Image by Sabrina Grohsebner

When I was little my family and I used to come here regularly in winter time, that way I improved my ice skating skills and learned to appreciate being in the inner city from time to time. Now that I visited this place some days ago I discovered that Wiener Eislaufverein not only is a precious memory to me but also represents a nice possibility to do urban Ice-skating for everybody.

Wiener Eislaufverein is more of a calm type of Ice skating places. Admitted, you won’t find any Disco on Ice there, neither colorful flashlights nor hip music, Vienna’s got some great places like this (check the Wiener Eistraum article!)

Instead, Winer Eislaufverein offers you the possibility to spend a relaxed and sunny winter afternoon, maybe together with your friends, kids and family, maybe also having a break and enjoying one or two Punsch while watching people sliding by elegantly and light.

As the spot’s situated in a very nice area Wiener Eislaufverein provides you with a quite nice view on some classic Viennese buildings such as Vienna’s concert house which actually is located right next it. Also Vienna’s Stadtpark is near to this place, so if you’re hands, feet and nose aren’t frozen after Ice skating yet, maybe you’d like to enjoy a walk through the park to round up your visit.

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Wiener Eislaufverein | Relaxing | Entrance from € 6.00
Lothringerstraße 22 | Inner districts | +4317136353
Oct 22 – Mar 4 Mon, Sat – Sun 09:00 – 20:00, Tue – Fri 09:00 – 21:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Vienna

Image by Linda Nepicks

When I first came along this square, I really was surprised. Somehow I did not expect such a cosy and neat little square in a big city like Vienna.

Servitenplatz resembles the centre of a small Austrian village. So what do you need for such a square? An old church, some benches, huge trees which give shade, a café, a pub, nice stores in the surrounding streets and local people who enjoy it- both old and young. This is what you get here! And that’s why I like this spot.

There is the Servite church from 1677, there is a coffeeshop without a name (where you get homemade ice in summer!), there is a pub besides a hairdresser, and there are these nice simple benches where you can watch couples, the old folk chatting or children playing football.

In winter time it’s quiet here, but in summer it’s pretty much the center of that quarter. I think every time of the year it’s worth a visit. The sad history of the Servitengasse, leading to the square, is quite touching. Decades ago it used to be a street where many Jews were living (half of the population of the ninth district in 1938 were Jews, like Sigmund Freud who lived pretty much around the corner), but with the Nazi regime they had to leave their flats and homes. A little memorial with all symbolic keys shows the names of the displaced persons. Some sad history for a neat little square.

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Servitenplatz | Coffee & tea, Relaxing, Shopping | Free
Servitengasse | Inner districts
24 hours daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Vienna

Image by Linda Nepicks

The Mozart lovers, who know the true story, the very neighbors in the third district and the gloomy city tourists may know about this spot. But even some of my Viennese friends have never seen or heard about this attraction.

Vienna is known as a place for morbid melancholy, so what else should be more than suitable as to visit a very small and hidden Biedermeier cemetery which was a burial site for about 90 years until 1874.

St. Marx Cemetery is the place where once poor Mozart was thrown into a mass grave as there was no money for to pay a proper funeral. But you are not here to visit the vanished mass graves of former times but this neat and peaceful park-like place, with small paths, trees and shrubbery.

The cemetery has amazing weather-beaten tombstones, sculptures fallen to bits and pieces, epigrams worn off by the ravages of time.

If you can read German you will realize that on such a bourgeois cemetery it was a very important thing to show the profession of the deceased on the tombstone – a brewer, a landlord, a cigarette shop owner, etc..

This is a beautiful, quiet spot for a stroll (though the setting with a highway overpass very close is a bit weird), especially in snowy winter times. In autumn all trees turn gold and red, and in April and May the lilacs blossom.

