Vienna Recommendations

Vienna recommendations Zentral Friedhof (Central Cemetery) – composers and musicians Tram 71 from Schwarzenbergplatz to Tor 2 (Gate 2) of the cemetery which is a very grand entrance – you cannot miss it. Walk straight up towards the chapel (also worth visiting). "Composers' Corner" is on the left and is well signposted. Austrian presidents and other bigwigs are buried between the composers and the chapel. Ludwig Boltzmann (Boltzmann's equation) is buried in one of the turnings roughly opposite the composers (2nd or 3rd grave in). If you have time walk back through the cemetery towards Gate 1 (where you can pick up tram 71 to go back into the city centre). This takes you through the old Jewish cemetery which was abandoned after Hitler took over Austria and almost all the Jews fled or were eventually sent to concentration camps. Some of the graves are now being repaired, presumably by descendants of those who escaped the Holocaust. Mozart's grave – St Marx Friedhof Although there is a monument to Mozart in the Zentral Friedhof, he is probably buried in a pest pit in this cemetery. You can do this on the way back from the ZF.Get off at Landstrasse Hauptstrasse (I'm not sure if this is the name of the stop but it is where Landstrasse Hauptstrasse crosses Simmering Hauptstrasse, which is the 71 route) and is immediately after you go under a motorway. Follow the pedestrian signs to St Marx Friedhof (a map of the cemetery is attached). Opera House Guided tours (in English) are usually available. They last about an hour and usually include going backstage unless a rehearsal is in progress. Times are posted at the back of the Opera House. Belvedere This is the Viennese equivalent of Blenheim (built for Prinz Eugen of Savoy who was Marlborough's co-commander in the War of the Spanish Succession) and is now one of the major art galleries in the world. It has a large collection of Klimt's paintings including The Kiss Albertina This has changing exhibitions. If the current one is not to your taste, it is worth going into just to look at the building itself. It re-opened about 5 years ago after a thorough restoration which took 12 years.

Schonbrunn Palace (UBahn U4 to Schonbrunn) This is the summer palace of the Austrian emperors. The main palace (the Hofburg) is in the city centre but the Schonbrunn has wonderful grounds. The interiors of the two palaces are very similar, so it is not worth going round both. After visiting the palace, walk through the park and get on the UBahn at Hietzing (we lived a couple of minutes walk from Hietzing Station). The Danube The Danube (Donau) does not run through the city centre - neither is it blue. If you want to see it, take UBahn U1 to Donau Insel which is an artificial island in the middle of the river. There is a walkway across the bridge. Other places Kunsthistorische Museum (main art gallery – best collection of Brueghel paintings in the world plus Velazquez, Rembrandt, Caravaggio, Raphael etc. etc.); Museums Quartier (Leopold Museum and MuMoK (contemporary art)), Naschmarkt (very colourful market), Musikverein (home of the New Year Concert – daily tours; also may be possible to get concert tickets), Kunsthaus Wien (dedicated to an odd Austrian artist called Hundertwasser; Untere Weissgerbergasse) (if you take Ubahn U1 to Spittelau you can see a good example of his work right next to the station), Haus der Musik (which also has a good restaurant on the top floor). Restaurants Austrian food is not the most exciting in the world. However, two good ones are Puerstner in Riemergasse (off Singerstrasse behind the cathedral) and Wild in Radetzkyplatz. A good Italian restaurant is Daniele in Himmelpfortgasse off Karntner Strasse