Best Quick Trips from Vienna to the City’s Outskirts

Visitors to Vienna won’t struggle to find things to do when visiting Austria’s capital, a cultural and architectural mecca. The city centre is rife with cafés, museums and palaces sure to fill up your itinerary. But for those keen to explore beyond the city centre, or perhaps interested in what locals get up to on weekends, the Vienna outskirts are where it’s at.

Not being a massive city, escaping Vienna’s city limits can be quite easy. What’s even better is there are some delightful places to visit around Vienna that are relatively simple to reach. These attractions near Vienna range from superb panoramic viewpoints to small towns, each satisfying the different interests of locals. Here are several great places near Vienna you can follow locals to on weekends to escape the city.

Kahlenberg

The popular hilltop of Kahlenberg that overlooks Vienna and the surrounding region is one of the most classic places to visit near Vienna.

Kahlenberg is so close that it’s still within Vienna’s city limits – but only just. While the city of Vienna is flat for the most part, to the city’s north lies a range of low hills, one of which is Kahlenberg.

Thanks to its elevation and location, Kahlenberg affords visitors one of the best views of Vienna and the Danube River. The view extends over the nearby Vienna vineyards below and their attached taverns – known as Heuriger in Austria – to the entire city and the Danube that flows eastward towards Bratislava.

A tip is that once you’ve seen the view from the main terrace on Kahlenburg, head along the nearby alley to the smaller terrace which can be a bit quieter and offer an equally stunning view.

To go with the view, you’ll find several cafes with outdoor seating on the viewing terraces and a small local church. Quite nearby is the neighbouring hilltop of Leopoldsberg, where you’ll find another viewpoint of Vienna and a glimpse of what lies north of the hill range.

Kahlenberg is also one of the most popular spots for hiking near Vienna. From the car park, it’s easy to go for a hike in the Vienna Woods at one of its closest points to the city. If you’re craving some fresh air, you can’t go wrong with Kahlenberg.

Getting There: To get there with Vienna’s public transport, take the U4 Metro to Heiligenstadt and then take the 38A Bus. A ticket is 2.40€ one way as it’s only a single zone, but note further along the bus route requires a 2-zone ticket. Alternatively, driving from the city centre will only take about 20 min.

Laxenburg

Next, we have the rather innocuous town of Laxenburg.

Directly south of Vienna, locals like visiting for one reason and that’s the town’s imperial castle and grounds. From 1333, Laxenburg Castle served as a royal retreat for the Habsburg dynasty. As the site of a royal hunting lodge, the castle’s expansive grounds are now a popular spot for people to come walk around and kids to play in.

Laxenburg has several castles on its grounds, with the New Castle also known as the Blauer Hof the first you see when you arrive. This charming Rococco building sits at the entry to the castle complex, which is open to the public free of admission.

From there, you enter the grounds of Laxenburg castle which even in winter have a certain beauty to them. Immediately on the right is the original Old Castle of Laxenburg, which sadly doesn’t look much of a castle anymore. Regardless, following the walking trails will bring you through the peaceful wooded grounds.

The true highlight of a visit to Laxenburg is a visit to the lakeside castle of Franzensburg.

While the lakes here may be artificial, the views are oh-so-real. This 18th-century castle looks incredible when it’s reflected in the water below and a quick wander through its courtyards will show you a large collection of chiselled busts. Franzensburg Castle hosts a museum on Laxenburg, but sadly isn’t open during winter. Still, quite a pretty spot for a break from city life.

Getting There: To get there by public transport, the easiest way is to take the 200 bus from Wien Hauptbahnhof. As you travel through multiple zones, tickets cost 4.40€ one way. Alternatively, the drive to Laxenburg is only a 30 minute trip from Vienna’s city centre.

Baden bei Wien

If you’ve lived or spent much time in the Germanic parts of Europe, you’ve probably come across somewhere called Baden. Translating as “baths”, you’d be right in guessing that the places are known as spa towns.

Well, Austria has one too and due to its proximity to the capital is known as Baden bei Wien, i.e. “Baths near Vienna”. While the thermal springs of Baden bei Wien have drawn people there since as far back as the Romans, a visit today doesn’t necessarily have to involve that at all (but it can).

Actually, Baden bei Wien is just a quiet and pleasant place to visit, portraying what life is like in smaller Austrian towns.

With its 19th-century architecture and small streets, Baden evokes a feeling of simpler times. The town wears its history as a resort town on its sleeve, with references to renowned guests found throughout. Such illustrious guests include composers like Mozart, Beethoven and Johann Strauss who spent time there to compose their famous pieces.

Sights like the Trinity Column, town theatre and casino are all worth seeing, but my personal highlight is the Kurpark.

This park attached to the Kurhouse (Cure House) is at first a manicured garden that sprawls out to cover the nearby hills. There are walking trails all about that will take you past spots like the Strauss Statue and up to viewpoints like the Beethoventempel. Perfect place for a Sunday stroll.

