Advent in Vienna for families with children

The advent season means family time! To shorten the long wait for the holiday of holidays, there is all sorts for children to experience in Vienna: a visit to an Advent market, ice skating, Poldi's Christmas craft workshop at Schönbrunn Palace, or a concert that gets you in the mood for Christmas. Advent, Advent, a little song is playing …

In the run-up to Christmas, a family visit to one of the many Vienna Christmas markets is a tradition. Here’s a selection offering special attractions for children.

Viennese Christmas Market

Children will be wide-eyed at the sight of the wares and treats offered by the 100 or so market booths. Interactive stations in Rathauspark invite visitors to explore: the birdhouse village, the red apple, the nutcracker, the mountain of gifts, and the fairy tale tower. An Advent wreath is decorated with four animal musicians. Other highlights include the nearly 12-meter-high, hand-painted multi-level carousel, the nativity scene trail, and the reindeer train. The heart tree fascinates young and old alike.

On the 110 m² children’s ice rink, kids can try their first steps on the ice for free (ice skating aids and skates are available to hire on site). Grown-up ice skaters can get their fill along romantic fairytale paths across the Rathauspark at the Ice World at the Christmas Market (overall skating area: 3.000 m²).

Nov 13 – Dec 26, 2026: Daily, 10 am – 10 pm
December 24, 2026: 10 am – 6.30 pm

Art Advent at Karlsplatz

At the advent market at Karlsplatz there are arts and crafts and demonstration workshops, alongside plenty of punch, mulled wine, and other treats. The culinary offerings are even fully certified organic. Children also look forward to a wide range of daily activities: the straw landscape, the Draisinen Express, the lost property carousel, barrel organ music from Werkelmann, supervised creative handicrafts in the Star Workshop in the big yurt at the pond area, and storytellers in the Sky Tent.

Nov 13 – Dec 23, 2026: Daily, 10 am – 10 pm

Winter Market in the Prater

The Prater organizes a winter market on Riesenradplatz. The kids explore the Prater together with the adults – such as on adventure rides on board the winter train, high-flying rides on the chair-o-plane, and at the autodrome. You can take selfies with celebrities at Madame Tussauds, while Magic World Vienna enchants you in the truest sense of the word. A ride on the Giant Ferris Wheel is unforgettable for everyone. Music appeals to everyone: every Wednesday through Sunday, mostly local artists perform live concerts ranging from gospel to pop. The outdoor seating area at Kolariks Luftburg is the winter market outpost “Winterburg”. There are organic snacks, free Luftburg jumping, an outdoor playground, and bocce courts.

Nov 20, 2026 – Jan 6, 2027: Mon-Fri 12 pm – 10 pm; Sat, Sun, public holidays: 11 am – 10 pm
Dec 24, 2026: 11 am – 5 pm
Dec 31, 2026 & Jan 1, 2027: 12 am – 2 am

Christmas at Schönbrunn Palace: market, museum, lights garden

The Schönbrunn Palace Christmas Market attracts visitors with its wide range of activities for children and families. The innovative Glice ice rink (a synthetic ice rink) is free for children to use. There are also ice stock lanes, a carousel, a Ferris wheel, and a crafts workshop.

Nov 6 – Dec 23, 2026: Daily, 10 am – 9 pm
Dec 24, 2026: 10 am – 4 pm
Dec 25, 2026 – Jan 6, 2027: Daily, 10 am – 7 pm

Christmas market in front of Schönbrunn Palace

At the Schloss Schönbrunn Children’s Museum, the palace ghost Poldi has come up with a few activities. The themed tour “Winter Stories from Schönbrunn” tells tales of imperial balls and sleigh rides on weekends and public holidays. Starting November 21, there is also a daily winter riddle rally, the scavenger hunt game “Chaos in the Elves’ Workshop”, and Poldi’s crafts workshop. Santa Claus will stop by on December 6.

The Imperial Lights light garden in the Schönbrunn Palace Park takes visitors along a magical circular route. Baroque light installations transport visitors back to the Habsburg era. Book a time slot in advance!

Starting November 6, 2026: Daily from 4:30 pm to 10:00 pm, last admission at 8:30 pm. Closed on December 24.

Even more Advent markets with offerings for children

The Josefinenalm is located right in the heart of the Christmas village on the University of Vienna campus at the Altes AKH. Every Saturday and Sunday, there is a children’s program with a magician, a Kasperl puppet show, and a Christmas workshop. Outside, there are Christmas-themed rides and a fairy-tale forest (November 13 through December 23, 2026).
The Christmas exhibition at the Hirschstetten Flower Gardens brings, in addition to the display in the large greenhouse, a Christmas market with around 50 market stalls, crafts, and cookie baking for children. All the activities are in keeping with the motto “In the magic of the Christmas season” (November 12 through December 22, 2026).

Puppet theater, Christmas stages, and advent concerts

At the Lilarum, Vienna’s largest children’s theater, Christmas puppet theater captivates audiences as young as three with the story Weihnacht im Winterwald (Christmas in the Winter Forest). November 28 – December 24, 2026.
The Märchenbühne Apfelbaum presents the story “Die heilige Nacht”, based on a tale by Selma Lagerlöf (December 19, 22, 23, and 24, 2026) and "Es klopft bei Wanja in der Nacht," based on Tilde Michels (December 4, 5, 12, and 13, 2026; January 9, 10, 16, and 17, 2027).
In December, the Vienna Boys’ Choir presents its Christmas program Gute Hirten in its concert hall, MuTh (December 4, 5, 6, 21, and 22, 2026).

An opera especially for families: you can see it at St. Peter’s Church, down in the bright, comfortably heated crypt. To the music of Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, Die Weihnachtshexe (The Christmas Witch) takes flight. In the Italian Christmas story, the witch Befana arrives too late for the birth of the Christ Child. She meets the Three Wise Men, who are actually already setting out on their return journey (December 19, 20, 22, 23, 24, and 26, 2026).
Family highlights at the Stadtsaal include the WeihnachtsWunschKonzert by the Donaupiraten for the whole family, featuring an ensemble from the Vienna Symphony Orchestra (December 12, 2026), and an afternoon with Marko Simsa. Together with the Kokosbusserl Band, he invites you to dig deep into the treasure chest of Christmas carols (December 13, 2026). Reflective and cheerful Christmas songs about sledding, baking cookies, and building snowmen are sung by Mai Cocopelli with her band (December 20, 2026).

The popular children’s songwriter Bernhard Fibich delights audiences with interactive Christmas concerts at the Haus der Musik (December 6, 12, 13, and 20, 2026). The storytelling theater series “Klassik-Cool” features various winter and Christmas stories (November 21 and 29; December 5, 12, 13, 19, 20, 22, and 23, 2026). On Christmas Eve, Gernot Kranner retells the classic “Puss in Boots” for today’s youngsters (December 24, 2026).
Bernhard Fibich will also be performing at the Kabarett Niedermair (December 18, 2026). On St. Nicholas Day, Brennholz.Rocks ignites a rock music fireworks display at an interactive concert for the whole family (December 6, 2026). Schneck & Co present the program Herr Holle hört Weihnachten (December 20, 2026) and a Christmas concert (December 23, 2026).
At the MusikTheater an der Wien, a child-friendly version of the classic of children’s literature "The Little Prince" is performed through the holidays (December 18, 19, 20, 21, 27, and 28, 2026).