Social Programme

Discover with us the footsteps of the "Waltz King" Johann Strauss Junior – one of the most important composers of Viennese classical music, whose music still makes hearts beat faster internationally today. From the Hofburg we walk to St. Ulrich at Spittelberg and explore the birthplace of the great artist with interesting stories from his childhood. We then continue to a newly opened exhibition of a special kind. Discover the life of Johann Strauss in an immersive, informative and interactive way. Let yourself be intoxicated by the musical masterpieces and immerse yourself in the world of the 19^th century. Our path then leads us further to the famous Vienna Stadtpark, where the "Golden Schani", the Strauss monument, stands, which was the most photographed monument in Vienna even before the Strauss anniversary in 2025. In numerous Viennese concert cafés, piano music by the Waltz King Johann Strauss can still be heard today – the so-called coffee house music is still alive today. On the way back to the Hofburg we pass the oldest coffee house along the Ringstrasse, the Cafe Schwarzenberg.

After a short bus ride from the Hofburg through the picturesque „Wienerwald“, we reach the imposing Cistercian monastery of Heiligenkreuz, which was founded in the 12^th century. The monastery has housed a theological college since 1802, which has been a theological college under papal law since 2007. The first Cistercians called the monastery "Paradisum", "paradise". This basic idea is also reflected in the architecture. In the Romanesque-Gothic cloister, many hundreds of red marble columns from 1240 represent the trees of paradise, which end in the buds and tendrils of the capitals. The keystones of the mighty vaults symbolize the floral splendour of paradise. In the middle of the cloister is a lovingly tended garden. We will gain a comprehensive impression of everything from the Rococo frescoes in the sacristy to the lovely Anna Chapel. We visit the whimsical Baroque mortuary chapel, the Gothic chapter house, which is the burial place of the last Babenberg, Frederick the Quarrelsome († 1246), and the colourful glass panes from the 13^th century that depict the Babenberg family.
We will then travel a short distance by bus to the Mayerling hunting lodge – a place steeped in history, embedded in an impressive landscape. It was precisely where the Carmelite monastery church stands today that Crown Prince Rudolf, and his lover Mary Vetsera met their deaths on 30 January 1889. Let us immerse ourselves in the myth that tells of the drama of two young people and the consequences of a love that could not be. The bus will then take us back to the Hofburg.