Getting There: Take the S3 suburban or certain regional trains to Baden Bahnhof from Vienna’s main stations. Alternatively, take the WLB tram from the Wien Kärntner Ring/Oper tram stop to Baden Josefsplatz. As you travel through multiple zones, tickets cost 5.50€ one way. The drive to Baden from the city centre is roughly 40 minutes.

Lainzer Tiergarten

The other popular pick for hiking near Vienna is Lainzer Tiergarten, a vast wildlife reserve on the city’s western edge.

In fact, it’s probably the most popular of these places to visit near Vienna (but not so much among tourists). Even coming on a sunny day in late winter, there were crowds of people looking to relax and exercise. But it has a grand history as a city escape; the reserve was established by Emperor Ferdinand I as a hunting ground.

That legacy is quite obvious when you reach the Hermesvilla Palace.

Sitting on the line between the reserve’s meadows and forest, this elegant palace is an unexpected, yet delightful sight. Today it serves as a museum and as one of the restaurants in the park. The other less fancy restaurants in Lainzer Tiergarten are found much deeper and higher within the reserve, mainly servicing hikers.

And there’s plenty of hiking to be done here that’s for sure. Trails pass right through the reserve, weaving their way through thick forest and up rolling hills. Even in winter, it’s a captivating place to walk and it feels a million miles from the city. That is until you reach the Wienblick hilltop viewpoint. From there you get a great view of Vienna and see just how flat the city is.

Getting There: There are two entrances to the Lainzer Tiergarten. The main entrance can be reached with public transport by taking the U4 metro to Hietzing, then the 56B bus. Alternatively, you can take the U4 metro to Wien Hütteldorf and walk the short distance to the other gate. A one way ticket will only cost 2.40€ as it’s just a single zone.

Klosterneuburg

I spoke earlier about the view north from Leopoldsberg and one of the places around Vienna you may spot through the woods is the town of Klosterneuburg.

Despite being just up the Danube River from Vienna, this town definitely has a gentler, calmer atmosphere to it. Long a centre of the local winemaking industry, Klosterneuburg is best known today for one thing, Klosterneuburg Monastery.

Known in German as Stift Klosterneuburg, this immense monastery from the 12th century is quite the sight to behold. Part of where the name of the town comes from is this monastery, as “Kloster” translates to Monastery. To this day, there are still parts of the Monastery like the foundations and a chapel that date back to the 12th century, while its present Baroque look is due to significant damage caused by Ottoman invasions in 1529 and 1679.

For those unable to travel out to the colossal Melk Stift in the Wachau Valley, the Klosterneuburg Monastery makes for a fabulous substitute. Tours of its interior are available, but even just the monastery exterior makes it one of the best places to see near Vienna.

After admiring the monastery, there are several nice spots around town to have coffee.

But perhaps visiting Austria’s oldest winery might be more enticing. As it happens, the wine estate of the Klosterneuburg Monastery is actually the oldest in the country and you can both taste and purchase their wines at their wine shop on nearby Rathausplatz. Tours of the cellars (in German and English) are also possible if booked in advance here.

I’ve yet to try this, but it looks like a good time.

Getting There: To get there by public transport, first take the U4 Metro to Heiligenstadt and then either the S40 suburban train or one of the 238/239/439 buses to Klosterneuburg-Weidling station. As you travel through multiple zones, tickets cost 3.90€. Alternatively, Klosterneuburg is only a 25 minute drive from Vienna’s city centre.

Oberlaa

Closest to the city centre of all these things to do around Vienna is the neighbourhood of Oberlaa in the 10th district.

People might recognise the name Oberlaa from the chain of coffeehouses in Vienna, but they’re actually named after here. After all, that’s where you’ll find the original Oberlaa Konditorei. So before doing anything else, make sure you get your coffee and cake.

Once your taste buds are happy, it’s time to get to the real reason why you’re here. The two main things to do in Oberlaa are swim at the Therme Wien baths and enjoy the gardens of the Kurpark Oberlaa. I’ve yet to try the Therme Wien baths, but the park is perfect for a pleasant day outdoors.

The Kurpark Oberlaa isn’t a huge place, but you won’t care when you see how pretty it is.

Right through the park are a series of gardens and lakes, separated by several small hills.

You can enter the park right behind the Oberlaa Konditorei and before you know it, you’re surrounded by a dizzying array of colours. That’s especially true if you come in spring like I did when everything was in bloom.

Then there are the various playgrounds, which make it a favourite spot for young families. The park is also incredibly accessibility-friendly with gentle, wide paths, meaning it’s suitable for anyone and everyone.

Getting There: To reach Oberlaa by public transport, simply take the U1 metro to Oberlaa station. It’s just a standard 2.40€ ticket and couldn’t be easier.

Have you visited any of the above spots around Vienna during a trip to the city? If you had some spare time free while visiting, which weekend trips from Vienna would you pick and why? Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below.