This post lists and compares the different free walking tours available in Vienna, Austria's capital, including Old Town, World War 2, street art, and alternative tours.
- Overview + Schedule
- Old Town
- World War 2
- Alternative/Street Art
- Virtual/Live-Streamed Tours
- Hop-on-Hop-Off
- Other Things to Do in Vienna
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Its immense beauty of architecture, lavish palaces, and modern and vibrant culture make it an interesting city to explore and keep coming back to.
The best way to get to know Vienna is to explore it on foot, giving you the time to learn about the stories behind some of the most beautiful buildings, gardens, and cultural customs in Europe.
What has become known as free guided tours are tours that operate on a pay-what-you-wish or tips-based model.
There is no cost to take a tour and you are not obligated to pay your tour guide anything, though most people do.
Here is our main schedule. More tours are available in the sections below.
Searching Availability...
This calendar lists more tours that may be available.
The free tours of Austria's capital tend to be welcome or orientation tours and focus on the historic city centre and cover architecture and history and just about every company offers paid walking tours as well.
Tours operate in English as well as German, Spanish, and sometimes French.
Depending on which free walking tour of Vienna you take, you can expect to see some of the following sites:
- Danube River
- Vienna State Opera House
- Albertinaplatz
- Hofburg Palace
- Karlsplatz
- Monuments
- And more!
Most tours will also include information about the Habsburg Dynasty, as this family was pretty instrumental to the history of Vienna.
Because these tours fit into every budget, they are very popular. Some companies allow up to 40 people per tour guide.
With that in mind, if you want to avoid large groups or would like to go off the beaten path, then we recommend exploring small group tours.
Some popular walking tours that are not free include:
FREE TOURS INCLUDED WITH BUS TICKETS AND TOURIST PASSES
If you are considering using a hop-on-hop-off bus to visit Vienna attractions, then keep in mind that Big Bus Tours offers walking tours when you purchase a hop-on-hop-off ticket.
Likewise, if you are considering purchasing the Vienna Pass, a tourist attraction discount pass, then note that it already included a free walking tour (not pay-what-you-wish).
The Vienna Pass can save you over 50% of the retail price of participating tours and attractions and lets you skip most ticket lines.
Old Town Tours
Several companies are offering pay-what-you-like city tours in Vienna. All are well-reviewed and offer several daily departures as well as tours in multiple languages.
In Vienna, local companies are the main free tour providers, with companies such as Sandemans absent from the market.
As we mentioned in the previous section, if you are considering a tourist discount pass or a hop-on-hop-off bus ticket, you probably already have a free walking tour included.
GOOD VIENNA TOURS
Good Vienna Tours provides English, German, and Spanish tours around the historic centre of Vienna every day at 10:00 am and 14:00 (2:00 pm).
A maximum of 40 people is taken per tour to have a focused and informative walk that lasts 2.5 hours.
Reservations are required. Book this tour in the calendar above.
They also offer excellent paid tours, such as Hitler’s Vienna and Schönbrunn Palace are also available.
Prime Tours
This company offers a variety of tours in Vienna which cover multiple different subjects.
One of their most popular offerings is an old town tour which provides details about the historic centre of the city.
Their old town tour is available daily in English at 11:00 am and 3:00 pm, and also on weekends at 19:00 (7 pm), making this one of the only free night tours on our list.
They also offer this tour in Spanish and German multiple times per day. This tour clocks in at 2 hours in length.
TIP: You could also do it on your own with 3 excellent and free self-guided audio tours co-written and narrated by Rick Steves.
- Vienna City Walk
- St. Stephen Cathedral
- Ringstrasse Tram Tour
World War 2 Tours
Vienna played an important role in World War 2, so it makes perfect sense that there are at least one or two pay-what-you-wish walking tours focused on this historical aspect of the city.
These tours tend to cover what the city looked like when it was occupied, including information about certain architectural details from the era that remain to this day.
Some of these outings are free, but others will require you to purchase a ticket.
In addition to their old town tours, they also offer a tour covering the history of Adolf Hitler in Vienna in English on weekends from Friday - Sunday at 15:00 (3 pm).
This same tour is also available in Spanish on Wednesday at 14:00 (2 pm).
Check our calendar to find all the free walking tours currently offered by Prime Tours.
Much like its competitors, this company also offers a tour covering the history of WW2 in Vienna.
This is a paid tour, and tickets start at €24 for adults or €15 for children.
You can enjoy this outing every Thursday and Saturday at 14:30 (2:30 pm).
The tour is approximately 2 and a half hours in length. Check our calendar for more details!
Alternative and Street Art Tours
If you're looking for a tour of Vienna that covers some of the more niche subjects of the city, there are a few companies offering outings that you might want to consider.
In addition to tours that provide details about the unique street art culture of Vienna, there are also pub crawls where you can learn all about the best places to grab a drink!
Most of these alternative tours require you to purchase a ticket, but there is at least one pay-what-you-wish option available.
Prime Tours | Street Art Tours
Although it is only offered once a month, this company does indeed have a pay-what-you-want street art tour of Vienna!
The tour is 2 hours in length and it is only provided in English at 15:00 (3 pm) on the first Saturday of each month.
Being that it is so infrequent, we recommend booking well in advance to make sure you secure a spot on this tour.
If you can't take their pay-what-you-wish tour, they also offer a paid option every Saturday and Sunday at 16:00 (4 pm).
Tickets start at just €34.99 for adults and €15.99 for children.
Purchase tickets or learn more.
Prime Tours | Pub Crawl
Looking for the best bars and pubs in Vienna? This company offers a pub crawl that covers some of the most notable venues in the city.
You can expect free entrance to 4 different pubs and free drinks at each location!
This pub crawl is offered every Wednesday - Saturday at 21:00 (9 pm) and it lasts for approximately 5 hours. Tickets are only €19 per person.
Self-Guided Exploration Game
This is an interesting alternative to all the other services on our list.
Rather than have a guide show you around town, this scavenger hunt game gives you clues to solve and sends you out to explore the city on your own!
Although this exploration game is not free, at only €15 for up to 4 players, it costs about as much as you might tip a tour guide for any of the pay-what-you-wish tours listed above.
The following games are available in Vienna: