Winter Events in Vienna: Christmas Markets, Special Exhibitions, and Festivals Galore
Although all seasons offer something special in the Austrian capital, there is no better time to visit Vienna than during the winter and holiday season. The city comes alive with twinkling lights from the Christmas markets and music coming out of every church and cathedral around the city. No matter if you’re traveling with family, friends, or solo, there is something for everyone during winter in Vienna.
Christmas Markets
Vienna has no shortage of Christmas markets to help visitors and locals alike celebrate the holiday season. You’ll find hand-blown glass baubles, wooden toys, and intricately designed candles among the artisanal goods. The air is filled with the scent of freshly baked treats, and visitors can indulge in local delicacies like gingerbread, Schaumrollen (cream-filled puff pastry), and roasted chestnuts. Of course, you can’t miss the stands selling Glühwein, often served in collectible mugs.
Whether you’re looking for Viennese opulence or something more traditional, there is a Christmas market for you. Below are our top three picks for Christmas markets in Vienna this holiday season:
Christkindlmarkt at Rathaus, November 16 – December 26, 2024
The Christkindlmarkt in front of the Rathaus (town hall) is considered one of Europe’s largest and most beautiful Christmas markets. A true spectacle, this Christmas market has large festive decorations set against the backdrop of the iconic Rathaus, with a Ferris wheel, nativity trail, and an ice rink snaking through it all.
Old Viennese Christmas Market on Freyung, November 15 – December 23, 2024
If you’re looking for a more traditional and historical Christmas market, look no further than the Old Viennese Christmas Market on Freyung. Running since as early as 1772, Freyung’s market focuses on a traditional atmosphere and crafts, with many onsite events including craft demonstrations and music. A highlight of this market in particular is the huge Nativity scene, based on a painting by Josef Ritter von Führich.
Edelstoff Design Market Christmas Edition – December 7th and 8th, 2024
Two young Austrians brought back a design sensibility from London and Berlin in 2012 and the rest was history. The Edelstoff Design Market gives the public access to up-and-coming young product designers eager to showcase their wares. Quirky, fun and a very different side of Vienna, the Christmas Edition is great for some holiday shopping.
Schonbrunn Christmas Market – November 8th to January 6, 2025
No visit to Vienna is complete without a stop at Schonbrunn palace. The Christmas market at Schonbrunn is one of the longest running markets in Vienna, both in its duration and in its beginnings , dating back to a tradition from 1298. The selection of Austrian handicrafts, gourmet delights, the best Gluhwein in town it is a treat for all ages, and it even converts into a New Year market after Christmas. With over 80 different stalls and a festive advent program of daily free live performances of choirs, a cappella groups, and brass ensembles, this Christmas market offers a grand holiday experience that makes winter in Vienna an unforgettable festive season destination.
Take a Tour with Insight Cities
While at Schonbrunn, why not go on Insight Cities’ Schonbrunn Palace and Gardens tour and discover the Habsburg family through their opulent summer residence? Your expert guide will tell you the most fascinating stories of Austria’s imperial rulers, including Empress Maria Theresa, Emperor Franz Josef and his beloved unconventional consort Empress Sisi, while you explore the sumptuous rooms they spent their time in. Book a tour with us today and we’ll set you up with the perfect guide!
Christmas in Vienna
You can experience Christmas in Vienna beyond the Christmas markets. You’re bound to find Christmas trees, advent wreaths, and brilliant lights everywhere you go. If you’re in town during the holiday season, you can partake in some Viennese culinary traditions. The traditional Austrian Christmas meal varies depending on the region, but in Vienna you can rely on Wiener Schnitzel or roast goose to be the star of the menu, with sides of potato salad or red cabbage. The meal may end with a Stollen or Sachertorte for dessert.
In the lead-up to Christmas, you can have an Advent Brunch. Cafe Imperial has its advent brunch in a special location, in magnificent halls, with live Christmas music as an accompaniment. If you can wait until Christmas Day, Cafe Imperial and other fine-dining venues offer a special multi-course Christmas menu.
