Date ideas in Vienna: 17 ideas for visitors and expats

• Budgetlow
• Best forfirst date, any weather
• Time1 to 3 hours
• WhereCafé Sperl, Café Prückel, Café Central

Viennese coffee house culture is officially recognized as part of Austria's intangible cultural heritage, and you'll understand why after one afternoon. You order a coffee, it arrives on a small silver tray with a glass of water, and then you're left alone for as long as you like. Marble tables, newspapers on wooden holders, waiters in black: it's the perfect setting for a first conversation.

Café Central has the most famous interior and usually a queue. Café Sperl, open since 1880, has billiard tables and a wonderfully worn charm, while Café Prückel on the Ringstrasse has a 1950s look and plenty of space.

Tip: Order a Melange (similar to a cappuccino) or a Verlängerter (an espresso topped up with hot water) and share a slice of cake. If you want the bill, catch the waiter's eye and say "Zahlen, bitte". Settle the Sacher versus Demel debate on a later date.

• Budgetfree
• Best forfirst date, early summer
• Time1 hour
• WhereVolksgarten, between the Hofburg and the Burgtheater

The Volksgarten is a formal park in the middle of the city, right next to the Hofburg, and its rose garden has thousands of bushes in hundreds of varieties. From late May into June it's at its best. There's a small Greek-style temple in the middle and benches everywhere, which makes it an easy, central and very pretty place for a first walk.

Tip: Continue through the Heldenplatz to the Burggarten, where the Palmenhaus, a glass Jugendstil greenhouse, has a café with a terrace. If the date goes well, the old town is right there.

• Budgetlow
• Best forfirst date, foodies
• Time2 hours
• WhereOttakring, 16th district

Forget the tourist crowds for an afternoon. The Brunnenmarkt in Ottakring is one of Vienna's biggest street markets, with stalls selling fruit, vegetables, spices, bread and snacks, run by vendors with roots all over the world. At its end, Yppenplatz is a lively square with cafés and outdoor tables, a favorite with locals in the warmer months.

Tip: Go on a Saturday morning when the market is busiest and there's a small farmers market on Yppenplatz too. Remember that most markets and shops in Vienna are closed on Sundays.

• Budgetlow to medium
• Best forsecond date, relaxed
• Timeevening
• WhereNussdorf, Grinzing, Neustift am Walde, Stammersdorf

Vienna is one of the few big cities with serious vineyards inside its city limits, and a Heuriger is where you taste the results. Traditionally, winemakers are allowed to serve their own wine in their own taverns, and a bundle of pine branches over the door means they're open. Inside you'll find wooden tables, a garden, wine by the glass or in a jug and a buffet where you pick cold cuts, cheese, spreads like Liptauer and warm dishes.

Try a Gemischter Satz, a Viennese white wine made from several grape varieties grown together in one vineyard, or a G'spritzter, white wine mixed with sparkling water. Grinzing is the most famous area and the most touristy. Nussdorf and Neustift am Walde feel more local, and so does Stammersdorf on the other side of the Danube.

Tip: In late September, the city usually holds the Wiener Weinwandertag, a free walking day through the vineyards with stands along the way. Many Heurigen open only on certain weeks, so check before you go.

• Budgetfree
• Best foractive, third date
• Timehalf a day
• Wherefrom Nussdorf to the Kahlenberg

Vienna has marked city hiking trails, the Stadtwanderwege, and the first one is a classic: it starts at the end of tram line D in Nussdorf and climbs through the vineyards to the Kahlenberg, a hill in the Vienna Woods. From the top you look across the whole city and the Danube. It's a few hours of walking, which gives you plenty of time to talk.

Tip: Combine it with the Heuriger idea: hike up in the afternoon and walk down to a wine tavern in Nussdorf or Grinzing for the evening. If you're short on time, buses run up to the Kahlenberg too.

• Budgetmedium to splurge
• Best forspecial occasion, winter
• Timeone evening plus a crash course
• WhereHofburg, Rathaus and other venues

From New Year's Eve until the end of carnival in February or March, Vienna holds its ball season, with balls organized by everyone from the coffee house owners to professional associations and universities. The Opera Ball is the famous one, but many others are easier to get into. Expect an opening ceremony, a live orchestra, a midnight quadrille and dancing until the early morning.

The dress code is formal: usually a long evening dress or a tuxedo, and some balls ask for a tailcoat. Many Viennese dance schools offer short crash courses for beginners before the season, which is a lovely date in itself.

Tip: Take a waltz class together a few weeks before. When you hear "Alles Walzer!" at the end of the opening, that's the signal for everyone to hit the dance floor. Afterwards, do as the locals do and grab a sausage at a Würstelstand in your ball clothes.

• Budgetlow
• Best forspontaneous, night
• Time20 minutes
• WhereAlbertinaplatz and all over the city

Sausage stands are a Viennese institution, open late and visited by everyone from students to people coming out of the opera. Order a Käsekrainer, a smoked sausage filled with cheese, with mustard and a slice of bread. It's not fancy, but standing at the counter together at midnight is the kind of moment that makes a date feel real.

Tip: The stands near the Albertina and the State Opera are especially fun after a concert. Ask for "süßer Senf" if you prefer sweet mustard.

• Budgetmedium
• Best forsecond date, culture lovers
• Timeevening
• WhereJosefsgasse, Josefstadt

Vienna's English Theatre was founded in 1963 and is often described as the oldest English-language theater in continental Europe. It shows plays and musicals in English, with touring and local casts, in a pretty theater in the 8th district. For expats it's a relaxed way into Vienna's theater culture without worrying about missing jokes.

