Old Vienna Walk

This page includes my notes and a tour map of a self guided old Vienna walk through the historic centre, a UNESCO world heritage site. It wraps up most Vienna attractions, from the Vienna opera house to The Third Man film locations, and is therefore a great start into exploring Vienna.

You will get that instant feel of traditional Vienna culture and the laid back way of life here. (I automatically take a gear back when I return from busy London walk ways to Graben and Kärntnerstrasse and their coffeehouses closeby!)

There is also a vast amount of guided tours through old Vienna. Review my selection of the best Vienna walking tours for an extra educational boost of Vienna history and culture.

1. Vienna State Opera

The Vienna State Opera (Wiener Staatsoper) is a great starting point as it is not only a main Vienna landmark but also THE local urban transport junction. Three tram lines, four bus lines and three underground lines stop here.

Walk left of the Opera's main entrance into the Operngasse. At the first crossing, choose between a hotdog at one of the best Vienna sausage stands in the city, visiting the Albertina to your left, a superbly renovated imperial palace and museum, and visiting the Sacher Eck café (caution: Vienna tourism hotspot) of Hotel Sacher in Philharmonikergasse, right behind the Opera.

2. Kärntnerstrasse And Surroundings

An Old Vienna walk in the city centre sooner or later crosses Kärntnerstrasse, our prime shopping promenade and part of a large pedestrian area full of history, if you manage to look above the shop levels. Watch out for the beautiful facade and shop of glass ware manufacturer Lobmeyr (see photo below), former Imperial Supplier to the Court, at no. 26.

Rauhensteingasse is where the Old Vienna walk starts to let you get intimate with this city. It's all more quiet, more private, more real here. Blumenstockgasse gets really narrow, with some of the houses bending towards you. Continue through Ballgasse which bends to the left and then, enter Vienna's loveliest tiny square, the Franziskanerplatz, entrance to the Hieronymous Church and the adjacent Franciscan monastery. Take a break of your Vienna walk and a seat at the Kleines Café right on the square and do people watching, our favourite pastime.

On your way to Kärntnerstrasse, two shops for traditional Austrian folkloric clothes, Gössl and Original Salzburger Trachten Outlet, turn up. Gössl stocks up-market authentic Austrian clothes and accessories and new collections of modern simplistic design. The Original Salzburger Trachtenoutlet is more moderatly priced and sells good quality and sometimes quirky, partly authentic, pieces. Select one single piece and wear it with your jeans or a white shirt.

Any old Vienna walk eventually hits the city's most famous landmark, the Stephansdom (St. Stephen's Cathedral), reflected in the ultra modern Haas Haus, home of the flagship restaurant and society bar of international catering and restaurant success story Do&Co. The menu is eclectic. Keep the spectacular Onyx Bar in mind for the evening. A little deviation for lovers of design headwear with a unique Austrian twist: Mühlbauer Hutmanufaktur.

3. Authentic Snack Bars, Restaurants And Cafés

Fuel your walk with a snack in my absolute favourite original 1950's Viennese snack bar, the Trzesniewski (no spelling mistake). Café Hawelka, Vienna's most famous artists' and writers' coffeehouse, is a few steps further to the right. Its fame has been attracting loads of tourists, but do sneak in for a check. Alternatively, head down the Graben to the legendary 'Zum Schwarzen Kameel' for an Art-Deco style fine lunch.

4. Café Central And Mölkerbastei

Naglergasse, off Kohlmarkt, is a long narrow street full of nice little shops and bars. Before I started to take old Vienna walks just for fun, it was my usual passage from university into the city centre.

The major building complex on Freyung belongs to the Schottenstift, a monastery built by monks from the Irish scotes and dating from the 12th century. To local Viennese, the Schottenstift is widely known for its private secondary school. Interrupt your old Vienna walk to take a glimpse of this fine baroque church.

On to Mölker Bastei. I discovered that hidden place only when studying in Vienna, as the university is next to it. This is one of the most picturesque corners of the city, a jungle patch of history in the midst of the perfectly manicured flower beds of the surrounding areas. Just ask Orson Welles or David Cronenberg. Orson Welles used Mölker Bastei scenery in his cult film The Third Man. Last year, David Cronenberg filmed here for his Sigmund-Freud-Film "A Dangerous Method".

The Bastei is one of the few visible remains of Vienna's old city wall. Pass the flagship store of internationally acclaimed Ludwig Reiter, a Viennese family business and icon of fine shoewear, as the Old Vienna Walk slows down at the Dreimäderlhaus (Three Girls' House, see photo). The house is named after Hannerl, Kati and Nannette Fröhlich, whose father had arranged for (now famous) Austrian composer Franz Schubert to teach his girls a bit of music, back in the 19th century.

Head towards Schottentor on the Ringstrasse, where you will likely fall into a tram, underground, bus or taxi - you deserve it.

Tourmap Of Old Vienna Walk

Click on the icons for further details on the recommended spots, and on the link larger map below to zoom in. The path looks like a two day walk, but don't feel overwhelmed. Lots of the sites are shops and cafes, so you are not supposed to tick off each and every one of them! Factor in four to six hours, depending on the number and length of stops you make.

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