New Year’s Eve in Vienna
Silvesterpfad – December 31, 2024
The city centre transforms itself into a giant street party, as revellers trace a path from the Rathausplatz across the inner city to Prater, in what is now a well-known celebration that attracts crowds from across Europe. Not as rarified as Vienna’s typical cultural events, but cleaner than most street parties anywhere else, Silvesterpfad begins at 2 P.M. on New Year’s Eve and goes well into the morning on New Years’ Day. Dance and waltz, binge off the various street-food vendors, and marvel at how singularity of purpose can bring people from all walks of life across Austria and Europe together for a night. Remember you might have to queue early for the long security lines, and come dressed for elements.
Die Fledermaus – December 31, 2024 – January 6, 2025
Another New Year’s Eve tradition in Vienna is to go see Die Fledermaus (The Bat), an operetta by famed Austrian composer Richard Strauss. This lighthearted operetta, which has almost always been performed on New Year’s Eve in Vienna, takes a look beneath the façade of the 19th-century bourgeoisie. Performances run at the State Opera and at the Vienna Volksoper.
Performances & Concerts
Vienna has a rich musical history, having hosted some of the most famous classical music composers such as Mozart and Beethoven, and the tradition continues to this day, all throughout the winter. The city is overflowing with performances and concerts in venues small and large.
The Winter’s Tale, a ballet by Christopher Wheeldon, at the Wien Staatsoper – December 1, 6, 17, & 20, 2024
This modern ballet interpretation of Shakespeare’s play by British choreographer Christopher Wheeldon captures the spirit of the original story with bold design and dance sequences, seamlessly switching from tragedy to hope, romance and redemption.
Christmas concerts, various locations – December 24 & 25, 2024
No trip to Vienna is complete without some exposure to the classical music composed there, and several venues have special Christmas concerts in which you can hear the work of the greats being performed by today’s top musicians in Vienna. Go to Mozarthaus and Schonbrunn Palace for an intimate ensemble concert featuring pieces by Mozart and Strauss. Or see the Vienna Royal Orchestra play a wide selection of Strauss’s works.
The Magic Flute at the Wien Staatsoper – January 27 & 30 – February 1, 4, 7, 2025
Mozart’s famous opera, about a young prince who sets off on an epic journey, is playing again at the Vienna State Opera. The classic opera masterfully blends enchanting music with a fantastical storyline, filled with symbolic elements of love, wisdom, and the triumph of good over evil. Its vibrant characters, along with Mozart’s brilliant orchestration, create a magical and uplifting experience that continues to enchant audiences worldwide, and continually plays well in the city that made Mozart famous.
Resonanzen – January 18th to 26th, 2025
Resonanzen has made its mark in Europe and beyond as one of the leading festivals of early music. Focused on composition and styles from the Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque periods of Central European History and played on instruments like harpsichords and lutes from the times, the festival is a treat for your ears. This year’s theme, fittingly, is Old Masters.
If you have music lovers in your group, consider booking Insight Cities’ Vienna: City of Music tour. It’s the perfect tour to deeply explore the rich musical heritage of Vienna, where a musical history aficionado will take you to the homes and concert venues that legendary composers Mozart, Vivaldi, and Beethoven lived and performed in. Along the way, you’ll hear the highlights of Vienna’s musical masterpieces on speakers or headphones to immerse yourself in the sounds that captured the hearts and minds of musical lovers past and present.
Art
Winter at the Museums Quarter (MQ) – 2024 dates TBD?
Vienna’s impressive MQ puts on their annual winter display to rival the sometimes kitschy, traditional advent markets, through November and December. The MQ’s take, is a modern interpretation, with open-air art exhibitions, lighting displays and video mapping. With free entry, multiple-bars, live concerts and some great street food (both Viennese and international), this makes for a great family visit.
Exhibitions
Johan Strauss: The Exhibition at Theatermuseum – opens December 4, 2024
Together with the grand reopening of Theatermuseum, in anticipation of the Year of Strauss in 2025, an exhibition featuring one of Vienna’s greatest home-grown composers opens. Featuring original objects connected to Strauss’s work and life, including original scores and portraits, and props from his opera productions, this exhibition explores the indelible imprint the King of Waltz left on Vienna, Austria, and the world of music.
