our group split – some of us with the youngest kids went back to the apartment, while the others decided to visit the famous Albertina art museum. We especially liked the permanent exhibition ‘Monet to Picasso’, and would highly recommend it.

Monet in the Albertina's collection

To finish our lovely stay in Vienna, we went out for dinner (traditional schnitzel) and a dessert in one of the Viennese cafes.

A 'tiny' Wienerschnitzel

Vienna proved to be a fantastic place for a city break. It wasn’t our first time here, but the first one with the kids. With such a wealth of museums, you can easily tailor your stay to the needs, interests and age of your group, as well as adjust your activities to the weather. We will surely be back, as the city has so much to offer!