Central Europe
Imperial palaces, coffee houses, and the Alps out the window.
Austria is the polished heart of old Europe — Habsburg palaces, concert halls and coffee houses in the cities, and some of the continent's most jaw-dropping mountains an hour away. Vienna is the grand capital of music and cake, endlessly liveable; Salzburg and the lakes and peaks of the Tyrol are the storybook Austria of the postcards. Refined, orderly and not cheap, but easy to love and effortless to travel.
What things cost: Austria is expensive by Central European standards — closer to Germany than to its eastern neighbours. The coffee-house hour is a bargain and standing-room opera tickets cost a few euros, but rooms and restaurants are dear. When a zone below says 'low', that still means low for Austria, not cheap.
Sometimes the event picks the city for you.
Vienna does Christmas markets better than almost anywhere — the grand one on Rathausplatz, the elegant Spittelberg lanes, the palace markets at Schönbrunn and Belvedere, all mulled wine, punsch and crafts under the lights. Peak Vienna.
Vienna · Rathausplatz & citywide
The Vienna Philharmonic's world-famous concert of Strauss waltzes and polkas in the golden Musikverein, beamed live to 90-odd countries on New Year's morning. Tickets are near-impossible, but the whole city is in festive mood — and there's a big-screen relay.
Vienna · The Musikverein
A festival celebrating the city's favourite son — Mozart Week, held each January around his birthday (27 January), when top orchestras, conductors and soloists perform his works in Salzburg's grand concert halls in an intense, high-quality classical celebration. A wonderful time for music lovers to hear Mozart performed at the highest level in his home city, in the quiet, atmospheric depths of winter. Combine it with the snowy old town for a magical visit. A refined, musical highlight of the calendar. Exquisite.
Salzburg · Concert halls across the city
The grandest night of Vienna's ball season — the State Opera cleared of seats and turned into a glittering ballroom of gowns, tails and debutantes waltzing under the chandeliers. The peak of a winter of some 450 balls across the city.
Vienna · The State Opera
Vienna's premier festival of contemporary theatre, dance and performance — five weeks of ambitious international work across the city's stages, opening with a free concert on the City Hall square. The cultural high point of the year.
Vienna · Citywide
Europe's biggest free open-air music festival — three days and dozens of stages strung along the Danube Island, drawing millions over the weekend. Completely free, gloriously chaotic, and a very Viennese summer institution.
Vienna · The Donauinsel
