Explore my 7 day Tour of Eastern Europe including Vienna, Prague, and Berlin
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The Hapsburgs?
The title may be a bit confusing but once you take a few tours in Europe, especially in Vienna and Prague, you will learn you cannot escape the history of the Hapsburg family. This horribly incestuous royal family ruled a great deal of Europe and shaped many of its major cities. This trip follows their reoccurring prominence throughout the continent and quickly became an inside joke between my friends who were traveling with me. I couldn’t imagine naming this itinerary anything else.
First stop: VIENNA! I would describe the city of Vienna as Immaculate. Everything is clean and beautiful and truly feels expensive. Doing it on a budget wasn’t easy, but is possible. This is a place where I plan to return when I have a little extra spending money!
Day 1 – Vienna, Austria
We arrived in Vienna in the late afternoon, while the other half of our group arrived earlier and took their time to visit the Naschmarkt, Vienna’s largest market. It has been in operation since the 16th Century, complete with food, spices, clothing, and much more.
Once we arrived and got settled into our hostel, we hopped on the Staßenbahn (tram), purchased a 48 hour all public transit pass, and took it to the city center. From there we walked around and took in the sights of the city while searching for a dinner spot that wasn’t going to break the bank. Originally we had planned to go to the famous Schnitzel restaurant Figlmuller, but we did not have a reservation. The wait was extremely long and we were extremely hungry.
We ended up eating at a great restaurant near St. Stephen’s Cathedral, that fit our budget. Even though it was not the traditional Austrian food we were necessarily looking for.
Day 2: Morning- Vienna, Austria
We started our morning by grabbing a quick cappuccino and breakfast while heading to our free walking tour meeting point. We used the company Original Europe Tours, Vienna. The tour guide took us to all the major historical points in the old town area. The guide shared a great deal of insight into the history of Austria, and their ruling families which included my favorite family THE HAPSBURGS. Our tour guide gave us many recommendations for once we left the tour, including good coffee houses, restaurants and museums. I always love getting recommendations from locals!
Day 2: Afternoon – Vienna, Austria
The free walking tour ended in a very convenient spot to explore some of the museums of Vienna. Our group decided to split up, half of the group went to The Imperial Treasury at the Hofburg Palace, which plays host to the Austrian Crown Jewels and all things Royal. The rest of us decided to explore the Austrian National Library (pictured on the left). I looooooove the smell of old books, so needless to say I was in heaven in this grand library. I truly felt as if I was in Belle’s Library straight out of the Disney Movie. I would highly recommend a stop at the National Library, not only for the smells, but for the large assortment of influential texts, old maps, and interesting artifacts.
Afterward, our stomachs were rumbling which lead us to search for Käsekrainer. A cheese-filled sausage that is a staple in Austria, as well as a super affordable option in the expensive city. Käsekrainer can be found all around Vienna, but we decided to walk to a stand that locals raved about. Locals said it had the best Käsekrainer around… the Würstelstand Südtiroler Platz. On our way to the Würstelstand, we stopped for a photo op in front of the beautiful Karlskirche. Once we finally arrived at the Würstelstand, I ordered the Käsekrainer with curry sauce, and it was delicious!
We filled our stomachs and continued our walk toward the Belvedere Museum.
Day 2: Afternoon – Belvedere Museum
Full disclaimer, I am not a huge Art Museum person. I can appreciate them, but don’t often find myself getting lost for hours. That being said, The Belvedere Museum is one of my favorite art museums that I have visited, and I would go back in a heartbeat. That means a great deal coming from me.
I really enjoyed the setting of the museum. The palace is a great backdrop for the art while being interesting in itself. The architecture, landscapes, and decor add other layers of interest to the museum. In my opinion, most museums lack this type of beauty. This backdrop seems fitting for the artwork of my new favorite artist, Gustav Klimt. His artwork with inlaid gold is even more exquisite in person.
Day 2: Evening – Vienna Austria
After we finished at the Belvedere we headed back towards Stephansplatz, to experience a famous Viennese Coffee House. Our tour guide recommended one that is still frequented by locals, and where we would get the most authentic coffee house experience, Café Hawelka. Here we asked our server for help ordering a traditional pastry. He recommended Krapfen which is Austrian Jam Filled Donuts. Super yummy!!
Once we finished our sweet treat we scurried to St. Stephen’s Cathedral so we could take in a Sunset over Vienna from the bell tower. We chose to go up in the tower that was accessible by elevator, after being told that was the better view. The view was breathtaking (can be seen in the first image of the article). One of my favorite parts of the cathedral is the unique design and colors of the roof!
