You probably know that Vienna is the capital of Austria but is also the capital of music, art, elegant architecture, and cozy cafés. People say that the cosmopolitan city offers the best quality of life in the world proven by winning the top rungs of many ratings. 30% of the residents are not actually Austrian as the city is very diverse attracting many foreigners who come to study or work every year.

Vienna is known by two nicknames: The City of Music, for being home to some of classical music’s best composers such as Mozart, Joseph Haydn, Beethoven, and last but not least Johann Strauss. The second nickname is The City of Dreams, for is home to the world’s first psychoanalyst, Sigmund Freud, who lived and worked in the city for much of his career having a significant impact and making it the birthplace of psychotherapy. 

Among the popular people of Vienna is also a fine instruments mechanic named Erwin Perzy who was trying to improve the brightness of lightbulbs for a surgical lamp and accidentally invented a snow globe. Croissant, the famous pastry that everyone associates with France, actually originates in Vienna. We keep going with all the “wow facts” about Vienna by adding the fact that it is a wine capital producing significant quantities of wine within the city limits. Local people know how to have fun so every year, more than 300 balls take place in Vienna.

Would you believe me if I tell you that you can adopt a rose for five years straight either in Schlosspark Schönbrunn or the Volksgarten? Surprisingly there is a long waiting list so rather sign up as soon as possible. One more unexpected fact is that the famous PEZ, the fun little tablet candy, originates in Vienna. The dispenser was designed to look like a lighter. Smoking was prohibited at that time, so the Pez slogan was “No Smoking – PEZing Allowed.”

And the sweet spot at the end – who hasn't tasted the delicious Sacher cake, a chocolate delicacy and a specialty of the hotel of the same name, will feel as if they have never been to Vienna. Currently, it is the only place that produces the 100% authentic Sachertorte, producing over 270,000 pieces a year. The traditional Viennese coffee houses are on the UNESCO Cultural Heritage list.

Architecture lovers' hearts will sing at buildings such as the Hofburg – the seat of the Habsburgs with its precious collection of crown jewels, Austria's most famous castle Schönbrunn, Austria's most important Gothic monument – St. Stephen's Cathedral right in the center of Vienna, the neo-Gothic Rathaus, surrounded by the beautiful Rathauspark, the magnificent Baroque Belvedere Castle and the Karlskirche Church in Vienna's Karlsplatz Square. Most of the tourist attractions are relics of Vienna's imperial period.

If you prefer more modern architecture, don't miss the Hundertwasserhaus by the extravagant architect Hundertwasser or Vienna's second most famous building by this controversial figure, the heating plant in Spittelau. If you also want to indulge in an artistic or cultural experience, head to the world-famous Vienna Opera House or Austria's most famous theater, the Burgtheater. It would be a shame not to visit Vienna's famous Prater amusement park, with its colorful attractions for young and old alike.