The best neighbourhoods for students in Vienna

Alsergrund (District 9)

Alsergrund is the student area par excellence in the Austrian capital, so it’s undoubtedly home to some of the best student neighbourhoods in Vienna. In fact, it’s considered the “academic neighbourhood” because it’s home to the campus of the Medical University of Vienna and some of the University of Vienna’s campuses, such as the main campus and the Geozentrum.

Within this district, Alservostadt and Rossau are some of the most student-friendly neighbourhoods.

Alsergrund has a lively atmosphere, welcoming a large number of students every year. There are some restaurants, a variety of bars and several nightclubs and live music venues. There are also beer gardens, informal places where you can drink beer in a garden. It’s also known for its range of cafés. Just so you know, much of this restaurant and leisure offering is in the neighbourhoods of Alservorstadt and Rossau, in the southern part of Alsergrund.

Being a fairly central district, there are a variety of cultural and historical sites to visit. Among them are:

• The Sigmund Freud House Museum (Sigmund Freud Museum)
• The Josephinum Medical Museum
• Beethoven’s house and Schubert‘s birthplace
• The Viktor Frankl Museum
• The Liechtenstein Palace (Gartenpalais Liechtenstein)
• The castle called Alserbachpalais

Alsergrund has several parks to enjoy the outdoors. One of the most beautiful is Liechtensteinpark, and many students also have picnics or take walks in Arne Karlsson Park and Votiv Park. It’s also worth noting that the large Augarten Park is close by.

Alsergrund has access to a variety of transport options, including tram, metro (U-bahn), train (S-bahn) and some buses. It's also ideally located for getting around by bike.

Leopoldstadt (District 2)

This district is located on the other side of the Donaukanal from the centre of Vienna. This makes the cost of rents a little more affordable in that area. In addition to this reason, Leopoldstadt attracts a large number of students as it’s home to the main campus of the Vienna University of Economics and some buildings of the BFI Vienna University of Applied Sciences.

In Leopoldstadt, the Karmeliterviertel neighbourhood and the area around Praterstraße are the liveliest areas. They offer restaurants with multinational cuisines, as well as several bars, cafés, and nightlife venues. In addition, in the summer, students and locals spend a lot of time on the beaches of the Donaukanal.

As interesting sights, Leopoldstadt stands out for all the attractions and museums in the Prater amusement park. In fact, its Ferris wheel (Wiener Riesenrad) is one of Vienna's icons. The district’s also home to other museums of various themes, including the Circus and Clown Museum (Circus & Clownmuseum) and the Vienna Crime Museum (Wiener Kriminalmuseum).

Leopoldstadt’s home to two of Vienna’s largest and most beautiful parks: Augarten and Prater. The former boasts several historical monuments, event venues, sports facilities and various trails; while the latter is home to the world's oldest amusement park of the same name. In Leopoldstadt, you can also take relaxing walks along the banks of the Danube on one side and the Donaukanal on the other.

The means of transport connecting this district with the rest of the city include trams, buses, trains at Praterstern train station, and subways (U1 and U2). You can also travel by bicycle easily.

Neubau (District 7)

Neubau is located west of Vienna's city centre, very close to it. It’s a quite lively district for students, especially because it has very easy access to several universities. Among them are the main campus of the University of Vienna, the Medical University of Vienna, and the Vienna University of Technology.

Two of the liveliest and best student neighbourhoods in Vienna are in this district. They are Spittelberg and Laimgrube, where there’s a great variety of pubs and bars. Mariahilfer Strasse is also notable for its variety of shops and student hangouts.

Neubau’s home to Vienna's Museum Quarter (MuseumsQuartier Vienna). Among the museums located there (and in the rest of the district) are:

• Art museums such as the Leopold Museum, monochrome, eSeL REZEPTION and mumok (Museum moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig Wien)
• The Museum of Architecture (Architekturzentrum Wien)
• The Metro Museum (Infocentre U2xU5 Wiener Linien)
• IKONO Vienna
• The Furniture Museum (Möbelmuseum Wien)

One of the negative points of this district is that it doesn’t have a variety of green areas. However, there are some small parks, such as Andreaspark and Siebensternpark.

As far as public transport is concerned, the rest of the city can be easily reached from Neubau via tram, bus, and metro (U2, U3 and U6) lines. In addition, the Wien Westbahnhof train station is next to this district.

Wieden (District 4)

This district is located south of the centre of Vienna. It’s a quieter, more residential area, but has some livelier neighbourhoods, such as Freihaus. Wieden is home to the main campus of the Vienna University of Technology (TU Wien), so it’s ideal for those who want to study there.

As we already mentioned, the Freihaus area, which actually surrounds the campus of the TU Wien, is the liveliest. In that neighbourhood’s the largest number of pubs and bars in the district, as well as a few nightclubs. These venues usually have an alternative atmosphere, attracting a young and trendy crowd. It’s also very common for students to gather at Karlsplatz square, where events are also held throughout the year.

Wieden is also home to a variety of art galleries, design shops, concept stores, and bookshops. This is a clear indication of the “hip” atmosphere of the district.

For cultural visits, Wieden is dominated mainly by St. Charles Church (Karlskirche). It’s also home to several theatres and concert halls. It also has the beautiful Vienna Museum (Wien Museum) and some historical monuments. It’s also worth mentioning that the famous Belvedere Palace (Schloss Belvedere) is just a few minutes walk from Wieden.

Among the green spaces in the neighbourhood are the Anton-Benya and Alois-Drasche parks, although they’re quite small. There’s also a garden in front of St. Charles Church. However, students who want to go for a walk or exercise usually take advantage of the nearby Belvedere Palace garden.

Wieden is served by two metro lines (U1 and U4), as well as several tram and bus lines. It’s also located next to Vienna's main railway station, Wien Hauptbahnhof.

FAQ about neighbourhoods in Vienna