Vienna’s Ringstrasse Project walking tour with a historian

Explore past and present of Vienna's Ringstrasse on this 3-hour walking tour.

The ring-shaped boulevard known as the Ringstrasse was originally announced in 1857 to show off Vienna's wealth and power to the modern world by imitating the grand avenues and sweeping vistas of 19th-century Paris and Berlin.

Your guide will take you along this marvelous boulevard and help you explore its political and philosophical intricacies. You'll start in front of the impressive City Hall (Rathaus), an important landmark along the Ring. Many public buildings were built for the project and you'll learn about their individual styles and roles. Your guide will describe the difficulties faced in funding its construction, with hesitant long term investors and well-established Viennese nobility suspicious of potential nouveau riche neighbors.

Despite these pitfalls, the Ring became an important place to see, and be seen, in Vienna. People visited it often after its completion, prompting the construction of several cafes and restaurants along the boulevard. Your guide will take you to Cafe Schwarzenberg to show you the thriving cafe culture of late 19th-century Vienna.

Note: This tour can also be booked as a children’s family tour where your guide focuses on the symbols on various buildings and on everyday life in Vienna around 1900.