Guide · Vienna

The best time to visit Vienna

Vienna is a central European city where December is a reason to come rather than an obstacle.

12 months·Advent and summer·Winter is an option

Updated 24 Sep 2026

Best: Late April to June
For Advent: Mid-November to 26 December
Cheapest: January and February

When are you going?

Where to go: five more questions →

In brief

Closed

Monday: Kunsthistorisches Museum; Sunday: Naschmarkt

Getting in

Vienna airport (VIE) · about 20 min · €5.50

Sleeping

hostel €15–40 · 3* hotel €40–110

Food

street €3.50–6 · lunch €10–15 · dinner €12–20

Transport

ride €3.20 · 24 h €10.20

Sundays

shops shut, except at stations

Per person, per day

budget €36–69 · mid-range €95–185

Compare prices with other places →

Ready for Vienna?Check stays and transport →

Vienna is chosen not by weather but by what you want: April and September give the city without crowds at a comfortable temperature, December gives Advent markets and darkness at four, and July gives warm evenings and full courtyards. Three different trips in one city.

Month by month

ItemAmount

January–February−1 to 6 °C; 9–11 rainy days a month; cheapest, empty, short days

March–April5 to 15 °C; 5–11 rainy days a month; the city wakes, terraces appear late April

May–June15 to 22 °C; 12–13 rainy days a month; the best balance of weather and crowds

July–August20 to 25 °C; 8–11 rainy days a month; warm evenings, but the opera and part of the theatre season pause

September–October12 to 20 °C; 8–10 rainy days a month; the second best window, and new-wine season

November3 to 8 °C; 9 rainy days; grey, but the Advent markets start mid-month

December0 to 4 °C; 11 rainy days; Advent, a full city, and dark by four

Average of daily means, not daily maxima.

Advent — why it is different and where the catch is

Vienna's Advent markets run from mid-November to 26 December and close after that — arrive between Christmas and New Year and you find a city without the thing you came for. The largest is in front of the City Hall and the most touristy; those at Spittelberg, by the Karlskirche and at Schönbrunn are smaller and better. Punch comes in a mug you pay a deposit for and hand back.

3 daysThe day-by-day plan that works in any of these months:Vienna in 3 days →

Winter is not a punishment

What sets Vienna apart from most cities is that winter takes nothing away: museums, coffee houses, opera and concerts are indoors and running at full capacity, and January and February are the cheapest hotel months of the year. All you lose are the terraces and long walks — and the Ring is still circled by tram, from the warm.

What summer does

July and August are warm but not unbearable, and the city moves onto the Danube Island and into courtyards. The catch is cultural: the State Opera takes a summer break and part of the theatre season is dark. If the opera is the reason for the trip, pick the dates from its schedule rather than the weather.