Waltz Through the Silvesterpfad
At 2pm on December 31, the city centre closes to traffic and the Silvesterpfad opens along a route that runs from Freyung through Am Hof, down the Graben, past Stephansplatz, along Kärntner Strasse and into Neuer Markt. There are eight locations in all, and admission is free. Food and drink stalls start serving at 11am and keep going until the trail closes at 2am. On the Graben, Vienna's dance schools run crash waltz courses through the afternoon, turning the street into an open-air ballroom; the programme elsewhere mixes waltz, rock, pop, disco, blues, funk, soul and DJ sets, with punch, sparkling wine and food from the gastronomes stationed along the route. Two further locations sit outside the centre: Rathausplatz and Riesenradplatz in the Prater. At midnight, the Pummerin bell of St. Stephen's Cathedral rings out — broadcast on radio and television — and the Blue Danube Waltz follows. Full details at wienersilvesterpfad.at.
Hear the New Year's Concert, in the Hall or on the Square
The Wiener Philharmoniker's New Year's Concert takes place at the Musikverein, Musikvereinsplatz 1, 1010 Vienna, on January 1, 2027 at 11.15am, conducted for the first time by Tugan Sokhiev. The programme is built from polkas, waltzes and marches by the Strauss family and their contemporaries, closing with the traditional encores: The Blue Danube and the Radetzky March. Tickets are allocated by online lottery through the Wiener Philharmoniker website, with applications registered much earlier in the year — reportedly more than 400,000 people apply. Low-end tickets run roughly €25–40 depending on the performance; the best seats on January 1 can exceed €1300.
If you don't have a ticket, you can watch the live broadcast at Stephansplatz and at Riesenradplatz in the Prater. Several Viennese hotels also host brunches around the broadcast. ORF 2 carries it on television and Ö1 on radio in Austria; it is broadcast and streamed to more than 150 countries, reaching an audience of around 50 million. The ORF production includes recorded ballet interludes — in 2026 the Vienna state ballet performed Johann Strauss II's Rosen aus dem Süden waltz at the MAK museum and the Diplomatenpolka in parts of the Hofburg, including the ambassador staircase between the Schweizertor gate and the Burgkapelle chapel. Alternative turn-of-the-year concerts are held across Vienna for those without tickets to the Musikverein.
Operetta, Gala and the Rest of the Turn of the Year
Johann Strauss's "Die Fledermaus" is performed in traditional style at the Vienna State Opera on New Year's Eve. Elsewhere in the city you'll find a New Year's Eve Gala at Vienna City Hall and another at the House of Strauss, alongside concerts, operas, operetta programmes, exhibitions and musicals — among them Beauty and the Beast and Maria Theresia – The Musical — running through the turn of the year. The three Philharmonic performances frame the period: a Preview Performance on December 30, 2026 at 11am, the New Year's Eve Concert on December 31, 2026 at 7.30pm, and the New Year's Concert itself on January 1.
Know Before You Go: Fireworks and Timing
- Fireworks and rockets of category F2 are prohibited throughout Vienna — the city's midnight moment is the Pummerin bell and the waltz, not a private display.
- The Silvesterpfad runs December 31, 2026 from 2pm to 2am; food and drink from 11am.
- The New Year's Concert begins at 11.15am on January 1, 2027 — arrive at Stephansplatz or Riesenradplatz early if you want a spot for the broadcast.
- Concert tickets are lottery-allocated; register on the Wiener Philharmoniker website well before the end of the year.
- Check wien.info and wienersilvesterpfad.at for the current programme as the date approaches.
Build Your Day Around the First of January
Start with the broadcast on Stephansplatz or at the Riesenrad, then walk the same streets the Silvesterpfad occupied the night before — Freyung, Am Hof, the Graben, Kärntner Strasse — now quiet and hung with lights. Book a hotel brunch if you want the concert indoors with a table, or take an alternative turn-of-the-year concert earlier in the week and keep January 1 for the city itself. Register for the ticket lottery early, confirm the Silvesterpfad programme on wienersilvesterpfad.at, and let the Pummerin, the Radetzky March and a waltz on the Graben set the shape of your New Year in Vienna.