Inevitably, dozens of events typically take place each day in Vienna. Local listings can overwhelm you, though, so here are some annual events and festivals of particular interest to visitors (listed by month), plus current highlights.
- See also: What to do in Vienna
Note: Vienna has reopened, but there may be knock-on effects for concerts, festivals etc.. So still consider all the suggestions below as theoretical and check with the official homepages for up-to-date info.
Selected events on now(ish)
Cultural, sporting, or recreational-type events are now allowed again in Vienna. So I can start highlighting a few picks. For example:
- Various open-air film-based fun for you:
- The huge Film Festival on the Rathausplatz runs daily from July 3rd to September 4th
- The Frameout cinema festival runs July 9th to August 28th (Fridays & Saturdays)
- The dotdotdot film festival has showings from July 25th to August 24th (Sundays to Tuesdays)
- Visit the Ottakringer Bierfest for a cold beer from July 1st to September 3rd (closed Sundays)
- The Afrika Tage Festival arrives on the Donauinsel from July 16th to August 2nd with its music, marketplace, food, drink, and more
- The Calle Libre festival brings its contemporary and street art to Vienna (August 2nd to 7th)
- For more suggestions, try the What to do in July article
Selected exhibition tips…
Vienna has various excellent exhibitions running at any one time and I can’t go to every single one. But here some current suggestions for you:
- I like the look of the landscapes exhibition at the Albertina, full of masterpieces from Dürer, Rembrandt, Cézanne and others (until August 8th). While there, consider viewing the powerful stark colours of Jakob Gasteiger, too (until August 18th)
- The one-room Haydn – Mozart – Beethoven exhibition (until Jan 30, 2022) at the Mozarthaus. The simple display of their last-ever pieces of written music left quite an impression on me
- The Kunst Haus Wien has a retrospective of works by the world-famous photographer Elfie Semotan (until August 29th)
- The Women Artists of the Wiener Werkstätte exhibition at the MAK fills a neglected historical hole (until October 3rd)
- The Kunsthistorisches Museum has its major summer exhibition: Higher Powers (until August 15th)
- For something a little different, consider a trip to the Technical Museum for their Artificial Intelligence exhibition (until summer 2022)
Annual events and festivals
These should take place each year but do check the linked individual and (especially) the monthly articles, since events have shifted around the calendar in response to COVID-related postponements.
January
(For dates, details and more activities and ideas, see the full guide to January 2022.)
- The 1st of January is, of course, the date of the world-famous New Year’s Concert
- You might catch the final days of the New Year markets at the beginning of the month
- The middle of January typically brews up the Vienna Coffee Festival
- Then it’s time to slap on your skates for the Vienna Ice World, which usually runs until early March
February
(For more tips on seasonal activities, try the February 2022 guide.)
- Sandwiched innocently between the holiday season and spring, February has few major annual events of note
- January’s Ice World continues through the month, though. And there’s the famous Opernball, of course
- The end of the month has the International Orchid Show
March
(See the full March 2022 guide for all details and more thoughts on what you might do in the month.)
- The Easter markets normally start up in March, depending on when Easter actually falls. In 2022, they may just squeeze into the end of the month. See, for example, the one at Schönbrunn Palace
- There’s also the Vinyl & Music festival at the city’s main brewery and the Blues Spring Festival typically starts up at the end of March
- If you prefer your words spoken, rather than sung, then there’s the Festival du Film Francophone (the French-language movie festival)
- Other fairs and festivals include the Bread Festival at the Marx Halle, the Foto Wien photography festival, and the Art Vienna contemporary art fair
April
(For more tips, exhibition suggestions and outdoor activities, try the full April 2022 guide.)
- The Easter markets may continue (or start) in April, which is when most of the Vienna Blues Spring music festival actually takes place. Another feast of music this month is the two-day Electric Spring event in the Museumsquartier
- April also has one of the early food festivals: the Styrian Spring festival. For nourishment of the more visual kind, try the Jewish Film Festival.
- If you want to work off the calories after all those Styrian delights, then the Vienna marathon is usually later in the same month, as is the Argus Bike Festival
May
(For dates, more information, and even more suggested things to do, see the complete May 2022 guide.)
This is the month when music and food lovers come into their own.
- On the music front, you have the Fest der Freude, a free concert on Heldenplatz to celebrate the anniversary of the liberation of the city in WWII
- Music also appears at many of the food and drink festivals:
- The Genuss Festival, a three-day festival in the Stadtpark
- The open day at the city-owned Cobenzl winery
- The spring edition of the Craft Beer Festival
- The Burgenland Kultinarium
- The Vienna Wine Fest
- The Waldviertelpur festival
- The Steffl Kirtag
- The Vienna Beer Festival
- And the European Street Food festival
The events of May give you a big hint as to what Vienna is really all about: food, drink & music.
For more culture, however, try the Vienna Shorts film festival or the Donaukanaltreiben riverside urban festival.
June
(Find out more about June events, including dates, using the broader June 2022 guide.)