Adrian Ghenie: Shadow Paintings at the Albertina – closes February 9, 2025
Romanian artist Adrian Ghenie resurrects Egon Schiele’s lost works, known only from black-and-white-photographs, in the only way one can bring back the dead: creating something like the original, but altogether different from what had been before. Ghenie’s haunting, surreal style captures the undead nature of these lost works, creating something totally new while encapsulating the spirit of Schiele’s work.
Medardo Rosso: Inventing Modern Sculpture at MUMOK – closes February 23, 2025
Italian-French sculptor Medardo Russo left his mark on modernism, a figure both extraordinary and eccentric, with sculptures defying the clean look that defined the medium until the 20th century. This retrospective features fifty sculptures and a large selection of photographs, photocollages, and drawings, covering the span of Russo’s life and career. Featured works include Ecce Puer, Sick Child, and The Bookmaker. Adhering to Rosso’s penchant to exhibit work in conversation with others, the work of artists directly and indirectly influenced by Rosso, such as Edgar Degas, Jasper Johns, and Eva Hesse, are exhibited as well.
Winter in Vienna at Wien Museum – November 14, 2024 – March 16, 2025
Though the picture of Vienna in winter remains dominated by snowy scenes and frozen ponds, today’s reality matches that picture less and less often. In four chapters, this nostalgic and sobering exhibition explores the experience of and changes in winter in Vienna over the centuries, and poses the question of what the more mild, snowless winters mean for Vienna, Europe, and the world.
Visit the Original Viennese Snow Globe Factory – ongoing
Vienna was the birthplace of the now-ubiquitous snow globe, and what better season than winter to visit the original factory where the first snow globes were produced? The museum features special snow globe designs and the original workshop where the snow globe was invented. Of course, you can also take home a snow globe as a souvenir or as a Christmas gift – typical Viennese snow globes have the Ferris Wheel, St. Stephen’s cathedral, or City Hall.
Dance
TU Ball der Technik – January 30, 2025
A Hapsburgian tradition, ball season is when Vienna comes alive at night, with 450 balls taking place throughout the city. The season runs from mid-November to just before Lent, but the pick of the season’s balls always take place in the new year. In 2025, several balls will be dedicated to master waltz composer Johann Strauss.
While we like the ostentatious galas such as the Opera Ball, we know tickets are nigh-impossible and finding a costume while you’re on vacation is even harder. So, we suggest you set your sights on the Technical University’s annual ball, which is as you will find, is a lot more fun than some of the more traditional offerings.
Outdoor Fun
The days may be dark, and the air chillingly cold in winter, but for the Viennese that by no means signifies time spent exclusively indoors. Even after the Christmas markets and accompanying lights have all been packed away, winter fun is still out there for those brave enough to spend the season out in the cold.
Wiener Eistraum – January to March 2025
Vienna’s Ice Dream is Europe’s largest man-made ice construction. Covering an area of over 80,000 square feet, spread over ice-skating rinks, curling lanes and special areas for children, this is Vienna’s way of fighting the winter blues and making the most of the winter chill. Located at the Rathausplatz, it’s hard to miss, and hard to resist.
Ice skating – various locations, November 2024 to March 2025
As winter descends, ice skating rinks pop up all over Vienna like winter daisies. For experienced skaters, the best place to go is Wiener Eislaufverein. This expansive ice skating rink is open daily from 9 AM to 8 PM until April 2025. You can rent ice skates for just a couple of Euros and enjoy the timeless joy of gliding across the ice with your family.
Whether you prefer to get out for that crisp winter air or to stay warm indoors, we at Insight Cities have the tour for you! Walk around the city with our Vienna Introduction and City of Music tours, or explore a museum like Schonbrunn or Belvedere with an expert guide. Whatever your preference, we can make the perfect tour happen for you. Contact us today to set up your next tour in Vienna!