Spotlight on Vienna
Vienna is alive with the sound of music.
The city has a rich musical legacy that Elke Bachner of the Vienna Tourist Board says will be quickly evident to visitors.
“There’s always music in Vienna,” she told a Sept. 16 Toronto gathering. “Every night 10,000 people are listening to classical music in Vienna.”
Next year marks the 150th anniversary of the famed Blue Danube Waltz, with visitors able to “waltz away the night in Vienna,” Bachner continued.
Visitors can take an hour-long “crash course” on how to waltz, with ongoing balls featuring women wearing evening gowns and men also formally attired, she added.
Other musical highlights include the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra marking its 175th year and the famed Vienna Boys Choir celebrating the fifth year of having its own concert hall.
Meanwhile, Bachner said visitors will find numerous points of interest in Vienna, taking in the likes of the landmark Schonnbrun Palace, with visitors able to “easily spend a day there.”
The city’s Giant Ferris Wheel is 120 years old and enables tourists to “see Vienna from above.”
Bachner said “coffee is actually a culture” in Austria, and those visiting Vienna’s numerous coffeehouses will find many types of coffee to choose from.
Bachner also noted that Vienna has more than 100 museums, among them ones focusing on music and art. The city is also surrounded by wine regions, she noted.
Meanwhile, Ernst Holzer of Vienna International Airport said the airport is in “the heart of Europe,” and serves as a gateway to Eastern Europe.
The airport also has a high-speed rail terminal in its arrivals terminal, and is one of “a handful of four-star European airports,” he said.
Vienna International Airport is also a Star Alliance hub, Holzer continued.
Hilary Brown of Globus said that company has different tours in Austria, including Danube sailings with Avalon. Among Danube cruises is an active one that invites people to jog, cycle or canoe, she reported.
Pictured are Holzer; Ursula Pusch, Vienna International Airport; Nicole Lindner, Swarovski; Bachner; Stephanie Bishop, Globus; Sherif Sedhom, Lufthansa; and Hanna Fischer, Austrian Airlines.
