The 17th district (Hernals) is a narrow, elongated district that begins at the Gürtel and ends in the Vienna Woods (Wienerwald). This range is what defines it: dense late-19th-century Gründerzeit buildings at the bottom, vineyards and forest at the top.
The lower part around Hernalser Hauptstraße is a classic residential district with a long working-class tradition. Farther up, toward Dornbach and Neuwaldegg, the buildings thin out and the Vienna begins where you can go hiking without leaving the city.
For visitors, Hernals is less a destination than a route: if you're heading into the Vienna Woods, you'll pass through here.
Historically, Hernals is associated with the Kalvarienberg, a Baroque pilgrimage site around which the Hernalser Kalvarienbergmarkt developed in the 19th century – a forerunner of today's entertainment districts. Farther up, in Dornbach and Neuwaldegg, the buildings end and the Schwarzenbergpark begins: one of the few Baroque parks in Vienna outside the city center, free to enter and usually empty.
Getting there: U6 (Alser Straße, Josefstädter Straße), trams 9, 43 and 44.
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