The charm of Austria’s capital, Vienna, lies precisely in the unique and lively blend of the ancient and the modern, between the Kunsthistorisches and the Leopold Museum, and again between the vast gardens and the nightlife of neighborhoods like Josefstadt and Neubau.
In these areas, venues such as Havana are crowded, where South American music entertains until dawn, attracting a growing number of university students living away from home (as well as locals), as well as those who visit the city every year for the many events organized there.
Unexpectedly, the Austrian capital is the scene of countless events; during carnival weeks alone, for example, there are more than 200 balls and neighborhood parties ready to entertain visitors, among which one of the most charming is the one organized at Karl-Marx-Hof (City Hall).
It is mainly a triumph of music, not only classical music by Mozart, Vivaldi, Schubert, and Beethoven, musicians who chose to reside permanently in Vienna precisely for its tradition and many theaters, but also jazz and even electronic music.
The former is celebrated with a festival that involves the entire nation, the Jazzfest, hosted and organized in July by the State Opera (Staatsoper), and the latter by the Hörgänge in March. But don’t worry, if you can’t attend these soon events, between October and November there is still the Wien Modern.
For fans of nonstop fun, the summer brings the unmissable Danube Island Festival (Donauinselfest): a strip of land surrounded by the river where, for three continuous days, artists, jugglers, musicians, and singers perform simultaneously on 20 stages.
All arts are welcomed at the event, including culinary arts, so between a folk performance and a mime show, you can enjoy Frankfurters, classic Austrian sausages served with mustard.
An original way to visit Vienna retracing the love story of Jesse and Céline: from the west station “Westbahnhof” to the banks of the romantic Danube, passing through the “Prater” and the “Franziskanerplatz.”
