Green Vienna

In 2019, the Mercer Study voted Vienna the world's most livable city for the tenth year in a row, with the British weekly "The Economist" voting it into the number one slot for the first time in 2018. 280 imperial parks and gardens enrich the cityscape. In spring, 400 species of rose bloom in the Volksgarten alone. The nearby recreation areas of Prater, Vienna Woods and Lobau invite visitors to go on walks, day trips, hikes and bicycle tours. Vienna has a total of 2,000 parks.

  

 
Whether it is the park of the Schönbrunn Palace, the Palace Garden of Belvedere, or the Augarten – the mixture of baroque magnificence and the beauty of nature provide a nice contrast to a stroll in the Old City and leave an unforgettable impression!

Stroll down long avenues between artfully trimmed hedges, passing statues, fountains and splendid flower beds - maybe towards the Palm House from 1882, the largest in Europe, to the Maze, the Japanese Garden, or up the hill to the Gloriette, where you can enjoy a wonderful view in a Viennese café. A splendid baroque garden awaits you in the formerly private imperial gardens next to the palace, along with a unique collection of cacti in the Desert Pavilion from 1904. Visitors to the world's oldest zoological garden can enjoy the colorful activities of exotic and regional animals. Be amazed by the variety of species and their habitats at Schönbrunn Zoo. 

Tip: If you prefer not to explore the 160-hectare World Heritage site at Schönbrunn on foot, then the best way to see the area is to board the diesel-powered panoramic railway. A full tour of the palace park passes nine stops and takes about fifty minutes at a speed of around 10 km/h. The Palm House and Gloriette are just two of the sights to see. The two trains run from mid-March to the end of October, daily between 10.00 am and 6.00 pm, and stop at the Gloriette and Schönbrunn Palace on the hour and half hour.

Prince Eugene of Savoy had this Baroque garden, which is presently one of the most important of its kind in Europe (open all year, free admission), laid out around the year 1700. From the beginning of March to the end of August, you can experience the blossoms of 4,000 alpine plant species - in one of the oldest alpine gardens in the world, established 200 years ago in the Upper Belvedere by Archduke John of Austria. In the nearby Botanical Garden - established by Maria Theresa in 1754 -you’ll find indigenous and exotic plants. 11,000 plant species from six continents are cultivated and presented here on ten hectares for scientific research, species protection and recreational purposes. The garden is also an inner-city habitat for indigenous species (e.g. 130 types of bee) and a green oasis in the heart of Vienna, with its stock of old trees as well as meadows. Admission to the Botanical Garden is free! Guided tours are also offered on weekends from March to October.

The Augarten is a public park with a size of 52.2 hectares that has the oldest baroque garden in Vienna. It is located in the second Viennese municipal district. Arranged in the French style, the garden offers not only a ground-floor area with elaborate flower landscapes but also an extensive network of shady avenues lined with chestnut trees, elms, lime trees, ash trees and maple trees. However, as is the case in nearly all of Vienna's state gardens, night-time visits are not possible since the five park gates are closed (from dusk to early morning - the seasonal hours are displayed on metal signs at the gates). The Augarten is also home to a wide range of operations, such as the Vienna Boys' Choir in the Augartenpalais, the Augarten Porcelain Manufactory, the Porcelain Museum, and the Austrian Film Archive.