What to See in Vienna in Two Days: Hofburg, Stephansdom and More
A trip to Vienna – from the Hofburg through Stephansdom and the Votive Church all the way to Danube Island, the Belvedere and the gardens of Schönbrunn.
Vienna is Austria’s capital and one of those cities where, within a single day, you can go from enormous imperial palaces and gorgeous historic houses to sleek modern high-rises. It sits on the Danube and today is home to more than two million people.
This time we headed to Vienna with my husband’s parents. The main goal of our trip was Haus des Meeres, since my father-in-law keeps fish and birds and loves places like that. I’ve already written a whole post about Haus des Meeres, though, so this time I’ll mainly show you a few other places and sights we managed to visit during our stay in Vienna.
We set off from Jihlava via Moravské Budějovice and headed on toward Austria. Right at the border, an Austrian police patrol pulled us over this time. They wanted to see our ID cards, glanced into the car from a distance, and then let us carry on.
The moment we arrived in Vienna, proper big-city traffic kicked in. Lots of cars, jams and a fair bit of chaos in places. We’d originally been heading for the Park+Ride Hütteldorf garage, from where you can transfer straight onto the U4 metro line. But when we got there, staff in reflective vests were standing at the entrance and wouldn’t let us in. For some reason the garage was closed on the day of our visit, so we had to move on quickly, since a queue was already forming behind us. The trouble was, we had no idea where else nearby we could leave the car.
When parking doesn’t work out, the whole plan changes
We had a room booked at the Leonardo Hotel Vienna Schönbrunn, and our original plan was to head to Schönbrunn before checking in. But now our main problem was where to put the car. So my husband called the hotel and asked in English whether we could arrive earlier, at least leave the car there, and head into the city. And we got lucky. Not only could we come early, but our rooms were already ready too, so we checked in right away, left our things and changed our whole plan a bit.
That turned out to be a pretty good solution in the end. It’s only about 100 metres from the hotel to the Längenfeldgasse metro station, served by lines U4 and U6. We bought 24-hour tickets for Vienna’s public transport. They let you travel unlimited on public transport for the duration, so we could switch between the metro and trams as needed. And since we had seniors with us, that turned out to be really practical — we walked some stretches, and once that got to be too much for them, we simply hopped a short ride instead.
From Längenfeldgasse straight to Karlsplatz
The U4 took us straight to Karlsplatz. It’s one of the important spots in central Vienna and also a major transport hub. Nearby you’ll find Karlskirche, the Wien Museum, and just a short walk away, the Vienna State Opera. And that’s exactly where we headed next. Wiener Staatsoper stands on the Opernring and is one of Vienna’s most famous cultural buildings. The building itself is lovely, and even if you don’t go inside for a performance, you certainly won’t miss it while strolling through the centre.
Karlsplatz with Karlskirche, the Art Nouveau pavilion and the Wien Museum
Hofburg, the City Hall and other magnificent Viennese buildings
From there we carried on through the centre. One of the places we obviously couldn’t skip was the Hofburg. This vast imperial palace complex stands right in the historic heart of Vienna and was the seat of the Habsburgs for centuries. Today part of the complex is open to visitors, and the Hofburg is also the official seat of the Austrian president.
Hofburg – the former seat of the Habsburgs and today the seat of the Austrian president
Walking through Vienna, there’s always something to look at. Historic houses, decorated facades, huge buildings — and suddenly another monumental structure appears in front of you.
One of them is Vienna’s city hall, the Wiener Rathaus. The neo-Gothic building went up in the 19th century and is still the seat of Vienna’s mayor and city administration today. Plenty of different events also take place in front of the town hall throughout the year, so the area around it tends to be lively.
Vienna's City Hall and the surrounding historic houses on the Ringstrasse
I honestly can’t remember any more in what order we visited all these places. Sometimes we walked, sometimes we hopped on a tram or the metro, depending on what suited us at the time. And since we had my husband’s parents with us, we didn’t want to drag them across the whole city on foot for no reason.
The Votive Church, which caught my eye straight away
One of the buildings I really liked in Vienna was the Votive Church, or Votivkirche. It’s a striking neo-Gothic church near the main building of the University of Vienna, and with its two slender towers it’s really hard to miss. The church was built as a thanksgiving for Emperor Franz Joseph I surviving an assassination attempt in 1853. It was consecrated in 1879, and its towers reach about 99 metres.
