Photo of the Day — “Old and New” — A Viennese Fiaker heads home at the end of another work day as an advertisement-laden Vienna tram passes by
You will only find a Fiaker in Vienna, Austria.
Well, you will find horse-drawn carriages called fiacres in many places. Only in Vienna are they called a ‘fiaker’.
What is a fiaker, and why should you take a ride in one the next time you come to Vienna?
What are Vienna’s fiakers?
If you wander around certain areas of Vienna, you will see horse-drawn carriages parked and waiting for tourists to hop on and take a ride.
Drawn by two horses rather than the one horse seen in many other cities around the world, Vienna’s fiakers are an institution and, in my mind at least, quintessentially Viennese.
Especially when it comes to tourists who can rent a fiaker for as little as € 55 for four people, and then enjoy a 20-minute ride around some of Vienna’s most famous landmarks. (Hour-long rides are also available for a slightly higher price).
With several fiaker companies in Vienna covering specific areas of the city (see the Vienna Tourist Board’s website for the various areas of the city where fiakers are available), there are many opportunities to enjoy these wonderful modes of transportation.
In most cases, all you have to do is choose your fiaker, pay the driver, hop up into the carriage and be off on your way. Or, if you would like to arrange a specific sightseeing tour, you can do that directly through one of the companies offering them as well.
Fiakers are wonderful as, riding in one, you really do feel as though you have been sent back in time to an age where things were less rushed and more elegant.
They also give you a relaxed way to see some of the beautiful things Vienna has to offer a little bit higher up than everyone else, while also enjoying a few minutes off your feet.
With five specific areas of the city where fiakers are easy to find, as well as being an extremely affordable quintessentially Vienna experience, it would be a shame to visit Austria’s capital city and not enjoy a fiaker ride.