PRATER, Vienn's Theme Park

The Vienna Prater is a modern world of adventure, with 250 attractions offering you action and fun – including the largest chairoplanes (seen and described at the bottom) in the world. There are also many cafés, restaurants and snack bars throughout, which offer culinary delights from a small snack (even had bacon burgers!) to a full-scale dinner.

The most famous attraction of the Vienna Prater is the Wiener Riesenrad, which literally means "Vienna's Ferris Wheel" (seen to the right), the Giant Ferris Wheel built in 1897. This enormous ferris wheel is also one of the main tourist attractions in Vienna, some others being The Danube, Stephansdom and The Opera. 

Somewhat faster "vehicles" than the Giant Ferris Wheel are available nowadays for cheerful aerial rides. For example, the Turbo Boost and Bungee Jump, Ejection Seat and Space Shot provide extreme thrills of speed. And the world's largest, 117-meter-high (a little over 383 feet high) chairoplane, which is the technical term for a giant swing ride, the Prater Tower (seen to the left), spins its visitors through the air at 38 mph and offers a fabulous view over the city. Last Saturday, I was able to ride the Prater Tower with some of my friends and had an absolute blast, despite the fact I was pretty much numb all over when I got done with the ride due to the cold air that high up at night. I was not able to take photos since I forgot my camera, but I hope to return to The Prater before it closes for the winter to capture the amazing view of all of Vienna from 38 floors up.


Fun Fact: Prater also features the biggest discotheque (dance hall/club) in Austria, the Praterdome, a pure party atmosphere awaits dance enthusiasts on Riesenradplatz.