Vienna is one of the grandest and most popular destinations in Europe. Spending 2 days in Vienna, Austria, is a great kickstart a visit to other parts of Austria, such as the Wachau Valley or Salzburg. This family itinerary is perfect for those visiting Vienna with kids – it includes a bit of history, a bit of fun sightseeing, and lots of delicious hot chocolate!
Visiting Vienna with a family
Vienna is a clean, safe, and accessible city, great for visiting with the family. It has a first class public transport system, and an array of attractions for all ages and interests. Payton and I visited with friends and we found a great balance of learning and fun. It is an expensive city, but there are ways to save money… but more on that later.
Things to do in two days in Vienna
Schonbrunn Palace & Gardens
Schönbrunn Palace is the most popular attraction in Vienna. This magnificent palace was built in the mid-1700s (on the site of the older Katterburg mansion). With over 1400 Baroque style rooms, it was brought to its current neoclassical style by Franz Joseph of the Hapsburg monarchy. Visiting inside the palace is ticketed and prices start from €20.00 to see the state rooms.
The gardens are free and open from 6:30am – 8pm every day. There are some parts of the garden with small charges (Orangery, maze, climbing the Gloriette etc.), but you can enjoy a majority of the gardens, including viewing the Gloriette, pond, and fountain for free.
TIP: With the palace being so popular, it gets very busy. On Weekends and public holidays, more so. While the ticketing system is a timed one, so that helps entry into the palace, be prepared for queues and large numbers.
We visited on the early May bank holiday and that was a mistake. Despite having tickets to see inside the palace, we chose to skip this because of the crowds. There’s only so much you can get through when traveling with kids!
You can get a guided tour with skip the line access or even a combo ticket with historical centre tour – these are especially good if you want to let someone else do the navigation or you are short on time.
Time spend – 1/2 a day
Mozarthaus
Payton loves Mozart (she plays the violin and loves his compositions), so we couldn’t visit Austria without visiting some of Mozart’s sights. Amadeus Mozart lived in this apartment at Domgasse 5 between 1784 – 1787, Mozarthaus is the only residence in Vienna still standing.
It is now a museum, with examples of his instruments and information about his life in Vienna. Payton particularly enjoyed the audio guide (these come in versions for both kids and adults).
Time spend – 1-2 hours
Danube Tower
As you may’ve seen in our blogs about Dubai, Auckland and Chicago, Payton loves to go up high places! When we read about the Danube Tower in Vienna, we just had to go up this viewing platform.
Offering amazing views out over Vienna and the Danube River from the suburb of Donauturm, this 252-meter tower is worth a visit. Built in 1964, it was recently renovated keeping the 60s vibe alive but with new technology.
We visited the Danube Tower as part of a hop-on-hop-off bus tour – which allowed us to see a lot on our short visit.
Time spend – 1 hour for the tower OR 1/2 a day for bus tour
Cafe-hopping
Cafe-hopping around Vienna was one of our favorite things about our visit. For coffee drinkers, Vienna has some of the best. For the kids, the hot chocolate game is strong here!
We tried the famous Apfelstrudel (apple strudel) and Topfenstrudel (custard strudel), as well as the Sachertorte from Hotel Sacher. The Apfelstrudel was definitely a favorite.
Mozart Concert
With Mozart being a feature of Vienna, and Payton loving his music, it made sense to go to a concert. We chose a concert at the House of Industry – a magnificent music hall with ornate gold details. With a variety of performers and music by Mozart and Strauss, it was an amazing evening.
If you enjoy classical music, we would recommend the Vienna Hofburg Orchestra: Mozart and Strauss Concert. Some shows offer dinner and a show, but I would avoid those, as it’s nicer to be able pick your restaurant and not be rushed.
Time spend – 1 evening
Wander the historic center
The historic center of Vienna is full of interesting architectural features, beautiful cathedrals, and grand government buildings.
St. Stephen’s Cathedral is free to visit, but there is usually a queue to see the inside. The scale of the this building is amazing, and the inside is full of intricate details. We saw some beautifully grand hotels in Austria (especially in the Wachau Valley).
Other lovely buildings to see:
- Palais du Belvédère
- National Opera House
- St. Charles’s Church
- Burgtheater
- Vienna City Hall
Try some Austrian food
You can’t visit Austria without trying some of their most famous dishes. It became a fun game we played to try as many schnitzels as we could. By far our favorite was the wiener schnitzel from Griechenbeisl. This ancient restaurant opened in 1447 and the schnitzel was buttery and perfect.
Vienna has such an amazing foodie scene, with vegetarian and vegan options readily available (even schnitzel!) – so no matter your dietary requirements or budget, you’ll find great food.
Austrian food to try:
- Wiener schnitzel
- Käsespätzle (egg noodles with cheese and butter)
- Erdäpfelsalat (potato salad)
- Kaiser roll (knotted dinner roll)
- Tafelspitz (boiled beef)
- Marillenknödel (apricot dumplings)
- Apfelstrudel / Topfenstrudel (apple / custard strudel)
- Sachertorte (layered chocolate cake)
- Linzer torte (shortbread and fruit pie)
- Vanillekipferl (crescent biscuits eaten at Christmas)
Things to do in Vienna in 3-4 days
If you are in Vienna for 3-4 days, you should add some of these activities to your agenda:
- The Hofburg – the main residence of the Hapsburg dynasty. Add a visit to the Sisi Museum to give you a more personal look into the lives of this monarchy
- Prater Park – take a ride on the giant ferris wheel at Prater Park
- Hundertwasser House – see the zany building from Austrian artist, Friedensreich Hundertwasser
- Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien – a grand museum of art and history
- MuseumsQuarter – a collection of museums of all kinds, near the Hofburg palace
- Bratislava – take a day trip to Bratislava from Vienna with ease
Where to stay in Vienna with kids
Accomodation isn’t cheap in Vienna, although there are deals to be had if you stay just outside the historic center and use the fantastic u-bahn (metro) and trams.
We stayed at the Simm’s Hotel, right next to the Zippererstraße metro stop, and a mere 9 tram stops from the center. It was clean, newly renovated and well priced for Vienna. It also had free coffee stations, which is always a plus! Other trusted brands in this area include the Residence Inn by Marriott Vienna City East.
Other hotel options with great access to the city include: Lindner Hotel Vienna Am Belvedere (JdV by Hyatt) near Belvedere Palace, and the grand Vienna Marriott Hotel right in the center of town.
A family-friendly hotel near Prater Park is the Courtyard by Marriott Vienna Prater/Messe, near Prater Park and the Krieau metro station.
Is Vienna good for a family vacation?
Absolutely. For Payton, Vienna offered a lot of learning opportunities, beautiful buildings and history, and not to mention the awesome food. The transport system is incredibly reliable and comprehensive, and we felt safe wherever we went. It’s a major airport hub, so it’s easy to reach from the USA. If you’re planning a family vacation in Europe, definitely consider 2 days in Vienna (or more).
Check out the full Austrian road trip we took with our friends over at HH Lifestyle Travel!
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