Hotels By City: Cheap Hotels, Hotel Guides & Hotel Blogs

The Christ Church in Vienna hosts its annual Christmas bazaar and flea market tomorrow, Saturday, Dec. 1., from 10:30am - 4:30pm. Highlights of the market include various second hand items, including books, toys, and clothes as well as an array of new UK seasonal items like holiday decorations and Christmas crackers.

Christmas crackers are paper cylinders, twisted at each end, that are filled with candy or small cheap toy prizes. It ...

straw playground in front of Karlskirche

One of the best and most ecclectic Christmas markets in Vienna can be found in front of the Karlskirche. The market specializes in handmade objects of art, including clothing, decorations, and household articles. The wool hats and toys, handcarved wooden bowls, and whimsical cutting boards are especially nice.

Bauernkrapfen

The food at the Karlskirche market is also fantastic. Favorites include the ...

a colorful pillar leads to the MUSA

The MUSA (Museum Auf Abruf) is perhaps best described as "the best new free art museum that is not being visited." The museum houses numerous themed exhibits as well as serves as a jumping off point for the careers of young Viennese artists. Currently, the museum features a collection of photographs of Vienna taken by the now deceased photojournalist Harry Weber. ...

visitors during opening week 2007

The stalls at Vienna's oldest Christmas market opened this past Saturday, November 17 and will remain open through December 24. The market, which is set up each year in front of the Rathaus, is the largest of its kind in Vienna. It dates back 7 centuries and now contains more than 140 market stalls selling honey and beeswax products, wool clothing, toys, ornaments, ...

one of the horses' difficult poses

A limited number of opportunities remain to see the world-famous Lipizzaner horses at the Spanish Riding School in 2007. The school is the oldest and only one of its kind in the world, steeped in more than 400 years of tradition. The horses are a specific breed of white stallion called "Lipizzaner" and are descended from stallions owned by Austria's royal family ...

Cafe Schottenring's street entrance

When seeking a genuine Viennese coffee house experience, look no further than Cafe Schottenring. The traditional coffee house has excellent food, chic antique Viennese decor, and live piano music on most evenings. A large noble mirror spans the entire back wall of the main dining room, creating a lovely and elegant atmosphere for a leisurely meal or drink.

The coffee is strong and flavorful, ...

Christmas treats made in Demel's backroom

Stopping at Demel is a must if seeking to visit an elegant and traditional Viennese confectioner. Demel has been churning out lavish baked goods and candies since 1776 and sports a decadent interior that was restored in the 1930s. Its elaborate window displays alone, showing labyrinthine seasonally themed cakes and other showy sugar-based structures, are worth a look.

A trip inside Demel presents ...

Vienna's Top Polish Deli

The Polish Delicatessen on Lasallestrasse is worth a visit if you crave pierogies and other Polish delights. The shop sells packages of 13 small pierogies for a bargain at €2.19. Pierogie varieties available include Russian (basic potato), Ukranian, mushroom & cabbage filled (Pilze & Kraut), cream cheese (Topfen), and meat filled (Fleisch). The Ukranian mushroom & cabbage variety are particularly good. Choose from either ...

Bobby's British Imports Food Store

When looking for cooking ingredients common in Great Britain and America, but not Austria, head to Bobby's British Imports Food Shop near Vienna's Naschmarkt. An antique suit of armor in the display window greets customers as they enter Bobby's, which stocks soft brown sugar, PG Tipps English tea, ready-made pie crusts, pancake syrup, poultry stuffing mix, canned root beer soda, American peanut butter, ...

the Volksoper's main entrance

Vienna's Volksoper (People's Opera) has consistently high quality operas and other musical theater productions for a fraction of the price of a night at the Staatsoper. Tickets to the Volksoper's entertaining performances are much cheaper and don't need to be purchased very far in advance to guarantee a seat. The Volksoper does have a couple of minor drawbacks though. Occasionally, the subtle rumbling of ...