The popular Kärntner Straße shopping street in the heart of Vienna
For a long time now, we have wanted to visit Vienna, but somehow, we never managed to plan a trip—until now. On Tuesday, May 5, 2026, we flew from Nice to Vienna and arrived at our centrally located hotel just in time for lunch. In the afternoon and the next day, we explored the area around Kärtner Straße, St. Stephen's Cathedral, and other parts of the very center of this beautiful city. Camera-wise, I was traveling light: I only brought the 27 to 83 mm zoom lens for the Fujifilm X-T5. As several shots required a wider angle, I had to rely on my iPhone in some cases.
Click on any image to see a larger (2400 x 1600 pixel) version!
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The popular Kärntner Straße shopping street in the heart of Vienna |
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St. Stephen's Cathedral |
A detailed view of the side |
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A partial view of the spire |
The dome of the Peterskirche |
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Façades on Graben |
The bottom of the Pestsäule (Plague Column) |
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The view from our hotel room: The Vienna State Opera |
The Memorial against War and Fascism |
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The Albrechtsbrunnen on the Albertinaplatz |
Arcades by the Vienna State Opera |
One of two matching opera fountains |
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Another look at the Lorelei Fountain on the Herbert-von-Karajan-Platz |
Looking from Herbert-von-Karajan-Platz down Kärtner Straße |
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Part of the façade of the Vienna State Opera |
Heading toward the Hotel Sacher |
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There was a bit of a wait to get into their café... |
...but the Sachertorte was well worth it. |
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Looking toward St. Stephen's Cathedral |
The lovely Kärtnerhof |
Pension Neuer Markt |
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The Donnerbrunnen fountain on Neuer Markt |
The Haas House on Stock-im-Eisen-Platz |
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Façade of the building Zum Goldenen Becher |
Mosaic by Eduard Veith on a Kärtner Straße building |
On Thursday, we took a hop-on, hop-off bus to the Belvedere Palace, where we had tickets to visit the Klimt exhibition. Both venue and exhibition were spectacular. In the evening, unbelievably, we had tickets to see the Stephen Sondheim musical Follies at the Volksoper—in German, no less! Photography was, of course, strictly forbidden, but I took this shot during the intermission.
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The Bitzinger Würstelstand by the entrance of the Albertina |
Main entrance and courtyard of Schönbrunn Palace |
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The Upper Belvedere Palace |
Baroque architecture and frescoes in the Upper Belvedere Museum |
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Ceiling fresco in the marble hall of the Upper Belvedere Palace |
The front of the Upper Belvedere Palace |
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Looking across the gardens towards Vienna from the Upper Belvedere Palace |
Friday was the second day of our hop-on, hop-off bus tickets. In the morning, we used it to go to the Rathaus, or City Hall. This is a huge Gothic Revival building constructed in the late 19th century. In front of it is a 40,000 square meter (9.9 acre) park with gorgeous trees and rows of benches. From there, we hopped on a bus that took us to Schwedenplatz where we had lunch at a café with a view on the Donaukanal.
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Catching a glimpse of Vienna City Hall through the trees |
City Hall is quite an imposing structure |
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Looking along Felderstraße and the north side of City Hall |
Strolling through City Hall Park |
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Enjoying beautiful spring weather |
East-side portal into the Votivkirche (Votive Church) |
The photos on this page were taken between May 5 and May 8, 2026.
This is the first page covering our 2026 trip to Vienna. Stay tuned for page 2.
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