What to do in April

Now, April is quite a decent time to visit Vienna.

Why?

Well, spring should definitely have sprung. So you have a fair chance of avoiding the cold. Equally, it’s not high summer, and nobody has hung up Christmas lights. So the city’s busy, but not peak busy. Except around Easter (as in 2025).

All of which makes April as good as March, but with a higher probability of sun.

• Book a concert experience* for April
• See also:
  • This week’s event tips
  • March & May
  • Find April accommodation

Top April activities in 2025

So what might you do beyond the usual year-round tours, museums, concerts, and other delights that Vienna has to offer the enthusiastic visitor?

My quick tip

I’ve been visiting a few of the light classical concerts put on primarily for visitors to Vienna. A nice way to spend the evening, perhaps with something fine to eat before or after.

I enjoyed two concerts in baroque churches, for example: the Classic Ensemble Vienna in the Peterskirche and Orchester 1756 in the Karlskirche.

Easter markets

(Easter market on the Freyung)

Easter in Vienna does not have the same impact on the city as the Advent period, but it has its traditions.

Most importantly, the season brings the Easter markets. These traditionally begin opening around two to three weeks before the holiday weekend.

So with Easter Sunday on April 20th in 2025, stalls will start appearing in late March. They tend to close more or less at the end of the Easter holiday break.

The markets offer a colourful mix of arts, crafts, food, and drink. This includes more decorative eggs than you can lay in a century and enough Austrian delicacies to keep your cholesterol and sugar levels high throughout your stay.

The main venues are Schönbrunn, the Freyung and Am Hof. All three are lovely, but Schönbrunn has perhaps the most glorious setting in the courtyard of the huge Habsburg palace.

Exhibitions in April 2025

(The Albertina is always a good address for top exhibitions)

The last three Aprils had some astonishing exhibitions, so I expect the 2025 programme to repeat that level of quality.

Top tip

Insider tip

Selected Highlights

In art & design…

• The big exhibition over at Lower Belvedere takes a closer look at the methods of the one and only Gustav Klimt. They also present highlights of Slovenian painting from between two auspicious dates: 1848 and 1918

• The fantastic photos of Anton Corbijn fill the gallery walls at the Kunstforum Wien

• We have a lovely exhibition around Arcimboldo, Bruegel, Bassano and others at the Kunsthistorisches Museum

• An exhibition of drawings on coloured paper takes on a different hue when you realise it’s at the Albertina and features the work of renaissance giants like Albrecht Dürer and Leonardo da Vinci

• While at the Albertina, discover the parallels between Matthew Wong and Vincent van Gogh in Painting as a Last Resort, view a solo exhibition for Jenny Saville, and peruse a new photo exhibition (from April 4th) featuring the work of Francesca Woodman

• Egon Schiele’s works and life in the five years leading up to his death in 1918 form the focus of Times of Change at the Leopold Museum. From April 10th, pop back to an earlier historical era and enjoy the art of the Biedermeier

• Immerse yourself in the treasures of the Viehof Collection of contemporary art over at the Albertina Modern from April 11th. Also enjoy the final days (until April 21st) of the True Colors exhibition on the development of colour photography; it features numerous vintage photos by way of illustration

• April 11th sees the start of Experiment Expressionism at the Heidi Horten Collection with a genre-spanning look at that artistic style that even includes silent film

• Discover the very best of contemporary Austrian design in the Aut Now exhibition at the MAK and enjoy one of the more colourful designers of the Wiener Moderne: Dagobert Peche

• mumok takes us back in time for a look at the art of the 60s and some of the events that drove art’s (r)evolution, but also get introspective about the 1980s

• The Wien Museum MUSA treads in similar artistic times with a look at Viennese Realism after 1950

History, culture & the rest…

• The Wien Museum finishes its look at the diverse and cosmopolitan nature of Vienna through the ages: the Mixed exhibition runs until April 20th. But from April 10th, discover how international culture helped build a renewed domestic version in the years following World War II

• Your last chance to see indigenous art from Brazil over at the Weltmuseum (until April 21st), but they continue with an exploration of the influence of the Qur’an on European thought and a deep look at the sociocultural history and influence of the trousers

• 100 years of radio culture and technological evolution gets exhibition treatment over at the Technisches Museum

• 100 years of Austrian history features in photo form over in the state hall of the National Library

• The Jewish Museum brings its exhibition around Angst (Fear) to an end (until April 27th) and starts with an exhibition exploring perspectives on God (from April 2nd)

• Finally, the celebratory Strauss year continues, and the Theatermuseum has an exhibition dedicated to the life and works of the composer

For full exhibition options, consult the broader exhibition listings.