Votivkirche – the neo-Gothic church built to mark Emperor Franz Joseph I's survival
Stephansdom – one of Vienna’s main landmarks
We also, of course, went to St. Stephen’s Cathedral, or Stephansdom, on Stephansplatz. It’s one of Vienna’s most famous buildings and stands right in the heart of the historic centre. Its tallest south tower measures 136 metres, and the cathedral is also known for its colourful roof. The building’s roots go back to the 12th century, though its present form developed and changed over many following centuries. This was, of course, one of the busiest spots we saw — and not just here, really. Vienna is a major tourist city, and around its best-known sights you’ll run into tourists on pretty much every corner.
Stephansdom with its famous colourful tiled roof
From the historic centre all the way to the Danube
We also wanted to see a bit of a different side of Vienna, so we headed to Donauinsel, or Danube Island. It’s an island roughly 21 kilometres long between the Danube and the New Danube, and it’s a popular spot for relaxing, sports, swimming and cycling.
You can get here comfortably by metro line U1 to the Donauinsel station. And this is exactly where Vienna’s metro rather surprised me. Line U1 actually crosses the Danube over the Reichsbrücke, and the metro runs right inside the bridge’s structure, below the road. The Donauinsel station itself is essentially part of the bridge. You’re used to the metro running deep underground, and here suddenly you step out right onto a bridge over the Danube. I found that pretty interesting. On one side old decorated houses and imperial palaces, and moments later water, beaches and modern high-rises. That contrast was one of the things I enjoyed most about Vienna.
Donauinsel and the modern face of Vienna by the Danube
Belvedere
Another stop on our list was Oberes Belvedere. This Baroque palace complex was built in the 18th century by Prince Eugene of Savoy as his summer residence. Today the Upper Belvedere is mainly an art museum, and the whole complex is complemented by extensive gardens between the Upper and Lower Belvedere.
Vienna until evening
We spent our first day walking and riding around Vienna like this until the evening. The lights gradually came on, the streets started to look a little different, and by then we’d already clocked up a serious number of kilometres.
I have to say Vienna really does have some gorgeous historic houses and buildings. Some are so huge and ornate you don’t quite know where to look first. At the same time, it’s also a genuinely big, busy city — lots of cars, people and tourists. I wouldn’t want to live here, but as a trip destination I think Vienna is really interesting, and there’s always something more to discover.
Day two: Schönbrunn
On the second day we headed to Schönbrunn. Schönbrunn Palace used to be the Habsburgs’ summer residence, and the whole palace with its gardens is now a UNESCO World Heritage site. It gained much of its present form mainly under Maria Theresa.
This time we didn’t go inside the palace, but we did walk through at least part of the gardens. And they really are enormous. If you want to explore them properly, expect to do a fair amount of walking. The gardens are lovely, well kept and definitely worth a stroll. Schönbrunn itself, though, I have to admit, didn’t completely win me over. Maybe I’d feel differently if we’d also gone inside, but out of everything we saw during our visit to Vienna, I was far more taken by the city itself — its old streets, the Hofburg, the City Hall, Stephansdom or the Votive Church.
And maybe that’s exactly the best thing about travelling. Something different catches everyone’s eye.
Schönbrunn Palace and its sprawling gardens
I’d definitely go back to Vienna one day, because a city this big just can’t be fully seen in one or two visits anyway.
And what do you like most about Vienna? 🙂
Good to know
Which metro station is closest to the Leonardo Hotel Vienna Schönbrunn?
The closest one is Längenfeldgasse, about 100 metres from the hotel. It's served by lines U4 and U6.
Is a 24-hour ticket worth it in Vienna?
If you plan to visit several places in a single day, it's very practical. It lets you travel unlimited on Vienna's public transport for as long as it's valid.
Can you visit Schönbrunn for free?
The regular parts of the palace park are free to enter during opening hours. You need tickets for the palace itself and for some other parts of the grounds.
How do you get to Donauinsel?
One of the easiest ways is metro line U1 to the Donauinsel station. Interestingly, the metro runs there across the Reichsbrücke, and the station is actually part of the bridge's structure.
What's worth seeing in Vienna if you only have one or two days?
For us, definitely the historic centre, the Hofburg, Vienna City Hall, Stephansdom and the Votive Church. If you have more time, you can add Schönbrunn, the Belvedere, Hundertwasserhaus or Donauinsel.
Is the Park+Ride Hütteldorf normally in operation?
Yes, P+R Hütteldorf is one of Vienna's park-and-ride facilities. The fact that we weren't let in during our visit was a situation specific to that particular day, not a sign that the car park is usually closed.
