Vienna

Karlskirche, or St. Charles's Church Built in the 18th century, this is an outstanding Baroque church featuring two columns reminiscent of those of Trajan and Marcus Aurelius. © Carlos Rodrigues / Easyvoyage

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An early post of the Roman Empire called Vindobona, Vienna was established in the 11th century as the capital of a small duchy. The town then fell into the hands of the Habsburg family from 1278 to 1916. The first stop for any Viennese discovery, the Saint-Etienne Cathedral, more familiarly known as Stephansdom, is an immense gothic building harbouring numerous treasures and royal relics under its majestic nave. The residence of a dynasty, the Hofburg palace is a real town within a city. It includes 18 buildings, holds the Republic's presidential residence, the imperial apartments, the monarchs' crowns, the fabulous "Silver Collection", and the Spanish Riding School. Another baroque palace, the Belvedere was transformed into a museum with impressive collections of paintings finding their complements in the Museum of Fine Arts next door. To the west of the city centre, Schönbrunn was designed from a model of Versailles. With its 1,441 rooms, it is full of curiosities, such as the bedroom of the Empress Elizabeth, the throne room, the room where Napoleon 1st resided when he stayed, and numerous ceremonial rooms around a vast French-style park. The State Opera, in such a particular Neo-Renaissance style, is a compulsory visit for music lovers, and the old Mayerling imperial hunting lodge, located 19 miles from Vienna, attracts romantics from all over the world. Both for the big and small, the giant wheel of the Prater funfair offers a 360° panoramic view of the capital. Unmissable, the gourmand pause in the famous Demel café is compulsory to taste its famous cream cakes.