Lonely Planet Vienna

First, let me observe that I have never been to Vienna. Thus, I cannot comment on how accurate this volume is. Second, though, I would enjoy visiting this city at some point my life. I have always felt that it is one of the "magical" cities of Europe, from reading a number of works in which Vienna figures. The book begins by providing useful context for the reader. At the outset, we get a brief introduction to the city (more detail provided in a later section on history of the city). Key quotation here (Page 6): "Vienna is a place where culture, history, art, and nightlife all mix together seamlessly. With only a few days on your hands, there is a lot to experience, but any time spent in this magical city will bring rich rewards." The volume covers the normal issues in such a guide--city life. architecture, the arts, history, sights, tours, eating and drinking, entertainment, shopping, where to stay, excursions, and basic information on language. None goes into great detail (a consequence of a travel book that is comprehensive in coverage--can't really be avoided). Let's take a look at a couple of the sections, to provide a flavor of this work. History: This section traces the development of the city from a Paleolithic settlement to a Roman city through the Hapsburgs to fascism to the contemporary era. The portion on "Music, Literature, and Cinema" provides the reader with a brief glimpse into the key role of Vienna in the arts. In music, of course, we find giants, from Gluck to Mozart to Beethoven to Mahler and beyond. . . . There is also the helpful summary of places to eat and to stay, the kinds of walking (or biking) trips one can make, shopping opportunities. Each should contribute to a visit being able to make sense of the city and how to take advantage of its multitudinous charms. All in all, to a novice, this seems like a nice adjunct to any proposed visit to Vienna.

Very helpful. I had a day to spend in Vienna and I could quickly find all the sites I needed/wanted to go, plus discover new ones.

The fancy of going to Vienna next summer crossed my mind more than once so I decided to pick this up just to get some more information on the City of Music. It's a very concise book that can be easily toted around in a bag or pocket, which I immediately liked because should I go I would want to keep it on hand. I liked the layout for places to stay, going from campgrounds to hostels, to the hotels, going from one star to five. It has a great listing for restaurants and has the city pretty much covered in respects to places to visit and a calendar of events, which makes planning a trip a lot easier. The history was a nice added bonus for someone not knowing about the city, as well as historical people that spent time/grew up in Vienna (ie: Mozart). Colour photos and things such as political mindset, attitude towards children, the legal system are nice touches as well. However, take the prices with a grain of salt, especially with the new introduction of the Euro.

The 2nd edition of Lonely Planet's guide to Vienna is a welcome edition to the guidebooks on the Austrian capital. Of course it contains the usual information: how to get there, how to get around, and what there is to see. But this book also tells the reader about other important facts such as the climate, history, government/politics, bicycling, and farily current email and web addresses. The Lonely Planet guide also has lots of interesting tidbits of information that most of the more staid guides do not, such as info on Lauda Air, gay Vienna, The Third Man (movie), and Viennese actionism. The maps are excellent, and prices (as of 1998) are listed for most attractions. I doubt that a more versatile guide exists.