Austria: Vienna

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POST DOSTĘPNY TAKŻE PO POLSKU


I have to admit that Austria has never been on my list of favorites destinations. Although I traveled twice to the Tyrol, which is wonderful place, somehow I haven’t felt attracted by Vienna. I traveled there several months ago, for a few days break from professional and home affairs. I can’t say that the city amazed me, but it’s certainly worth visiting. 

You just a few days to visit Vienna. The most interesting buildings are located in the city center and are easily accessible on foot. Schönbrunn Palace, to the Prater and Kahlenberg it’s better to take e metro. In my opinion, it’s not worth to visit all the churches and castles, because when you travel a lot you will have an impression that you have seen places like those. I had such that feeling in Hoffburg and Schönbrunn. Although I spared little money buying one ticket to those two attractions (called Sisi Ticket), I think I could do with only one. It should be stressed that the organization of the visiting is exemplary and you’ll find all the useful information and so-called audio guides in many languages ​​(including Polish).

Tourist Information Point

Is located at Albertinaplatz (Ecke Maysedergasse).

Transport

Vienna is considered a city with a very well-organized public transport system. It’s served by buses, trams and metro. Indeed, it works well, there are plenty of connections, the system is very easy to read. I moved around mainly by metro, which has a fairly extensive network of stations.
The same tickets are valid in all means of communication, which is very convenient. The city is divided into several zones. With a single ticket you can take several means of communication, provided the travel in one direction; you cannot use the same ticket for the return journey. For example, a single ticket in the urban zone (zone 100) costs €2.
Here are the ticket prices that may interest tourists visiting for a few days:   24h – €6.70; 48h – €11.70; 72h – €14.50.

By car

Parking places in Vienna are quite expensive. In the center they are paid from Monday to Friday 9.00-22.00. You pay €1 for 30 minutes, and you can leave your car for up to two hours. If someone wants to leave a car for a longer time, they must use the underground car park, there are lots of them – a day costs €20.

Sightseeing

*Opera – a beautiful building, I admired it only from the outside. If you want to watch an opera performance, you should think about it much earlier to get the tickets.

*Hoffburg Castle (Holdenplatz) – the former residence of the emperors, now the seat of the president and a congress center; visits to private apartments and representative halls, open daily 9.00-17.30, in July and August to 18.00.
A ticket to the Hofburg costs €10.50 (including a free audio guide, very well done), or €13.00 if you need a guide (children, respectively, 6.50 and 7.50).
The so-called Sisi Ticket costs €23.50 and entitles you to visit the Imperial Palace, the Museum of Furniture and Schönbrunn Palace( within the so-called Grand Tour).
During my stay in the square before the palace there was sort of a feast of sports clubs and institutions, the whole place was covered with tents, etc., making it difficult to take photos of the impressive façade of the building.

*Town Hall – next to the parliament building, very beautiful architecture. And again, I was out of luck – during my stay the equestrian competitions were held here.

St. Stephen's Cathedral
*St. Stephen’s Cathedral (Stefansplatz) – on the southern side there is a tower with 343 steps, with a magnificent view of the city; open Mon-Fri 6.00-22.00, Sat 7.00-22.00; if someone wants to attend a  mass: Sat 18.00, 19.00 (in English), Sun 9.00, 12.00, 18.00, ​​19.00, 21.00; and admission is free, you pay for the guide and the entrance to the tower.

*Votive Church – in the center, near the old Town Hall.

*Museum Quartier – large edifice with many galleries and a spacious courtyard where you can breathe and drink coffee.

*Prater – the famous amusement park, full of a variety of activities for both adult and small, free admission, pay for individual attractions, many stands of gastronomy and beer.

*University – about 2 km from the Ring, the so-called Tower of Fools is located near-by.

*Belvedere – an impressive palace with a huge garden (near the train; Prinz Eugen St. 27) – ticket to two attractions (upper and lower): €16.

*Schönbrunn Palace – the seat of the Habsburgs (easily accessible by subway U4), open 8.30-17.30; tickets: Imperial Tour €10.5 – 22 rooms (official and private rooms of Franz Joseph and Elizabeth, in different styles), Grand Tour € 13.5 – 40 rooms (aside from the chambers included in Imperial Tour you can visit the chambers of Maria Theresa). If you visits also the Hoffburg Palace it’s better to buy a combined ticket. Other ticket options are: Classic Pass, Classic Pass Plus or Gold Pass, which include additional exposures.
Opening hours vary depending on the season; the palace opens its doors at 8.30, and closes at the following times: IV-VI – 17.30, VII-VII – 18.30, IX-X – 17.30, XI-III – 17.00.

Schönbrunn Palace
*Mount Kahlenberg.

*TV Tower – with a restaurant on the top; worth going there to admire a panorama of the city from a bird’s view.

Gastronomy

Vienna is considered an expensive city. Nonsense! Of course there are plethora of restaurants and cafes, where you can leave half your salary in one afternoon. But there are many venues where you can dine at a comparable price as in Cracow (excluding so-called milk bars). You can enjoy a cup of coffee in the shade of the St. Stephen’s Cathedral cheaper than the Main Market Square in Cracow.
Because a number of immigrants live in Vienna, there are plenty of restaurants offering Indian, Persian, Chinese, Thai food and from many other countries. You can eat there very well without leaving with empty pockets. With a clear conscience I can recommend the restaurant "Mombay" at Neubaugasse (open 11.00-15.00 and 18.00-24.00). They serve a real Indian food, but be warned: if you say that you want a spicy dish, you will get it really spicy!
A cheaper option are fast food bars and pizzerias that can be found on almost every corner.

Accommodation

It all depends on what you want and in what part of the city you want to stay. In the center the cheapest option seems to be student dormitories, for example, Academia, which is a 5-10 minute walk from Mariahilfiger Strasse, which is one of the most popular streets in Vienna. They offer very modest budget rooms, with free wi-fi in the lobby, and breakfast included.




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