A good friend of ours invited us on a 7-day cruise in Croatia, and since we were making the hop across the pond anyway, we decided to start our adventure in Vienna for a few days.
After using one of Tazia’s trusty travel hacks, we scored an upgrade to first class on Austrian Airlines. We landed in Vienna in the morning—slightly sleep deprived but fueled by excitement—and hit the ground running.
Our bags went straight to Hotel Josefshof, and then it was off for breakfast at Café Landtmann. We knew service here would be more leisurely than in the U.S., so no surprises there. The food was good, though we were a little underwhelmed by the selection. Still, it was the perfect first bite of Austria.
Next stop: The Sisi Museum. The museum promises “an authentic look at the life of the famous Austro-Hungarian monarch away from the usual clichés,” and it delivered plenty of history. We learned a lot about Empress Elisabeth (“Sisi”), but the sheer number of audio stops made it hard to keep a flow through the exhibits.
While wandering between stops, we took some time to stroll around Vienna’s parliament building and gardens. The grand architecture and open spaces were a beautiful backdrop for our walk, and it gave us a chance to slow down and soak in the city’s atmosphere before diving into the next sight.
Since no trip is complete without some geocaching, we grabbed a few in the area before heading to the Austrian National Library. This library, the largest in Austria, is stunning inside and holds millions of books, maps, and manuscripts. We stopped in because of its cinematic fame (thanks, Fountain of Youth) and secretly hoped the Wicked Bible might be just lying around waiting for us. Spoiler: it wasn’t.
From there, it was on to the Catacombs at St. Peter’s. These underground burial chambers beneath St. Stephen’s Cathedral have been in use since the 14th century and now hold the remains of over 11,000 people. While Tina and Tazia had already explored the Paris catacombs, we all found Vienna’s version fascinating and unique in its own right.
By this point, we finally circled back to the hotel to check in properly before heading out for one last adventure. One of Tazia’s travel traditions is to take a local cooking class wherever she goes, so tonight’s plan was perfect. At Nabiel Wiener Küche, we joined Chef Nabiel for a small-group lesson on Austrian classics—schnitzel and kaiserschmarrn. Cooking, eating, and laughing together was the perfect way to close out our first day.
It was a busy start to our Vienna stay, but we’ve still got two more days to dive deeper before Croatia calls.
The 2Key Ratings
Posted reviews are in the links.
- Café Landtmann – 🔑🔑🔑
- Sisi Museum – 🔑🔑🔑
- Austrian National Library – 🔑🔑🔑
- Catacombs at St. Peter’s – 🔑🔑🔑🔑
- Chef Nabiel – Nabiel Wiener Küche – 🔑🔑🔑🔑🔑
- Hotel Josefshof – 🔑🔑🔑½
2 Key Travelers 
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