Ringstrasse

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Where the Walls Once Ran

After Vienna tore down its city walls in 1857, it turned the resulting strip of land into the Ringstrasse. In the following decades it lined this boulevard with magnificent buildings, including:
  • the Staatsoper (national opera)
  • The twin museums - art museum and natural history museum - separated by a giant statue of Maria Theresa.
  • the new wing of the imperial palace
  • the Parliament
  • the Burgtheater (city theater)
  • the Rathaus (city hall)
  • the new university (new compared to the medieval university building in the old city)
  • the Votivkirche - a white, very porous, sandstone church, which is continually renovated to prevent it from turning black.

Various trams run along the Ring, but check to make sure your tram will stay on to your destination. The 1 is normally the most reliable.

Each section of the Ringstrasse has its own name: Kaertnerring, Parkring, Schubertring, and so on.