Tip: The Josefstadt has plenty of cozy restaurants and cafés for dinner afterwards. Look at the program early, since popular shows sell out.

• Budgetlow
• Best forrainy day, film lovers
• Time2 hours
• WhereOpernring, near the State Opera

The Third Man, the 1949 film noir with Orson Welles, was shot in postwar Vienna and is still one of the best films about the city. The Burg Kino on the Ringstrasse has been screening it in English for years, usually several times a week. Watch it together, then go and find the locations: the Giant Ferris Wheel, the old town squares, the cobblestones.

Tip: Many cinemas in Vienna show films in their original language. Look for OV (original version) or OmU (original with German subtitles) on the program.

• Budgetlow to splurge
• Best forspecial occasion, music lovers
• Timeevening
• WhereVienna State Opera, Musikverein

Vienna is a music city, and you don't need to spend a fortune to hear it. The State Opera sells standing room tickets for many performances, a tradition that lets students and locals watch from the back of the house. For a real occasion, the Golden Hall of the Musikverein, home of the Vienna Philharmonic's New Year's Concert, is one of the most beautiful concert halls in the world.

Tip: Skip the people in Mozart costumes near St. Stephen's selling concert tickets. Book directly on the official websites instead. Standing room rules change, so check how tickets are sold before you go.

• Budgetlow to medium
• Best forromantic, evening
• Time2 hours
• WherePrater, 2nd district

The Wiener Riesenrad has been turning since 1897, and its red wooden cabins move slowly enough for a proper view over the city. It's famous from The Third Man, and a ride at dusk is one of Vienna's most romantic small moments. Around it, the Wurstelprater amusement park is free to enter, with rides you pay for one at a time.

Tip: Afterwards, walk or cycle down the Prater Hauptallee, a long, straight avenue lined with chestnut trees. It leads to the Lusthaus, an old pavilion with a café, and it's lovely in spring and fall.

• Budgetmedium
• Best forromantic, rainy day
• Time2 hours
• WhereUpper Belvedere, 3rd district

Gustav Klimt's The Kiss hangs in the Upper Belvedere, a baroque palace with the largest collection of Klimt paintings in the world. Seeing it in person, with all that gold, is different from any poster. Afterwards, walk down through the formal gardens to the Lower Belvedere, with the city skyline in front of you.

Tip: Go early or late in the day to avoid the biggest crowds in front of The Kiss. If you prefer Egon Schiele, the Leopold Museum in the MuseumsQuartier has the largest collection of his work.

• Budgetmedium
• Best forrainy day, second date
• Time2 hours
• WhereAlbertinaplatz, behind the State Opera

The Albertina sits on top of an old city wall bastion right behind the State Opera. Inside there's a strong permanent collection of modern art, from Monet to Picasso, and changing exhibitions. Outside, the terrace gives you a view across to the Opera and down onto the old town streets, a classic Vienna photo without needing a ticket.

Tip: See the art first, then meet on the terrace at dusk. You're a few steps from Café Sacher and the Würstelstand at Albertinaplatz, so dessert can go either way.

• Budgetfree to low
• Best forfirst date, summer
• Timeevening
• WhereDonaukanal, between Schwedenplatz and Augarten Bridge

The Danube Canal runs along the edge of the old town and turns into an outdoor living room in summer. The walls along the water are covered in street art that changes constantly, and seasonal bars with deck chairs and sand pop up along the banks. It's casual, local and the easiest summer first date in the city.

Tip: Walk from Schwedenplatz towards the Augarten Bridge and look at the murals as you go. Bring a light jacket, as it gets cooler by the water at night.

• Budgetlow
• Best forsummer, active
• Timehalf a day
• WhereAlte Donau, 22nd district

The Old Danube is a former arm of the river that's now a calm lake surrounded by trees and small beaches. You can rent a rowing boat, a pedal boat or an electric boat and drift around for an hour, or swim at the Gänsehäufel, a big public lido on an island in the lake. It's easy to reach with the U1 subway and feels like a holiday.

Tip: Go on a weekday afternoon for the calmest water. Pack snacks and finish with a sunset drink at one of the waterside restaurants.

• Budgetlow
• Best forwinter, cozy
• Timeevening
• WhereSpittelberg, Altes AKH, Karlsplatz, Schönbrunn, Rathausplatz

From mid-November until just before Christmas, Vienna is full of Christmas markets, and each one has its own feel. Rathausplatz is the big, bright one. Spittelberg winds through narrow Biedermeier lanes, the courtyard of the Altes AKH is popular with students, Karlsplatz focuses on arts and crafts and Schönbrunn has the palace as its backdrop.

Two things to know: Punsch is a hot, sweet, often rum-based drink in many flavors, while Glühwein is mulled wine. Your drink comes in a mug, called a Häferl, and you pay a deposit for it. Return it to get the money back, or keep it as a souvenir of the date.

Tip: Choose two markets for one evening and compare. Spittelberg is especially romantic, and from there it's a short walk to the MuseumsQuartier.

• Budgetlow to medium
• Best forwinter, playful
• Time2 hours
• WhereRathausplatz, in front of City Hall

After the Christmas market ends, Rathausplatz turns into the Wiener Eistraum, a large ice rink with paths that wind through the park in front of the neo-Gothic City Hall. It usually runs from January into early March, with lights and music in the evenings. Holding hands is practically mandatory for balance.

Tip: Rent skates on site if you don't have any. Go on a weeknight evening, when the lights look best and it's less crowded than on weekends.