Riesenrad & Prater, Vienna

The Prater theme park has gained fame through the iconic film noir - movie "The Third Man" by Orson Welles where it served as a film location for post-war Vienna. A ride in the Ferris Wheel is a touristic must-do, the view from up above is obviously excellent. There is no general entry fee, each attraction charges its own fee. (Open from March to October).

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In the Praterstern, actually a somewhat disappointing park with a fair, we find the Giant Ferris Wheel (Riesenrad). It was built in 1896-1897. This 65 m high Ferris Wheel with 15 gondolas is one of the most famous symbols of Vienna. We make a ride what was a fun experience. Right at the top gives a magnificent view over the city.
See for an impression the video Giant Ferris Wheel.

Accessible with the U-Bahn Praterstern and tram O, 5, 21

One part of the Prater is a big recreation park (till the beginning of the 20th century it was a hunting area), with a lot of green space and forest. Many people do sports there, for example running, roller skating, or are just sunbathing. There is a riding school as well. Since the 1920ies a little train is going through the Prater, the nostalgic "Liliputbahn". The ticket costs EUR 3,50 (EUR 2,20 for children under 12, free for children under 2) and it is great fun.

One of the main attractions in the Prater is of course the amusement park, which is called "Wurstelprater". It was pretty shabby in the 90ties, now it is well kept again and a nice place for adults and for kids to spend for example a Sunday afternoon. There is no general entrance fee to the amusement park, but they charge directly at the attractions. Tickets cost ca between EUR 1,50 - EUR 15,00 (for the ejection seat- you sit in kind of a big ball and are catapulted up in the air- only for the ones with nerves of steel :)) . Apart from some scary attractions like the "space shot" you`ll find roller coasters, haunted houses, carrousels, racing circuits, gambling houses, pony riding for kids and a looot more. Here you`ll find the famous giant ferris wheel as well, which is Vienna`s landmark. The ticket costs EUR 7,50 for adults and EUR 3,00 for kids between 3 and 14. Watch out for reduced combination tickets, for example Liliputbahn and giant ferris wheel or Donauturm and giant ferris wheel.

Last but not least, the most famous restaurant in the Prater, the large "Schweizerhaus" should be mentioned. It is always packed with people, so if you come with a larger group you should reserve a table, especially at the weekend. They have a large beer garden where you can enjoy a Budweiser beer and the traditional rear knuckle of pork (so called "Stelze" which usually weighs 1.5 kg and costs ca EUR 20,00).

It’s a huge public park, opened to the public in 1766 by Emperor Joseph 2nd. Still now it is a meeting place for all Viennese, and it offers: A permanent funfair, with all kind of entertainment possiblities, open air cafés and restaurants and the giant Ferries Wheel.

From it you can enjoy a great view of Vienna, during a 20-minutes-long ride. The first time I went there was very early in the morning on January 1 2000 and we were the only ones!!! The view from there is just wonderful. At the entrance the staff was offering free drinks, such as chocolate, tee and beer, and they asked what we wanted. I said: 'beer' and the man made a funny face looking at his watch, as to say: 'at this hour???' LOL

Vienna can be enjoyable not only for must see activities places, but for funfairs too. Prater funfair is the part of 19 -20th Viennese history and entertainment. This funfair is probably the oldest in Europe.

The oldest is Giant Ferris Wheel, built in 1897. It can lift you about 60 meters and from the top it could be seen whole Vienna panorama that is even better that from Stefansdom, because takes a wider corner.

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The stables where the horses are housed is across the road from Hofburg. There are tours available, but if you just want to have a quick look, a good time to go is after morning practise at around 12 noon when the horses are brought back to the stables. The stables have in recent times been renovated and refurbished and these boys now live in sumptuous surroundings, which of course they fully deserve. There are about 70 of them in all. It takes several years to train them to a standard where they can take part in a formal performance and if you go to the morning practise, you will see horses in all stages of their training from kindergarten class to the true professionals. All in all, you will probably see about 25 different horses during practise, but only 8 or 10 in a gala performance.

This Ferris Wheel was built in 1896/97 by the British engineer Walter Basset for the Emperor Franz Josef I's golden jubilee. After burning down during World War II, it was replaced in 1945.

Today the ferris wheel stands at the entrance to the Prater amusement park. The square has been redesigned in a nostalgic theme reminiscent of the Prater in 1900.

A ride on the wheel takes you to a height of 65 metres and gives you a unique view of Vienna. Some of the cabins can be hired for celebrations or romantic dinners for two.

Opening times and prices can be found on the website below.