9 must see parks in Vienna

Austria’s capital, Vienna, is a captivating city known for its profound musical and cultural heritage, imperial history, architecture, fascinating palaces, and vibrant art scene. It’s one of the world’s best travel destinations and most livable cities, with excellent links to other notable places in Austria and Europe. No matter how often you’ve been here, you’ll always find something new to discover and experiences you’ll treasure for a lifetime.

Visiting the iconic gardens and parks in Vienna is one of the unmissable things to do for locals and tourists, whether you’re traveling for business or leisure. With nearly half the city consisting of forests, numerous gardens, parks, and agricultural land, you’ll quickly find a perfect spot to escape the crowd and take a break from all the sightseeing. Vienna’s parks and gardens not only enrich the cityscape but also provide a habitat for wildlife and a natural environment where people can rest, play, exercise, and reconnect with nature.

Below are some of the best parks in Vienna and the activities, events, hidden gems, and adventures you can do there. Some feature historical sights and playgrounds, while others offer a peaceful respite from the city. Lighten your load using bounce luggage storage service in Vienna so you can participate in any park activity without burden.

The Prater

An amusement park and an oasis of green, the Prater is a famous destination with about 250 exciting attractions. It opened to the public in 1755, featuring Wurstelprater, one of the world’s oldest amusement parks. The first fireworks display was set off by Johann Georg Stuwer in the Prater in May 1771 with up to 25,000 spectators. It’s also the site of the Giant Ferris Wheel, one of Vienna’s symbols, which opened in 1897 to celebrate the 50-year reign of Emperor Franz Josef l. Visitors can ride the Ferris Wheel to escape the fairground noise, even just for a short while, and enjoy the spectacular view over the city.

Incredible attractions await everyone of all ages at Vienna’s Prater, from thrilling ghost trains and roller coaster rides to nostalgic merry-go-rounds, flight simulators, and more. Besides the varied entertainment, over sixty restaurants, cafes, and snack stands are available for hungry visitors. There’s also a gigantic chain carousel, the Prater Tower, where you’ll fly around in circles, about 100 meters in the air. The ride takes roughly four minutes, which is ideal for those looking for adrenaline-pumping activities.

If you prefer less action and more nature excursion, head to the Green Prater next to the amusement park area. The spacious meadow and forest site was used for centuries as imperial hunting grounds. Today, it’s a paradise for nature lovers, walkers, bicyclists, runners, or anyone who wants a quick break from all the park’s spine-tingling adventures. The best way to explore this green space is to take the Liliputbahn, a mini railway that'll tour you from the Giant Ferris Wheel area to a place near the Praterstadion and back.

Burggarten

Set on the Ringstrasse, a grand circular boulevard filled with dozens of historical sights, Burggarten is a beautiful park in Vienna offering views of its palatial surroundings. It’s a stone’s throw from the Imperial Palace Hofburg and opera house and features remarkable monuments. Inside the garden entrance is the iconic marble statue of Mozart, which initially stood on Albertinaplatz in 1896 until it was transferred to Burggarten in 1953.

Due to its location in the heart of the city, this Court Garden is a lovely place to rest while visiting the cultural and historical attractions nearby. Besides the intricate monuments, Burggarten is home to the Imperial Butterfly House (Schmetterlinghaus), a unique tropical oasis where you can admire about 400 free-flying butterflies. You’ll find it inside the Palm House, one of the world’s most beautiful Art Noveau palm houses, welcoming visitors to a fantastic world of nature populated by colorful and lovely creatures.

The Butterfly House stands on the edge of the palace gardens and is part of the Hofburg Royal Palace. It has now become one of the capital’s most established attractions. After spending time in the garden and inside the impressive Art Noveau building, you can refuel at the Palm House Café for an oven-fresh strudel and a cup of coffee.

Volksgarten

A short walk from Burggarten is another elegant green space you should add to your itinerary, the Volksgarten. It’s one of the most beautiful gardens in Vienna, where you’ll discover blooming roses and French-style flowerbeds. It’s beside the Hofburg Palace and the buildings around Heldenplatz square, ideal for pedestrians to sit, stretch their muscles strolling the walkways, or bask in the morning sun.

The Volksgarten is laid out as an English park with a lovely rose garden. It has more than 3,000 rose bushes of various species, creating a refreshing and romantic atmosphere. The huge beds of tiered roses also generate a kaleidoscope of color in summer and spring, attracting more locals and visitors.

The park also boasts remarkable points of interest, including the Grillparzer monument and the neoclassical Theseus Temple, a smaller version of the Temple of Hephaestus in Athens. The Sisi Memorial is another must-see attraction in the park with water features, fountains, and a tree-lined avenue.

Stadtpark

Spanning over 28 acres of land in the central city, Stadtpark is a vast natural sanctuary with numerous benches, lush grassy areas, winding paths, sculptures, statues, and monuments. It’s the first public park in Vienna, which opened in 1862, and a well-liked place for relaxation, quiet walks, and exploration.

It’s not far from the capital’s major attractions and is the closest highlight near Wien Mitte, so you can quickly stop by if you need a moment of respite away from the crowd. Although a highly visited destination in Vienna, it doesn’t feel crowded here. Large trees shield the park from the busy Ring Road, and spacious playgrounds with swings, slides, and sand- and water-play options keep young visitors engaged for hours.

