Bright lights across the lake? Not something you’d associate with Vienna. Except in summer, when the Lichterlfest (Festival of Light) takes place on the Alte Donau.
- Venetian atmosphere on an old arm of the Danube river
- Lighted boats and Chinese lanterns
- 2026 dates: Aug 1 from early evening
- See also:
A watery Festival of Light
(Previous years also had a firework display; press photo courtesy of and © Arbeitsgemeinschaft “Die Schöne Alte Donau”)
Vienna is a surprisingly water-filled city. It helps to be built on the banks of the mighty Danube. And it also helps that the river used to shift position every now and then, creating new channels.
The Danube’s capricious nature and engineering efforts to tame this beast of a waterway left Vienna with a couple of excellent recreational areas that mimic lakes and beachfronts.
One of these areas is the Alte Donau (“Old Danube”), a self-contained 1.6km2 stretch of water with boats for hire and other water sports, lakeside bars & restaurants, and popular public bathing areas. And it hosts a Lichterlfest (Festival of Light) most years.
On a balmy (hopefully) evening in late July or early August, scores of boats, gondolas and decorated rafts head out onto the water with lamps and light chains glowing to create an (almost) “sea” of light, helped by Chinese lanterns.
In some years, a proper firework display also rounds off the evening.
(View across the Alte Donau to the UN complex)
You can simply watch from the shore, hire a boat yourself or sit outside one of the bars or restaurants to enjoy the view (needless to say, you’ll need to reserve a boat or table early if you plan on participating directly or grabbing a good seat).
Dates, tickets & tips
The event took a break in 2025 but returns on August 1st in 2026 from the early evening. No tickets are required. Do check the weather on the day, though, in case of a forced postponement.
The fireworks skip 2026, so expect a more refined romantic atmosphere this year.
How to get to the festival
The Alte Donau is the green stretch of water marked in the map below.
The easiest way to get there is with the U1 subway, which crosses the city centre (at Karlsplatz, Stephansplatz and Schwedenplatz stations) and goes out to the Alte Donau station, which is slap bang in the middle of (guess?) the Alte Donau.
Once you’re there, you need to head southeast after you leave the station to see the area with the boats.
Address: Alte Donau, 1220 Vienna | Website