Bonus art events

• The Klima Biennale took place for the first time in 2024 with its events and exhibitions around climate change and a strong contemporary art element flowing through proceedings. As the name suggests, the next one is, however, in 2026 (April 9th to May 10th)

• And the WAMP design market has a spring edition in the MuseumsQuartier (provisionally April 12th)

Enjoy some food & drink

(Viennese wine has an excellent reputation)

As nature pushes layers of green over the country, so the food and drink festivals start up in earnest. April normally brings:

• The Vienna Whisky Festival (April 4th and 5th), although the venue is our main brewery

• The spring edition of the Super Bier Fest (provisionally April 11th and 12th with a new format as Beer Culture Days)

• Finally, the city-owned Cobenzl winery has an open day (2025 dates TBA), which is free. Though you do have to pay if you want to try some of the prize-winning wines. The winery sits on a hill with lovely views of the city

Fandoms, photos, music & film

On the fandom front:

• The Fantasy Con (April 12th to 13th) is a small event with an artist alley, readings, music and similar

On the photos front:

• The Vienna Vintage Photo Fair (April 6th) has free entry and features local and international specialist vendors, collectors and related institutions with an array of historical photographs to view (and buy)

(The Reigen hosts most of the Vienna Blues Spring gigs)

On the music front:

The Vienna concert season is in full swing in April, of course, but if you fancy something a little different…

• The Vienna Blues Spring continues throughout April and features performances from both local and international musicians…with a focus on (guess?) blues

• The wean hean festival celebrates the Viennese song tradition (April 26th to May 18th)

• The Salam Music & Arts festival (March 28th to April 6th) offers a blend of music and other artistic expressions from Arabic regions

On the movie front:

• The Festival du Film Francophone (March 26th to April 10th) does what it says on the label

• The Red Lotus festival (April 24th to 27th) showcases the work of Asian filmmakers

Enjoy the running (and cycling)

(The Argus Bike Festival is not just for cycling enthusiasts)

April hosts the weekend of the Vienna marathon (April 6th), an international event with added kudos: part of the course for the race is the same stretch of road where Eliud Kipchoge became the first human to run the marathon distance in under two hours (at the INEOS 1:59 Challenge).

The month also wears a cycling helmet. The Argus Bike Festival (April 12th and 13th) is a lovely two-day event with information stands, bike-related exhibitors and lots of two-wheeled show action.

Seasonal tip(s)

Enjoy the April sun

(The Stadtpark)

Unlike in March, you’re more likely to find flowers peeping up from Vienna’s numerous parks and gardens in April (and enough sun to enjoy them).

If you want to enjoy the spring verdure on the trees and/or fruit tree blossom, then head for places like:

• The Lainzer Tiergarten: an extensive nature protection area with wild boar and more (the lovely Hermesvilla is here, once a summerhouse for Empress Elisabeth)

• The Vienna Woods: lots of cycle paths and hiking trails through the hills and forests that surround Vienna’s west

• The Stadtpark park: in the centre and featuring famous musician memorials (look for Strauss, in particular)

• The Prater park: an 11km hiking trail that starts and ends in an area rich with restaurants and entertainments

• Of course, don’t forget the sculpted gardens attached to the various palaces, too, such as at Schönbrunn, Belvedere or the Volksgarten next to the Hofburg. You’ll see these as you pass through the usual sightseeing areas, anyway

Several protected or private areas usually open up in full to the public end of March. For example:

• The Cobenzl city farm: just as it says on the label. Kids can get up close to farm animals

• Hirschstetten: part of the city’s horticultural nursery complex. They’ve turned it into a landscaped botanical gardens, with a palm house and a fair few birds and animals in there, too. It’s a bit of a secret and off the usual tourist trails. Oh, and it’s free

Go for an ice cream

(One of the more popular parlours is Zanoni & Zanoni on Lugeck square close to Stephansdom cathedral)

If that sounds banal, it’s not meant to. The local ice cream season actually begins sometime in March, and we’re not talking about lollipops in the freezer aisle of the supermarket.

Vienna hosts many remarkably high-quality ice cream parlours, so fill a cone or cup with your choice of flavours. Or take a seat and enjoy something off an extensive ice cream menu that might set your diet back a few weeks. Oh, and vegan options are usually available.

Incidentally, the official Austrian ice cream flavour of the year for 2024 was coffee (you can’t get more Viennese than that). We’ll see what flavour 2025 brings.