Day 2: Night- Vienna, Austria
Having reservations this time, we hopped on public transit and headed to a Schnitzel restaurant recommended to us by our tour guide earlier in the day. Meissl & Schadn Restaurant is a restaurant with modern decor, but the Schnitzel is prepared in the traditional way. The cool thing about this restaurant is that it had an open kitchen so you could watch the chefs through every step of the preparation. We did spend a little more than we would have liked, but it was DEFINITELY worth it for the experience.
Finally to finish the night we took a walk around the Rathausplatz or city hall, where we enjoyed the lights of the seasonal carnival.
Day 3: Morning and Afternoon – Vienna, Austria
On our last day in Vienna, we dedicated our time to the Schönbrunn Palace which is a little bit outside of the city center. So we packed up our luggage and checked out of our Airbnb. From here we locked our luggage in the Wein Westbanhof (train station) where we would be leaving from later that day.
From Westbanhof we took public transit out to Schönbrunn Palace.
Here we spent hours exploring the vast gardens (FOR FREE). We heard the gardens were the highlight of the palace so decided to save some cash and skip the interior. I would highly recommend a visit, and although it takes a little bit of time to get there, it was really easy to find and well worth the trip.
Once we left the palace, we headed back to the train station, picked up a quick lunch, and caught our train to Prague!
Reflecting on Vienna, I wish I had a bit more time to see some of the other famous sights and museums.
Day 3: Night – Prague, Czech Republic
Several hours later our train arrived in Prague. We had a convenient hand-off with the Airbnb key at the train station and headed over to drop off our bags.
Accommodations: The Airbnb was nice enough, and when looking at the map it was close in distance. However, to get to the city center we had to walk through a large, poorly lit park (which honestly spooked me out a bit at night) and over the river. So when looking for accommodations, look ideally for a hostel on the same side of the river as the old town area.
We went out for a walk and ended up eating a late dinner at a local restaurant that served Mexican food, called Agavé. They had some fire margaritas and good food.
Day 4: Morning – Prague, Czech Republic
To start the morning we grabbed a quick coffee and on the go breakfast. Took some Czech currency out of an ATM (Please don’t change money on the street, you’ll most likely end up with useless Belorussian rubles) and headed to the meeting point of our tour, Old Town Square.
From here our tour took us to many of the major historical landmarks of the city and left us at the Charles Bridge. The time in between was filled with rich stories about the history of the city, the culture, and THE HAPSBURGS.
Reserve your spot for the Sandeman’s New Europe Free Walking tour ahead of time to ensure the time slot you want.
Day 4: Afternoon – Prague, Czech Republic
After leaving our tour guide, we walked the Charles Bridge, passed all the street artists, and into Malá Strana. This was probably my favorite area of Prague! The buildings were all so colorful and ornate, and I desperately want to move into that little blue apartment.
Upon the recommendation from our tour guide, we went to lunch at Lokál. We ate traditional Czech food and contemplated trying an all-foam beer, which is apparently very popular in Prague.
Refreshed and reenergized we continued to wander around Malá Strana and made our way to the Lennon Wall. The famous graffiti wall of the city. Definitely make time to wander through this area. We found so many cute side streets with picturesque bridges and canals!
Day 4: Evening – Prague, Czech Republic
After sufficient exploration, we walked back over the Charles bridge toward the old town, where we decided it was time for an infamous Trdelnik or Chimney Cake. YOU HAVE TO TRY ONE WHILE YOUR ARE HERE!!!! I like mine filled with ice cream topped with chocolate and strawberries. You can also get them plain or filled with whipped cream.
On our way back to the Airbnb to take a quick power nap, and get ready for our nighttime festivities, we stopped at a sweet outdoor Biergarten that has an incredible view of the city. It is called Zahradní restaurace Letenský zámeček and it is in Letna Park. This is a fantastic place to take in the magic scene of Prague and enjoy a Czech beer.
Day 4: Night – Prague, Czech Republic
You really didn’t experience Prague if you didn’t go on one of the city’s MANY bar crawls! Prague is known for its nightlife, bar crawls, and lads on tour. So dedicate one night to experience this side of the city. We chose the Drunken Monkey Bar Crawl for many reasons, but mostly because of the 2-hour open bar that came with the price of admission. It seemed like the best value for your money. A word of caution, take it easy on the Absinthe, or you’ll start losing friends before you crawl to the first official bar. On the bright side, the cover charge for the bar crawl was the only money I spent all night.
