How many days you need for Vienna visit? Vienna has dozens of attractions and landmarks worth visiting, so, to fully explore Vienna, you will need at least five days, but for some quick and sweet visits, you can squeeze your visit into 2-3 days.
The duration of your visit will depend also on the time of the year since each season brings different events and attractions. For example, if you come in December, you might spend a few days just going around Christmas markets alone. On the other hand, summer brings more outdoor activities, such as parks, forests, and river cruises.
Here is a recommendation on what to see and do for a three-day Vienna visit. You can pick and choose and combine landmarks and attractions as you find fit and use them for one, two, or full three-day visits.
A three-day itinerary for Vienna
Day 1: City center
(Starts at 8:00 AM)
Stop 1: Stephansplatz and St. Stephen’s Cathedral. The very heart of the city and a perfect starting point of exploration of Vienna.
Address: Stephansplatz 3, 1010 Wien
Duration: about 2 hours (depending on if you want to take a guided tour of the cathedral, etc).
https://allaboutvienna.com/stephansplatz/
Break: coffee/mélange and piece of cake at one of the cafes or sweet shops. Nearest one is Aida – Singerstraße 1, 1010 Wien
Walk: 10 minutes
Stop 2: Augustinerkirche. Beautiful and important church in Vienna. Many royal weddings were held there.
Address: Augustinerstraße 3, 1010 Wien
Duration: 30 minutes
https://allaboutvienna.com/augustinian-church-augustinerkirche/
Walk: 1 minute
Stop 3: Albertina Museum. An art museum is known for its collection of graphic arts, Albertina also houses a significant collection of Impressionist art.
Address: Albertinaplatz. 1, 1010 Wien
Duration: 1 hour, 30 minutes
https://allaboutvienna.com/albertina/
Walk: 8 minutes
Stop 4: Hofburg Palace, Silver Museum, Sisi Museum.
Address: Hofburg, 1010 Wien
Duration: 2 hours 30 minutes
https://allaboutvienna.com/the-hofburg/
Lunch break: Brasserie PalmenHaus Wien, Burggarten 1, 1010 Wien or Augustinerkeller Bitzinger, Augustinerstraße 1, 1010 Wien
Duration: 1 hour 30 minutes
Walk: 12 minutes
Stop 5: Haus der Musik Wien. An interactive discovery museum about music and famous composers and their work. Great for kids.
Address: Seilerstätte 30, 1010 Wien
Duration: 2 hours
Day 2: Schönbrunn Palace and the Zoo
Taxi or public transport – (40 minutes)
Stop 1: Schönbrunn Palace. A former residence of the Habsburg monarchs, Schonbrunn Palace preserves centuries of imperial Austrian history. Visit palace museums and gardens behind the palace.
Address: Schönbrunner Schloßstraße 47, 1130 Wien
Duration: 4 hours
https://allaboutvienna.com/schonbrunn-palace/
Lunch break: Kutscher Gwölb Schlossbräu or you can eat in any of the restaurants inside Schönbrunn Zoo later.
Duration: 1 hour 30 minutes
Stop 2: Schönbrunn Zoo. One of the oldest zoos in Europe with a large variety of species and conservation programs.
Address: Maxingstraße 13b, 1130 Wien
Duration: 3 hours.
https://allaboutvienna.com/schonbrunn-zoo/
Day 3: Belvedere Palace, Art History Museum, and Naschmarkt
Stop 1: Belvedere Palace. The former residence of Austrian Prince Eugene of Savoy, Belvedere Palace is a historic complex housing important Austrian art in two edifices.
Address: Prinz Eugen-Straße 27, 1030 Wien
Duration: 2 hours 30 minutes
https://allaboutvienna.com/belvedere-palace/
Break: Coffee or a cake in nearby cafes: Cafe Mirage, Mommsengasse 6, 1040 Wien or Obsthunger, Sankt-Elisabeth-Platz, 1040 Wien
Duration: 30 minutes
Use public transport or a taxi: 18 minutes
Stop 2: Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien. The museum is mirrored by an identical building on the opposite side of the square, which houses the Naturhistorisches Museum.
Address: Maria-Theresien-Platz, 1010 Wien
Duration: 3 hours.
https://allaboutvienna.com/kunsthistorisches-museum-wien/
Lunch break: You can have a lunch break at your next destination – Naschmarkt, there are several good restaurants there.
Walk: 10 minutes
Stop 3: Naschmarkt. Enjoy an open market with various goods and produces. Experience real feeling of Vienna.
Address: Mariedlgasse, 1060 Wien
Duration: 1 hour 30 minutes plus lunch (optional)
https://allaboutvienna.com/naschmarkt/
What to do in the evenings?
If you want to continue with the exploration of the city, we also recommend visiting many classical music concerts, Vienna Opera, theaters, and other live events (depending on the season, here is a list of annual events).
Otherwise, for the evenings, we can recommend some restaurants in the city center and nightlife options:
Restaurants:
- Zum Schwarzen Kameel, Bognergasse 5, 1010 Wien
- Brezlgwölb Cafe Restaurant Wien, Ledererhof 9, 1010 Wien
- Lugeck, Lugeck 4, 1010 Wien
Clubs:
- Cabaret Fledermaus, Spiegelgasse 2, 1010 Wien
- Vienna Gnadenlos, Seitenstettengasse 5, 1010 Wien
- Flex, Augartenbrücke 1, 1010 Wien
Conclusion
With so many things to see and do in Vienna, it is very difficult to limit the visit to only a few days. With our recommended tour you will be able to visit a few most important attractions and get a sense and feel of real Vienna. Safe travel and see you soon.