If you’re here for sightseeing, this Vienna park doesn’t disappoint. The gilded bronze statue of Johan Strauss is one of its most photographed monuments, but the Kursalon remains a splendid Italian Renaissance building you shouldn’t miss. It was initially built according to the plans of Johann Garben to increase the City Park’s recreational value by offering curative drinking water. But its purpose changed when it was completed in 1867, and it quickly became a venue for concerts, dances, meetings, and events. Today, it hosts around 500 concerts and balls annually.

Türkenschanzpark

Reinvigorate yourself and drive on the outskirts of Vienna to get away from the city bustle. About fifteen minutes from the historic old town, in the 18th district, you’ll reach Türkenschanzpark, an oasis of tranquility and peace visited by tourists and Viennese alike. Its name has a historical significance related to the second Turkish siege of Vienna (1683) and served as a place of refuge for the Turks.

Many visitors enjoy the park’s appealing features, including rare botanical plants, playgrounds, ponds, a fountain, and a waterfall. But one of its highlights is the Paulinenwarte lookout tower, a twenty-three-meter brick building in the middle of the park. Meadows, meandering paths, and green lawns invite everyone to take a stroll or have a relaxing picnic. For sports enthusiasts, you can play or boost your skills in basketball, volleyball, ping pong, or skating.

Augarten

Head to Leopoldstadt, Vienna’s second district, to rediscover the city’s forgotten treasure. Augarten is Vienna’s oldest Baroque park with lush greenery around. It covers acres of sweeping grounds, with tree-lined walking paths, formal flowerbeds, vast meadows, trimmed hedges, and old structures, offering a quiet time out in nature.

Among many things you’ll find in the property, the Vienna Porcelain Manufactory stands out for its history and art. It was founded in 1718, making it the second-oldest porcelain manufactory in Europe. Even after more than 300 years, it continues to operate with artisans molding, mixing, casting, glazing, and porcelain by hand. Guided tours are available to help visitors have a deeper understanding of its history, get an insight into how much work and attention to detail goes into creating every piece, and experience how porcelain is made.

A massive cylinder standing prominently across the park’s manicured box trees is a combat tower. It’s part of a flak tower complex built during World War II as a defense against Allied air raids by Nazi Germany. The towers are now an essential part of the city, and though they’re not open to the public, they’re easy to spot in the garden. The 17th-century Augarten Palace is also located on the site, which houses the Vienna Boys Choir and serves as their rehearsal place.

Donaupark

Donaupark is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful parks in Vienna for families looking for fun adventures outdoors and nature lovers. From walking and cycling trails to a giant skateboard and a miniature train ride, visitors will find plenty of things to do here. It also features a large pond, special exhibits, and themed gardens, including a lily garden, a moorland garden, a rose garden, and a Paracelsus herb garden.

Many visitors stroll through the park on their way to the Danube Tower (Donauturm), Donaupark’s most striking feature. It’s Austria’s highest landmark, standing 252 meters tall. You can take a lift to the viewing platform, which is 150 meters above the ground, offering a panoramic view of the gorgeous capital.

A visit to the Danube Tower is an unforgettable experience and will change your perspective. You can also dine at Turm Restaurant and sample great culinary delights 170 meters up in the air. But if you’re not a fan of dizzying heights, you can always admire the tower from Danube Park.

Vienna Shakespeare Garden

Avid readers and fans of the renowned English poet and playwright shouldn’t miss a visit to Vienna Shakespeare Garden. It’s dedicated to William Shakespeare, featuring plants and flowers mentioned in many of his famous works. As you explore the garden, pay attention to the selected quotes written by Shakespeare and the corresponding plants. The plant labels are only available in English and Latin.

As soon as you enter the garden, you’ll be enchanted by the tunnel of laburnum plants called Laburnum Walk. Once inside, you’ll see five flower beds, such as the shady bed, a classic English-style flower bed, an herbal bed, a display bed, and a bed with afternoon sun. It’s a small park and is well-marked, so you won’t get lost.

Lobau

If you’ve explored most of the best parks in Vienna and want to venture further, don’t miss the chance to experience unspoiled nature up close at Lobau. It’s called Vienna’s jungle, with an area of 2,300 hectares comprising nearly a quarter of the entire Donau-Auen National Park.

This wooded section along the river has been a protected greenbelt area. It’s full of untouched nature, home to over a hundred bird species and 800 plant types. It has two lagoons perfect for swimming and kayaking and numerous walking, cycling, and hiking trails for all skill levels. The networking of trails is well-signposted, so they’re easy to follow and are suitable for the entire family.

The longest is the ten-kilometer Napoleon circular route, which can be completed within three hours, depending on your speed. Always wear the proper clothing when planning to explore the national park and drop off any heavy items in a luggage storage facility to lighten your load.

Discover the hidden gems and parks in Vienna

As one of the world’s greenest cities, sprawling lawns and scenic patches of nature abound in the Austrian capital. Every garden and park in Vienna has something to offer besides a space for picnic and relaxation, from children’s playgrounds and sports facilities to museums, art galleries, notable landmarks, and attractions. Some are right next to palaces and major points of interest, while others are tucked away from busy city areas.

If visiting Vienna’s parks isn’t enough to satisfy your wanderlust, read our guides on the best hikes in Vienna and beaches near Vienna to find more ways to spend your days outdoors.