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St. Marx Cemetery | Art & culture, Relaxing
Leberstrasse 6 | Inner districts | +43140008042
Nov – Apr 07:00 till dawn, May – Sep 07:00 – 18:00, Apr & Oct 07:00 – 17:00,Jun – Aug 07:00 – 19:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Vienna

Image by Linda Nepicks

A place to chat, for people from different countries. A colourful street market with fruits, vegetables, meat, cheese. A long alley with plenty of stalls with cheap clothes, shoes and fabrics. A stuffed alley with loads of groceries, turkish restaurants, shops, bakeries etc. An alley ending in a big market square, used both by bohemian society and local residents. A market with a shop for the best jam in the world (apart from home-made one) called Staud’s. A market square with cafe’s, restaurants and bars or just benches to sit and relax.

Check it out, I think it’s a very different part from Vienna, which most tourists will not see (who just know the Naschmarkt). And worth to see! Not to forget that fruits and veggies are way cheaper than on any other market in Vienna…

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Brunnenmarkt Yppenplatz | Bars, Coffee & tea, Relaxing, Shopping, Snacks, Restaurants
Yppenplatz | Inner districts
Mon – Sat til 18:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Vienna

Image by Julia Heiligenbrunner

This is a very popular event amongst locals. More than 350 spotlights and live DJs make sure one really gets the open air disco feeling. During the week DJs are satisfying music wishes from five o’clock on and on weekends they even start at 2pm.

Honestly? To me that kind of activity is only breathtaking because I am going to land on my chest as soon as I step on the ice. I’m very much into sports but this one is just not made for me. Okay, I’ve got to admit the view itself truly is breathtaking.

As ice skating in front of Vienna’s city hall is oh so very special, my friends finally succeeded in convincing me to put on some slides – for the first time in 12 safe-from-harm-years. I’m suspicious of their motive, could be they only did so knowing it’s going to be a hilarious show for them. So if you witness a young woman lying face-down on the ice – that’s probably glorious me! You will only get to see that terrific happening in the area where beginners can skate for free. I guess I’ll be easy to spot among the kids who are no older than eight winters…

Details about this spot (Show on map)
Wiener Eistraum | Music, Relaxing, Festivals & events | Starts from € 4.50
Rathauspark | Inner districts | +4314090040
09:00 – 17:00 daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Vienna

Image by Julia Heiligenbrunner

For now those open closets can be found at three spots in Vienna. The concept: go there, have a look, take what you (think you might) need, enjoy, (take it back), (take more back than you got in the first place).

Why do I like this? Because: books weren’t made to stand onto the same shelf for their whole “life time”. In my opinion it’s best to share what you think is great. And even if you happen to not like or understand an edition, maybe someone else will – so why not give it (a try) away?!

Since the contents are changing ongoing, it can’t be said how many books one might find in English, Turkish, Chinese, Arabic or Esperanto language.  In case you are looking for a specific book, better go to the main public library. Winter is the perfect time to look over the books in the Bücherschrank and then grab a cup of coffee or tea in a laid-back café like the one you find just one station further with the tram 49 (check out the Nil – Oriental way article!).

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Offener Bücherschrank | Art & culture, Coffee & tea, Relaxing | Free
Westbahnstraße 22 | Inner districts | +436509476269
24 hours daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Vienna

Image by Diana Pereira

The term “Altes AKH” refers to Vienna’s old general hospital! When it was no longer a hospital it became rather a nice place to go!

The construction has more than 300 years of history and was built in several phases being extended in courtyards according to the needs along the times. In fact the interest of this spot is not the construction itself, but these open spaces!

The green areas provided are excellent to hang out. This building is nowadays part of the University, so it is visited fairly frequented by younger people and students but the patios are public and accessible for everyone. In the main courtyard several cafes, restaurants and even a supermarket can be found.

The courtyards are connected with passages and location maps. There is a small monument in one of the yards (a former synagogue) and a museum of pathologies which is located in a former madhouse (be aware of short opening times)! The several patios are great for a city break! By the Christmas time there is a Christmas market with different kind of punch and hot wine!

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Altes akh | Art & culture, Coffee & tea, Relaxing | Free
Alser Straße 4 | Inner districts
24 hours daily

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Vienna