Time to pack out the Austrian folkwear, grab a seat on a wooden bench, order a local wine, and feast on meals with alarmingly long names. And all in a Viennese suburb at the Neustifter Kirtag.
- Hugely popular event in one of Vienna’s wine-growing areas
- Long line of market booths and food & drink stalls
- Route flanked by wine taverns
- Many visitors wear traditional Austrian garb
- 2025 dates: TBA (was Aug 22-25 in 2024)
- Book a food or drink experience* in Vienna
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Wine, music, and more
(One of several wine taverns on the route)
Neustift am Walde is a one-time village and now suburb of Vienna in the well-to-do 19th district. Known particularly for its Heuriger wine taverns, the area also hosts the popular annual Kirtag fair.
Thousands of people enjoy this traditional street festival that dates back through the centuries.
The story goes that sometime in the mid 1700s, local wine growers sent a delegation to the empress of the time (Maria Theresa) requesting an easing of the tax burden following a notably bad harvest.
Apparently, Maria Theresa looked favourably on the request but under the condition that Neustift should hold an annual Kirtag (a kind of parish fair).
And so a tradition was born, which includes, for example, the daily procession of a Hauerkrone (a crown of produce initially presented to the empress as a gift of supplication and thanks).
If you’re understandably confused by the concept of a city having wine-growing areas, Vienna struck climatic and geological gold thanks to its location and suburban foothills: a number of vineyards thrive here.
Kirtag?
So what exactly do you get at the Neustifter Kirtag?
For four days, a roughly 650m stretch of suburban road turns into a pedestrianised market and gastronomy mile.
Stands line the way selling all the sorts of products you might expect at a Viennese street market. Many specialise in traditional food, snacks and drink. You might also come across the occasional small funfair ride or booth.
(The Hauerkrone on its journey through the Kirtag)
Expect plenty of sausages, Langos, hot dogs, Lebkuchen, chocolate-covered fruit, Schnapps, and other such delights familiar from a visit to the Vienna Christmas markets.
The Kirtag route also takes you past several Heuriger, whose wooden tables and benches spill out into the warm August evening.
These taverns typically specialise in local wines and rustic Austrian fare updated for the 21st century. On our visit, most had live music playing, too.
All the fun has a traditional thread running through it. And a large number of guests dress for the occasion: expect to see huge numbers of Lederhosen (leather breeches) and Dirndl (low neckline dresses) more often associated with Austria’s alpine regions.
Dates, tickets & tips
I don’t have details yet for the 2025 edition but the wine traditionally flows across an August weekend after the feast day of St. Rochus. Last time out, dates were August 22nd to 25th. You don’t need a ticket to walk through the festival.
Things may be less busy during the day, but Saturday evening was absolutely packed on our visit, with the party atmosphere growing with each passing hour.
The organisers suggest over 100,000 people attend across the four days. (To my shame, I had no idea just how big and popular the event is.)
You might want to go during the day to peruse the street booths, then grab a free spot at a wine tavern late afternoon / early evening before things get too frantic. Assuming they’re not already reserved.
For a less intense wine-related experience away from the summer heat, consider the tour of the production and wine cellars over at the Schlumberger sparkling wine premises. (We enjoyed it.)
How to get to the Kirtag
You’re out in the suburbs now, so a taxi is a strong option here. We got there by taking the S45 city train to Krottenbachstraße, then the 35A bus from outside the station up to one end of the Kirtag (Neustift / Agnesgasse stop).
You can catch the 35A elsewhere, for example at the U6 subway station Nußdorfer Straße,
The S45 connects to the subway network, for example, at Hütteldorf (U4 line), Ottakring (U3), Heiligenstadt (U4) and Handelskai (U6).
The transport authorities (Wiener Linien) always do a grand job at big events of shortening intervals and managing people, but note that the bus up was packed at 6pm on the Saturday we went.
We took the same return route, but long lines of taxis were also available at the Rathstraße end of the Kirtag.
Address: ca. Rathstraße 1 along to Neustift am Walde 99 | Website