About Vienna

Vienna is old, Vienna is new—and so diverse: from the magnificent Baroque buildings to “golden” Art Nouveau or the latest architecture. Vienna is packed with imperial history; at the same time it has exciting contemporary museums, lively eating and a vibrating nightlife, but also many quiet corners to explore.

Few cities can boast the imperial grandeur of Vienna, once the centre of the powerful Habsburg monarchy. Lipizzaner stallions performing elegant equine ballet, the angelic tones of the Vienna Boys’ Choir drifting across a courtyard and, outrageously opulent palaces.

Vienna is one the most musical cities in the world. This is partly due to the vast number of great composers and musicians who were born here or lived and worked here. Visiting Austria’s capital therefore means experiencing the works of Mozart, Haydn, Schubert, Beethoven, Johann Strauss and many others in venues like the Staatsoper and Musikverein.

The Mercer Study has chosen Vienna as the world’s number one most liveable city for the sixth time in a row in 2015. More than half of the metropolitan area is made up of green spaces. 280 imperial parks and gardens enrich the cityscape. In spring, 400 species of rose bloom in the Volksgarten alone. The nearby recreation areas of Prater, Vienna Woods and Lobau invite visitors to go on walks, day trips, hikes and bicycle tours. Vienna has a total of 2,000 parks.

It's hard to imagine a more liveable city than Vienna. This is a metropolis where regulars sit in cosy coffee houses and offer credible solutions to the worlds chaos over the noble bean; where Beisln (bistro pubs) serve delicious brews, wines and traditional food; where talented chefs are taking the capital in new culinary directions; and where an efficient transport system will ferry you across town from a restaurant to a post-dinner drink in no time at all. It's safe, it has lots of bicycle tracks and it even has its own droll sense of humor.

  Places to see in Vienna:

• Schönbrunn Palace: Spend an entire day at Schönbrunn: visit the show rooms with a “Grand Tour with Audio Guide,” admire the splendid Bergl Rooms, and stroll through the “Labyrinth.” Schönbrunn Zoo in Vienna is the oldest existing zoo in the world and has been named Europe’s best on three occasions. Each year more than two million visitors come to see the panda baby, new-born elephants and many other rare animals.
  
  
• The Sisi Museum: the Sisi Museum in the Imperial Apartments of the Imperial Palace compares the myth and the facts. Among the highlights are numerous personal objects once owned by Elisabeth as well as the most famous portraits of the beautiful empress.
  
  
• The Ring Boulevard (Ringstraße): Emperor Franz Joseph officially opened Vienna’s Ringstrasse on May 1, 1865. Vienna is celebrating its 150th birthday in 2015 with numerous events and exhibitions. The most beautiful boulevard in the world not only rich in sights, it also has large parks, important monuments, and much more. About 800 buildings line the boulevard today. Additional sights on the Ringstrasse, aside from the many opulent buildings, include the black-gold lattice fence in front of the Hofburg, the world’s longest fence from the age of Historicism, the 5.5-meter-tall Pallas Athene statue in front of the Parliament, and the “Rathausmann,” a statue of a man on the tower of City Hall.
  
  
• St. Stephen’s Cathedral: St. Stephen’s Cathedral is the symbol of Vienna. Construction commenced in the 12th century. Today, it is one of the most important Gothic structures in Austria. Stephen’s Cathedral is located directly in the city centre. At the religious and geographical heart of Vienna. It’s giant Pummerin bell features on television as it rings in the New Year.
  
  

Click here to watch the video from Professor Franz Wotawa, General Chair of QRS 2016. More details will be posted.

Useful Information

  Tourist Information

• 1st district, city centre Albertinaplatz, corner of Maysedergasse Daily from 9.00 am to 7.00 pm
  
  

  Vienna International Airport, Schwechat

• Arrival hall Daily from 9.00 am to 10.00 pm
  
  

  Emergency Numbers

Fire service	122
Police	133
Ambulance/rescue	144
Emergency doctor	141
European emergency	112

  Language and Currency

• The official language in Austria is German, but most people are able to speak English. The local currency is the EURO (€)
  
  

  Opening hours shops in Vienna

• Shops are usually open Mon—Fri from 9:00 am—6:30 pm, Sat until 5:00 pm or 6:00 pm; some shopping centres are open until 8:00 pm or 9:00 from Mon-Fri. Shopping is available on Sundays and holidays at the large railway stations, at the airport and in the museum shops.
  
  
• Drugstores are open Mon—Fri from 8.00 am—6.00 pm, usually without a lunch break, and on Saturday from 8.00 am—12.00 pm. Outside of these times, a 24-hour drugstore standby service is available throughout the city. Details of the nearest open drugstore are posted at every drugstore. For telephone information, call the number 1455.
  
  

  Public Transport Tickets

• 24, 48 and 72 hour-ticket:
  
  
  • 24-hour-ticket 7.60€
  • 48-hour-ticket 13.30€
  • 72-hour-ticket 16.50€
  • ticket is valid for 24, 48 or 72 hours from validation
  • valid on all public transport services in Vienna
  
  
• Single trip:
  
  
  • Single trip 2.20€
  • can be used to travel once in one direction and are valid from the time they are punched in a validating machine
  • you may change between tram, bus and underground as often as you like, but without interrupting travel
  
  
• Tickets are available at:
  
  
  • Vienna transport Authority��s ticket offices
  • ticket machines
  • tobacconists
  • online: https://shop.wienerlinien.at/
  
  

  WIFI in Public Transport

• In Vienna there are 10 WIFI Hotspots available in the public transportation systems. These are set up near the information offices in the following metro stations:
  
  
  • Südtiroler Platz/Hauptbahnhof (U1, red line)
  • Karlsplatz (U1, red line/U2, purple line/ U4, green line)
  • Stephansplatz (U1, red line/ U3, orange line)
  • Praterstern (U1, red line/U2, purple line)
  • Schottentor (U2, purple line)
  • Westbahnhof (U6, brown line/ U3, orange line)
  • Landstraße (U3, orange line/ U4, green line)
  • Erdberg (U3, orange line)
  • Meidling (U6, brown line)
  • Floridsdorf (U6, brown line)