This week two years ago, I was visiting Vienna, Austria while tagging along on one of my husband’s work trips. I enjoyed a jam-packed trip filled with sightseeing, hearty food, local beer, and quite a bit of urban hiking.
Historical Sites
Like any historic European city, Vienna is at no loss of historical sites or museums. I did find that admission to many sites tended to be quite high, but I still wandered around different parts of the city each day to take in the architecture – more on that later. But here are few sites I did visit and would recommend:
- The catacombs underneath Stephensplatz. The church itself is impressive in its own right, but the plague catacombs below – especially the chambers lined with skulls – are fascinating for a goth like me. (No pictures allowed.)
- The Belvedere palace. The Belvedere is a huge complex in the middle of the city, with several buildings and extensive grounds to explore. It’s a great way to get some exercise and fresh air while in town.
Local Food & Restaurants
I took a break from my normal keto diet for the week, and I am so glad I did. We had some amazing local cuisine, from the cheap bar food near our hotel, to the breweries around town. I made it a point to sample as many versions of several local favorites while I could. Goulash was frequently on my menu, as was currywurst – a popular snack made of sausage and curry-flavored ketchup.
Art Nouveau and Architecture
I mentioned above that I wanted to dedicate a whole section on the Art Nouveau architecture found in Vienna – there is plenty of it! Art Nouveau is one of my favorite design styles, and you can spend several hours around the city viewing these historic buildings.
I should mention that Vienna has a very easy to navigate public transportation system, so you can explore different parts of the city with little effort during your trip. For more photos and historical information, you can check out my original blog entry on my hike to view these Art Nouveau buildings.
Breweries & Nightlife
It wouldn’t be a proper vacation without checking out the local breweries and craft pubs. We sampled several during our week in town, but I would hands down recommend the following while visiting:
- Ammutsøn – a craft beer dive with rotating taps from local and regional breweries. Wide variety of styles, and friendly staff.
- 7Stern – a rustic beerpub with hearty food and home-brewed beer. Try the goulash!
- Salm Braeu – with parts of the building dating back to 1717, this restaurant has a very cool underground dining area.
Enjoying my “Looking Back” series? Over the past few years, my love for both hiking and traveling has increased almost exponentially, and I’ve been fortunate to have had so many opportunities to travel recently. With the current health crisis, our travel plans for 2020 and 2021 were scuttled; so I decided I’d take some time over the next few months to write this “Looking Back” series, where I dive into a recap of some of my favorite trips over the last few years. Click the navigation below to read more.
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