- The month usually starts with the military old-timer meet at On Wheels and Tracks
- Two international music festivals pop up in June – the Vienna Jazz Festival and the Donauinselfest. The latter is Europe’s largest free open-air festival. Music also features at the Südwind Street Festival
- Two world-class orchestras perform for free:
- The famous Summer Night classical concert in the gardens of Schönbrunn Palace with the Wiener Philharmoniker
- The Wiener Symphoniker appear at the MQ open-air concert
- The spring/summer edition of Fesch’Markt Vienna lets you sample the creative output of independent designers and artists
- The Long Night of the Churches invites you into Christian institutions for all sorts of activities, tours, entertainments, and more
July
(For other activity tips and more detailed suggestions, try the comprehensive July 2021 guide.)
We have finally emerged from COVID event bans, but you may still find some postponements or cancellations affecting the below due to knock-on effects of the last year. The authorities expect even further relaxation of COVID-related rules from July 22nd.
- The big July event is the Rathaus Film Festival, with daily public viewings of concerts and performances from various genres of music on the square in front of the Rathaus
- Talking music, June’s Jazz Festival usually continues through the early part of the month, too. And there’s more music in July:
- Enjoy the live kind at the end of the month with Popfest Wien
- Enjoy the DJ kind at the Lichterfest festival of light on the Old Danube
- Enjoy the live festival kind at the Afrika Tage African festival, where food, music, and art comes together for almost 3 weeks
- More on the food and drink front with…
- The Ottakringer Beer Festival, if you like a beer or three
- And if mead’s more your thing, there’s always the Montur & Pulverdampf medieval festival
- July typically also sees the start of the Frameout open-air cinema season at the MuseumsQuartier and the dotdotdot film festival at the folk museum
August
(Discover a whole slew of ideas for what to do this month in the full August 2021 guide.)
Hopefully, we’ll be back to full event normality in August…
- Many of July’s film and other festivals carry on through August. And another international open-air cinema usually starts up at Belvedere Palace, too, with their Kino im Kammergarten programme
- Jump from classic to contemporary: numerous classic cars drive around the Ring at the Vienna Old Timer Parade, while the month also hosts the Calle Libre street art festival. For (live) modern music, try the Gürtel Nightwalk
September
(For more suggestions, details, and dates, browse the main September 2021 guide; many events from earlier in the year have shifted to September.)
- The food, drink, film, and music theme common to Vienna dominates the month with, for example:
- The Vienna Harvest Festival (Erntedankfest)
- The Wiener Wiesn Fest (like Munich’s Oktoberfest)
- The Liquid Market cocktail festival, if you like a cocktail or three
- The international Buskers Festival
- The family-friendly Streetlife Festival
- …and the fantastical /slash film festival
- The last Sunday in September is European Heritage Day, when various historical buildings open their doors to the public (for free). The same concept applies at Open House Wien, but with a focus on newer constructions
- And the modern flavour continues at the…
- Waves Vienna music festival
- Vienna Design Week
- If you’re in need of a drink after all that, try the Rum and Gin festivals
October
(Take a peek at the October 2021 guide for more details and further tips and suggestions.)
- The Wiesen Fest from September continues into October, when you can also sample the best of Vienna’s museal treasures at the Long Night of Museums
- Lovers of good photography and design should find their way to…
- The Vienna Design Week (covering numerous events and locations)
- The Blickfang fair
- The Photo+Adventure fair
- If you prefer your design in interactive pixel form, then enjoy free entry to Game City on the Rathausplatz
- As in many months, film features strongly in October, too:
- The city celebrates a different type of music to the usual classics with Hollywood in Vienna
- And the cinematic theme continues with the start of the prestigious international film festival, the Viennale
- For both ends of the modern music spectrum, consider:
- The classical music festival, Wien Modern, begins at the very end of October
- Contemporary music of a different type at the Indie Label Week
- Or just get some fresh air: late October sees the start of the open-air ice skating season
November
(Call up the November 2021 guide for more information on the above, as well as tips on other activities and art exhibitions, etc.)
- Both the Viennale and Wien Modern normally carry through into November
- The month’s main claim to fame is the start of the Christmas season, notably the wonderful Advent markets, the lights, outdoor ice skating, and early signs of gift-buying panic
- To pick up some gifts of a particularly artistic nature, try:
- The ART&ANTIQUE fair at the Hofburg
- The Fesch’Markt autumn/winter edition design market
- The Weihnachtsquartier design exhibition and market
- Or forget the season and immerse yourself…
- …in the world of science fiction, fantasy and comics at Vienna Comic Con
- …in a glass of beer at the autumn edition of the Craft Beer Festival
December
(For all the details and a few more tips, check out the December 2021 guide.)
You’ll be surprised to learn that seasonal themes tend to dominate in December, notably…
- The Christmas markets, which continue through until December 25th, and often beyond in the form of New Year’s markets
- Many people also celebrate New Year’s Eve in Vienna along the Silvesterpfad. The final two days of the year feature the Vienna Philharmonic’s New Year concert previews
THE END (of the year and article).