12 Things to Do in Vienna in January

You may think that the winter cold means that the Austrian capital loses some of its appeal in January. However, in addition to the usual things to see and do in Vienna, there are a number of activities typical of the first month of the year.

During your visit to this historic city in January you can sample Austrian winter cuisine, stroll the streets in search of a souvenir, visit the Habsburg Palace, enjoy a night of waltzing at the Vienna State Opera or go ice skating.

Of course, the main event taking place in January in Vienna is the New Year's Concert. The Golden Hall of the Musikverein hosts a classical music concert that is broadcast on television to more than 90 countries. This concert is performed every year by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and the musical program consists mostly of works by the Strauss dynasty and some of their contemporaries.

Attending this concert is the dream of many, but unfortunately it is far from easy. The high demand has meant that it can only be heard live if you are chosen in a lottery. In my article on tickets for the New Year's Concert you can see all the information you need if you want to try your luck.

Fortunately, if you are traveling to Vienna and want to attend a concert in one of the cities with more musical tradition in the world you will not lack alternatives. Combinations of concerts and dinner are very common in various venues of the city, most of the time palaces or really spectacular halls.

Practical information

• Location: Musikvereinsplatz 1.
• Price: if you are chosen in the raffle be prepared to pay between 40 and 1200 €.
• When: January 1, around 11 am.

A must-see destination on your trip to Vienna in January is Schoenbrunn Palace. It is the residence occupied every year by the Habsburgs during the summer season.

When you visit Schoenbrunn Palace you will be able to enter its huge snowy forests. It is possible that these spaces are a little neglected due to the weather conditions, but this does not mean that they will go unnoticed before your eyes.

You will also enjoy the characteristic cold of the season, while you observe the leaves of the trees covered with snow, the shadows drawn on the ground, the fountains and the small frozen lakes. You will also be amazed by the breathtaking view from the Gloriette, a building that dates back to 1775 and was used over the years as a dining room and ballroom, among other things.

An ideal plan if you travel to Vienna in January is to take a trip to Wachau, Melk Abbey and the Danube valleys. This way, you can see the spectacular snowy landscapes while exploring the vineyards, castles, valleys and abbeys of the Austrian countryside.

On this tour, which lasts approximately 8-9 hours, you can enjoy one of the most popular excursions from Vienna with a local guide. You will visit the Wachau Valley, the medieval castle ruins of Dürnstein and the Benedictine Abbey of Melk. In addition, you will enjoy a typical Austrian meal in a local restaurant.

And believe it or not, the trip will be very comfortable as you will travel in a modern bus.

An ideal plan to take shelter from the cold is to visit the Albertina Museum, which hides one of the most extensive graphic collections in the world, consisting of 65,000 drawings and about one million prints, as well as works by renowned artists such as Katz, Mone, Cézanne, Kandinsky, Miró, Renoir, Magritte, Munch, Chagall and Picasso.

Don't hesitate! Schedule your visit to the Albertina Museum and see works of various artistic styles, such as the Batliner collection of modern European art, as well as Impressionist and Post-Impressionist paintings.

January is considered low season in Vienna, so you will find bargains in the different stores of the city. Therefore, if you love shopping, you will be interested in visiting the area around St. Stephen's Cathedral. There, you will find clothes, shoes, accessories, among other items.

You can also go to the historical center of the Austrian capital. In this area of the city you will find a large number of possible gifts to give to your family and friends. There are also stores with traditional objects and brand-name products.

Best of all, while on any of these tours, you can appreciate the wonderful architecture, monuments and the characteristic palaces of Vienna, which combine baroque with modern.

The days of January are ideal for you to enjoy the Wiener Eistraum or Viennese ice dream. It is a collection of skating rinks (large, small and with elevation), which are connected to each other through a series of paths. The overall area of the park is 9,500 square meters and the main entrance is located in front of the town hall.

It doesn't matter if you are not an expert in the art of skating, because you can still have a great time on any of the many rinks of the Wiener Eistraum.

You will enjoy a dreamlike landscape at all times, a lively musical background, the warmth and brightness of the lights. In addition, there is the ticket office for the rental of air-heated skates for added convenience.

Practical information

• Location: Rathausplatz.
• Price: A voucher for four hours of skating for adults costs about €8, while children pay about €6. It is also possible to rent skates.
• Hours: between 10 a.m. and 10 p.m.

If your visit to Vienna is in January, it is advisable to go outside the historic center of the city, as you can find wonderful natural scenes that will impress you.

One of them is the Danube River, the second largest river on the European continent and whose course coincides with the East of Vienna.

During the winter, the surface of these waters freezes, which generates a thin sheet of ice, which you will be impressed to see. For this, you can take advantage of the well-known river walks along the banks of the river to get a close-up view of the icy scenery, the boats, swans and ducks that roam freely there.

