Welcome to Vienna
Welcome to Vienna - The city of Music and Austro-Hungarian Empire
Vienna is the capital of Austria and in 2001 the city centre was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Vienna has its origin from early Celtic and Roman settlements into a Medieval and Baroque city and it became the capital of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. It was also a very important centre for music, from the great age of Viennese Classicism through to the early parts of the 20th century, thanks to famous composers such as Strauss, Brahms, Beethoven, Schubert, Haydn and Mozart that lived and performed in Vienna. The city, is considered "The City of Dreams" because Sigmund Freud lived and worked here. Moreover, its strategic location, on the river, contributed to the city becoming a mighty empire, reaching its peak during the Habsburg dynasty.
Information and Fact
Night-life
You can find the city's best bars in the 'Innere Stadt', such as Irish pubs and designer bars. The Copa Cagrana's beach-styled bars serve beautiful fruit cocktails. If you want to find the nightclubs you should go in the Gurtel area, where there is the Rhiz, and near Nussdorfer Strasse, which offer house music. For the lovers of the cultural and art there are many Viennese museums, that stay open late, like the Albertina and the House of Music.
Shopping
The most trendy street in Vienna is the Mariahilfer Strasse, where you can find many stores of fashion, jewellery and accessories. There is a famous food market Naschmarkt in Karlsplatz during the week and a flea market on Saturdays. If you visit the city in December you can go to City Hall Square for the Christmas market. There is a department store with a great variety of outlets, the Kaufhaus Schiepek, in Teinfaltstraße.
Sightseeing
Thanks to its history there are many places that you can visit. First of all you can go to Hofburg Palace, or Imperial Palace, that was the residence of the Austrian Hapsburgs for 600 years and it is composed of more than 2500 rooms. More historic sites would include St. Sthepen’s Cathedral, it is famous for the high tower (about 136m), and the baroque Karlskirche. You can visit many museums like Museum of Fine Arts, or Kunsthistorisches Museum, Freud museum, Natural History Museum and The Albertina. One of most important attractions of Vienna is the Giant Wheel, it is located in a large wooded park and playground known as the Prater.
Time
Standard time zone: UTC/GMT +1 hour
Climate
Vienna has a temperate continental climate, with sunny summers and cold winters. The best period to visit Vienna are spring and autumn.
Public transportation
Vienna have one of the better public transport systems in Europe and it consists of punctual buses and trams, U-Bahn (underground) and S-Bahn (railway). The tram network is one of the largest worldwide and it is the best way to go round the city. Buses are useful in the city centre, where there are no trams. Fares are standard for all forms of public transport (€1.70 for a single). Taxis are plentiful, but are, also, among the most expensive in Europe.