Day 5 : Afternoon- Prague, Czech Republic
There was no morning on Day 5 because we slept through it due to our previous night’s activities. Our day was off to a late start, but our first priority was nourishment. We stopped for Brunch at a place near our Airbnb, named The Farm. It was a fantastic fresh meal, and exactly what we needed.
Once revived, we took public transit over to the Prague Castle and St. Vitus Cathedral. St. Vitus, stands out from the other European Cathedral’s, mostly due to the vibrant stained glass windows. They should not be missed.
Day 5: Evening – Prague, Czech Republic
After checking out the Cathedral we, unfortunately, didn’t have an opportunity to tour the inside of the Castle before it closed. However, we still had the opportunity to walk around the castle area and enjoyed the views of the city. We also really enjoyed popping in and out of the cute shops including a gingerbread bakery where I got this cookie.
It was starting to get late and a little chilly so we sought out a traditional, hearty, Czech meal. We walked back over the river into the Old Town area. We went to a restaurant recommended by our tour guide for Czech food on a budget, and we landed at Krčma. It was exactly what we were looking for!
With that, we called it a night and retreated to our Airbnb, exhausted and ready for bed.
Prague is one of the most picturesque cities that I have been able to visit. Between the architectural charm and the gleaming river, it has an undeniable storybook feeling. I would love to return and see more of this magical country (and eat more chimney cakes).
Day 6: Prague, Czech Republic to Berlin, Germany
We grabbed an “on the go” breakfast, and caught our train to Berlin.
Pro Tip: When booking your train tickets (especially for this trip) double-check that you are assigned seats, or pay the extra few dollars to reserve seats. Most of the time trains randomly assign seats for no extra charge, but for some reason that was not the case for this train from Prague to Berlin. Long story short, we did not reserve seats, and there were no empty seats. We were left sitting on the floor for 4 hours….Not the most comfortable train ride!
We arrived in Berlin on a super rainy evening, so we scurried to our hostel, the St. Christopher’s in Alexanderplatz. It is a great hostel, clean, and in a perfect location. If you book through the St. Christopher’s website, you get a free breakfast (which is quite substantial).
Hungry and ready to dive into good German beer we went to a local brewery for dinner. Pfefferbräu had great beer and great food and was conveniently close to our hostel. We had a few beers here, then returned to our hostel to enjoy a few beers at the lobby bar and socialize.
Day 7: Morning and Afternoon – Berlin, Germany
We Started our morning with an awesome breakfast buffet at our hostel, then headed to our Free Walking Tour.
We took Sandeman’s New Europe, Free Walking tour, which as always, was phenomenal. Our tour guide, Daniel Punzón or Dani, is the best tour guide I have ever had. The opening of his tour was a look through the historical events as seen by the Brandenburg Gate. It literally gave me chills, and from the first moment, I hung on every word he said.
Dani gave us such an incredible tour that we decided we wanted to spend another 4 hours with him, thus we signed up to go on the Third Reich Tour that he was leading later that day. Some of it overlapped with the sights and significant events that were discussed in the free walking tour. But he had so many other anecdotes and interesting stories, that I never got bored. I couldn’t imagine spending 8 hours in Berlin with anyone else.
Guess who you get to learn about here too? Once again, THE HAPSBURGS!!!!
Day 7: Evening – Berlin, Germany
Since it was our final night in Berlin, we wanted to fit everything in. First, we checked out the little Oktoberfest market that was happening in Alexanderplatz, then headed over to the East Side Gallery. The East Side Gallery is a portion of the Berlin Wall that still stands, and has been transformed into an outdoor art piece. We walked the East Side Gallery from start to finish, the diversity of the artwork was amazing.
From here we walked over the Oberbaum Bridge and stopped at Wu Kong for dinner. It was delicious and warmed us up after a cold day in Berlin.
From here we headed back to the hostel and prepared for our departure in the morning.
I am dying to return to Berlin, and wish desperately that I could’ve had more than one full day in this incredible city. When I return, I hope to explore Museum Island, Mauer park, eat more Döner Kebab, and enjoy the legendary nightlife. I also saw an Alternative Berlin tour which looked very interesting. I had the perfect day and a half in Berlin, but I can”t wait to go back to my favorite city and experience so much more that it has to offer.
If you are anything like me, and not ready to leave Germany. Check out my article about celebrating Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany!
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