Among the things to do in Vienna at night is to contemplate the city from the heights, while enjoying a delicious Austrian dish or a hot drink. To do this, you just have to go to the Danube Tower, which is considered the tallest building in Austria. The building is 252 meters high and at the top there is a glass terrace. This area will keep you protected from blizzards and snow, without limiting the panoramic view of the city.

In addition, when you climb the Danube Tower you can go to the first level, where you will find a cafeteria. There, you can try some coffee specialties and accompany it with a cake or delicious Austrian pastries. But, if what you want is a drink and a more elaborate dish for lunch or dinner, there is a restaurant on the second floor.

A particularity of this tower is that both floors have a rotating system based on a set of axes. In this way, both the cafeteria and the restaurant rotate every 26 minutes, allowing you to vary your angle of view over the legendary city of Vienna.

Practical information

• Location: Donauturmplatz 1.
• Opening hours: The tower is open from 10:00 am to 11:30 pm. Please note that the cafeteria and restaurant close a couple of hours earlier.

During the time of 1653, the Turks were banished from Vienna and upon their departure they left some sacks with coffee beans. This is how they began to prepare this beverage. Subsequently, the first coffee shops were created that adapted the intensity of the coffee to the different palates, incorporating sweeteners and milk. In fact, they developed a variety of coffee called Viennese, an espresso with a generous layer of cream.

It is precisely this drink that you will enjoy during your stay in Vienna and you can get it in any coffee shop in the city. However, if you have the opportunity to go to Café Central, the experience will be even more pleasurable. This café was the meeting place of great intellectuals and has a history of just over 160 years.

When you enter this popular café you will be transported back in time, thanks to its ornate architecture, the portraits on the walls, the elegant design of its sofas, tables and lamps. Definitely, a cultural experience with a Viennese coffee flavor that you cannot miss during your tour.

January in Vienna is quite cold, so a spa afternoon is an ideal activity for any tourist. Here you can step into a tub with a jet system and enjoy a gentle massage. In addition, the herbal steam from the sauna will envelop your body as it warms it and removes any impurities from your pores.

The vast majority of spas in Vienna have a series of pools with programmable temperatures. In this way, it is possible for each person to adapt the heat of the water according to his or her needs. In addition, if you have traveled to Vienna with children, you will have no problem taking them with you, since some facilities have special pools and saunas for the youngest members of the family.

All you have to do is choose one of the most popular spas in the Austrian capital. They offer massage sessions, 32°C showers and delicious hot drinks (tea and coffee).

Vienna is known for its dance culture, as the Austrian composer Johann Strauss used the city of his birth as a showcase, through which he showed the waltz to the world. Therefore, it is a tradition that hundreds of people gather in this city in January and February to attend the dazzling dances that characterize the beginning of the year.

If you are on vacation in Vienna, you can not miss the Opera Ball, which takes place at the Vienna State Opera. It is a building that combines decades of history and elegant architecture.

Therefore, you will not only enjoy the rhythm of Strauss' Blue Danube and dances under a shower of carnation petals. You will also be dazzled by the ornaments and architectural details of this building, recognized worldwide as the emblem of the Austrian capital.

Practical information

• Location: A Opernring 2.
• Price: about 15 € if you only want to attend, without a seat, the rehearsal the day before. For the night of the ball the cost is about 250 €, although with dinner it goes up much more.

If you are visiting the Austrian capital in January, you should not limit your visit to the old part of the city. You can also turn your visit to Vienna into a real sporting adventure by spending a day at the Hohe Wand-Wiese ski resort.

This is a ski resort located on the outskirts of the city, in the Wienerwald forest. The extension of the slope is 400 meters, has a ski lift and an amazing lighting system, designed so you can enjoy the scenery during the night hours.

For example, if you decide to ski on the trails of the station you can enjoy the banks of the famous Danube River that, during January, has a frozen surface. But if you prefer to go sledding with your family and friends, they will ride the slopes of the Prater.

January in Vienna is the month with the least precipitation and the most snow. The average rainfall corresponds to approximately 14 millimeters, while the average snowfall is between 61 millimeters. In addition, the temperature varies from -3°C to 3°C and it usually dawns later than usual (7:45 am).

For the Viennese this month is usually one of the coldest of the year, but this is not an impediment to continue with the many tourist activities in the city.

In fact, you'll only need to equip yourself with the characteristic winter clothing to keep warm as you wander the streets of Vienna in search of a café, museum, zoo and so on.

Vienna in January is less crowded for tourists compared to the rest of the year. This is due to the low temperatures recorded in the city throughout this month. Despite this, however, the shopping, historical and hospitality sites do not stop.

Otherwise, you will find little agglomeration in the streets of Vienna, which could be convenient for you to move quietly and, why not, get deals on street markets. Be sure to read the post what to see and do in Vienna and plan your trip in detail.