Over the first May long weekend my friend Canuck and I decided to take a little jolly trip to Austria. Here’s how our conversation on deciding on going to Austria went:
C:”Oh my gosh Lesley. Ryanair are doing flights to Austria for 45 POUNDS!”
Me:”SHUT.UP….WHEN?!”
C:”The first May long! Shall we go?!”
Me:”YESSSS!”
And so 5 minutes later, we had bought our tickets and checked-in to our flight.
Getting to Vienna
Our flights went to Linz. Not Vienna. So, you might be thinking, why would you fly to Linz? You fly to Linz purely to go to Salzburg or Vienna…. or maybe southern Czech Rep.
Anyway, as Linz airport is SO SMALLLLL we were able to get through customs super quick, and onto a bus tothe centre of town, which took 10 minutes driving. Once there we had to wait 30 minutes for our train to Vienna, so we tried Austrian McDonald’s. Naturally.
The train from Linz to Vienna was just over 90 minutes and was lovely. Free Wifi, comfortable seats, charging ports. Austria knows how to do trains. Our first impression of Austria was ‘so far so good’.
The Sacher Torte
If there’s one thing the Viennese like, it’s baked goods. The most famous is the Sacher Torte. A chocolate torte cake with a strawberry jam inside. Canuck and I knew about this cake and we decided we had to eat it. And not just anywhere…at the Sacher Hotel, where it all began.
This cake was expensive. It tasted good. But to be honest, I won’t eat it again. I felt like it was a waste of calories and I should have eaten an apple strudel.
The Nachmarkt
Okay, so this place takes my fancy. It also takes my ‘best place in Vienna’ tip. It is a mixture of market come street food van come wine bar place, so you can really spend some time here. Canuck & I came for wine.
We sat among the ‘in-crowd’ of young Viennese hot babes and sipped on our wines whilst trying to fathom how far we had walked and how on earth we would make it out to a pub/club that evening.(The only thing we did that night was sleep).
Schonbrunn Palace
Perhaps the cherry on the tourism cake/torte for Vienna, Schonbrunn Palace is Austria’s version of Versailles. Except, Versailles is better.
That being said, it really is a beautiful place. The gardens stretch as far as the eye can see, and they are incredibly well kept! You must pay to go inside the palace, which Canuck and I didn’t want to do, so the gardens were just fine for us!
The best view at the gardens is to walk up the big hill and look back on Schonbrunn. This was something Canuck and I got to do twice! The first time we had made it to the top, we caught our breaths and then did a few obvious selfies, admired the view, and then decided it was time to leave.
After we reached the bottom of the hill, I felt a little cold and decided to put my jacket on….which I had let at the TOP of the hill!
Feeling like a goof, I marched right back up the hill, much faster than before, though a lot more tired than before, whilst my friend giggled and filmed my hilarious march. When I reached the top – my jacket was still in the same place! I was so thrilled no one took my jacket!
Vienna and why I won’t go back
Vienna is chock full of grandiose buildings. It is clean and it has everything you could want. I thoroughly enjoyed walking around seeing big buildings with Canuck. Also it is one of those places that you go to and think “I could live here” because things were so nice. That being said, I was also not a fan of Vienna.
I like personality in my cities. Unfortunately, Vienna had some personality, but it did not have enough…something. I can’t explain exactly what it was about Vienna that I did not fancy, I just know that the vibe I had was from the moment we arrived. I tried to squash those feelings as my friend Canuck absolutely loved Vienna. So, you should go if you want to go there, it just was not my cup of tea.
Austria Video
I created a video of our time in Austria on the Magisto App, watch it here: Austria Video
Australian expat, married to a Dutch guy, living in Amsterdam. Previously lived in London for 3 years, too! Lover of travel, coffee, brunch, beaches, fresh flowers, and family. Now a new mum, navigating life with a baby!
0 thoughts on “Vienna, Austria”
Omg, you having to get your coat was one of the most painful but hilarious moments in my life. You definitely worked off that Sacher Torte in that sprint up.