It turns out we weren’t the only people who thought it was a good idea to visit Vienna on a sunny bank holiday weekend when the Easter markets are in full swing. Shocking, I know. The Austrian capital was rammed to the rafters, with queues outside most museums, churches and, rather more upsettingly, grand cafes and bars. Mozart said:

‘For just to be in Vienna is entertainment enough.’

Which may be right, but we have sights to see, and Kaffee und Kuchen to sample. We added an extra night’s stay in Vienna so that we could take things at a more leisurely pace.

In the end, it was less of a Viennese whirl and more of a gentle waltz. But I was so pleased with the title, I’ve left it as it is- call it artistic licence. Sorry Bratislava, you’ve been pushed back to our later-life crisis.

Hitting the old town

We explored the beautiful old town on a walking tour using the app GPSmycity. It showed us the way, shared all the key information and we could take it at our own pace, popping in to any sites that appealed along the way. The only problem is that me and Mr G are a little overly focused on ticking off the sights. We were so busy ogling the chocolate cakes at the legendary Sacher Cafe that we totally missed the Vienna State Opera immediately behind us. And believe me, it’s not a small building!

Rock me Amadeus

We both love nosing around houses seeing how people used to live. So, the Mozart House was a must see. He’d lived in one floor of the house and wrote The Marriage of Figaro there. Considering he was a rock star of his time, and at the very top of his earning potential, his apartment was pretty small. Yes, he gambled and had a penchant for fine clothing but he certainly didn’t seem to be living it large like Jay Z We’ve been inspired to rewatch the 1984 film Amadeus tonight to find out more.

On a manic weekend, there was no way to get tickets for the legendary Spanish Riding School, so we had to make do with visiting the stables so that Mr G could absorb the dressage energy.

Vienna is home to the oldest theme park in the world. We took in the Prater and had a sedate whirl on the Wiener Riesenrad, a sort-of old-school London Eye that opened in 1896. It gave great views of the city, although Mr G spent much of the journey wondering why the structure didn’t collapse, which didn’t make for a relaxing ride.

We braved the queues to visit the Hofburg Palace, Sisi Museum and the Imperial Apartments, which displayed the opulence and excesses of the Habsburg monarchy. To be honest, it was much the same as visiting royal apartments or stately homes in the UK- they all knew how to splash the cash on gilt, mirrors and absurdly ornate furniture.

The whole museum was ridiculously busy, it reminded me of trying to leave after watching Adele headline at Glastonbury. I had my nose pushed into so many Austrian armpits that I was tempted to dive off a dais so the crowd would carry me to the exit. With the heat, the jostling and the FFP2 masks I was in too much of a lather to take in much- just a few of the dresses and jewels, which were magnificent. We definitely needed kaffee und kuchen to recover our composure. Maybe we should try Vienna again on a wet week in November.

Quick campsite comment:

We stayed at Camping Neue Donau in the north-east of Vienna. Some of the reviews were SAVAGE, so we approached with caution. On balance, we thought the bad bits were balanced out by its easy access into the centre of Vienna, helped by the wonderful Viennese underground system.

The good bits: It’s less than half an hour into the very heart of the city. We walked to the underground station in under 15 minutes- and we were at the very far end of the site. The showers, loos etc were clean, there was plenty of hot water and free tumble dryers.

The bad bits: You’re huddled quite close together, with not much -well, OK, no privacy. There’s a shop and cafe but they only open in July and August. There are lots of roads around the site- it’s not quite Spaghetti Junction, but it’s not far off! In reviews, some people complained of noise- we didn’t find it too bad, but it’s something to consider when picking your plot.