Viennese Prater - Wiener Prater - Vienna - TravBuddy

The Viennese Prater, together with its most imposing attraction, the Giant Ferris Wheel, is one of the must-sees of Vienna. Tired of museums, guides and the never-ending souvenir shops? Then come see a world which still keeps a bit of the World-Fair charm. You could compare it to a giant pier, where you'll still find Piggy-Racing, Fortune-Telling machines and Electrical Boats. It's not glitzy, but it's safe and open all-year-round, even at night. The entrance has been recently rebuilt and, among the "classical" features is a very nice Prater Museum (at the feet of the Ferris Wheel) and a Miniature Railway, which is pulled by Steam Engines every Sunday

The Vienna Volksprater is an amusement park of 250 diffrent attractions from ferris wheels to ghost trains.

The Volksprater was in 1987 used as a set for the James Bond movie "The Living Daylights" staring Thimothy Dalton and Maryam D'abo. The scene where they share a coach in the Wiener Risenrad ferris wheel is one of my faveorite movie scenes and I felt that the ride it self looked so spectacular that this was my MUST DO experience dureing my one day vienna stay.

The ferris wheel takes you 64,75 meters above the ground, and whats so special about this ferris wheel is that you ride in big coaches instead of the small coaches that is otherweise charactaristic to ferris wheels. This means you get the view from a lot more angels. Also if you have your big vallet with you you can book a coach for an evening dinner which must be an amazeing experience.

The Risenrad is deffinately not the worlds highest ferriswheel but it 1897 and has more history and charm to it then any other ferris wheel so when in Vienna dont ever cheat yourself of the ride.

Walking around the Volksprater park is fun and relaxing - it's like one big circus in the middle of the big city - however it is also (at least at daytime) a precious sanctuary from the noise, pollution and chaotic trafic that characterises a city like Vienna.

The best way to get to the Volksprater Park is to take the underground line U1 to Praterstein station and walk 5-10 min. to the entrance. Once you've exited the station just follow the ferris wheel you can't aviod seeing it.

The Viennese Prater was once a hunting area for the Austria emperors. 1766 Jospeh II. dedicated the park to the Viennese people. This was the start for one of the oldest amusement park.

The Prater itself is a wonderful place for Vienna, at the beginning you ll find the amusement park. After it you have a lot space for sport and to quite places to relax.

Two attractions you should visit

The Riesenrad is one of Vienna’s famous sights is a giant ferries wheel at the entrance of the Prater amusement park in Vienna, Austria. It was one of the earliest Ferris wheels, erected in 1897 to celebrate Emperor Franz Josef I's golden Jubilee. The designer was an Englishman, Walter Bassett, which explains why the wheel's diameter is a round number in Imperial units - 200 feet (approximately 61 m). The Riesenrad is now one of Vienna's most popular tourist attractions, and symbolises the city for many people.

You should definitely have a look to the "Republic Kugelmugel" which is located at the right side of the amusement park. (2 minutes from the Ferris wheel). You will find a description telling you what’s happened in 1984 but it’s only available in German. Here what’s it about (parts copied from wikipedia)

Kugelmugel is a micro nation located in the Prater. The Republic of Kugelmugel declared independence in 1984, after disputes between artist Edwin Lipburger and Austrian authorities over building permits for the ball-shaped house. The house is enclosed by a barbed-wire fence and is the only address within the proclaimed Republic. The artist refused to pay taxes to the Austrian government and began to print his own stamps, for which he received a prison sentence in court. Only a pardon by the Austrian President saved him from going to jail. Kugelmugel has since become a tourist attraction in Vienna due to its unique history and architecture. Roughly translated, Kugelmugel means "ball hill".

The Entry into the Prater is free to the public, but you have to pay for the rides. Prices vary from 1 to 10 Euro depending on the attraction.