Cruising toward Vienna
Our final day cruising the Danube brought us to Vienna. The scenes on the Danube traveling into Vienna were so beautiful. You can’t help but think, “people actually live here!” of all the little towns we passed.
An Evening at the Vienna Christmas Market
Once we arrived in Vienna, we had the chance to visit the main Christmas market in the evening. It was a fairly large market and so crowded! The entrance had a stunning light display that led into the market and the smells and sights were overwhelming. The market was flooded with people. The crowds can make it difficult to actually get to see anything. You have to maintain your patience and just enjoy the best you can.
Schonbrunn Palace
The next day, we took a tour to Shonbrunn Palace. We were pretty tired so we skipped the tour of the palace and instead enjoyed a pastry treat at the cafe on site.
After indulging on some apfel kuchen, we visited the Christmas market directly in front of the palace. This was probably one of our favorite markets of the whole trip. Like the market in Regensburg, this market had many one of a kind artisans. It was also not so crowded and we could move pretty easily from stall to stall. It’s amazing how much shopping one can do in a very short amount of time at a great market!
One of our favorite vendors had the most beautifully painted china. The woman manning the stall was the artist and we enjoyed talking to her while we chose some pieces to take home. My sister bought an ornament and I purchased two adorable tea spoons. (I use one every day – and I think of this wonderful market each morning while stirring my tea!)
We loved this stall! More ornaments
Lunch and Entertainment
After visiting Schonbrunn Palace, our group was treated to a luncheon at a local restaurant. We also enjoyed some entertainment by a local children’s theatre group. They sang traditional Christmas carols while we feasted on local favorite dishes.
Farewell to the Ship…
Our Tauck cruise was wonderful. The guides were knowledgable and the overall experience was just delightful the entire time. We were sad to leave the ship, but were looking forward to another day in Vienna to explore some of the additional sites we still wanted to see. If you ever have the chance, I highly recommend Tauck and a Christmas Market Cruise on the Danube.
See my other posts from the Christmas Market Cruise: Nuremberg, Regensburg, Passau, Salzburg, Melk Abbey and additional sites in Vienna.
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