Nine Playgrounds in Three Days: Parks in Vienna

Kirk was in Budapest last week, so I took the children to visit lots of playgrounds and parks. In one day we walked to six playgrounds, each of which was within about 10-15 minutes' walk of the apartment. Another day we got to the other park close to the house. Just imagine: Seven parks within a few minutes of your house. We also visited another park with two playgrounds and the children played with some friends from the ward.

The park at Spittelauer Plaz, outside our apartment.

The children love the parks here because they have such fun playground equipment. Each park has a sandbox and, during the summer, water to play in and pour in the sand. The sand stains clothes brown, and there isn't much that will get the stains out.

The park by the Rossaeur Lände U-bahn station.

A park on the east side of the Danau Canal, near the Augarten.

A fun twirly thing at the same park. 

The same twirly thing, with Andrew and Edward spinning on it. 

The larger park at the Augarten (there is also a smaller playground). 

Lucy at the same Augarten playground. 

The Augarten Park was first started in the mid-1600s, and was opened to the public in 1775. Mozart played and conducted concerts in this park.  There are two extremely large anti-aircraft towers built by the Nazis in the park from WWII. They are very ugly.

A park near a church near our apartment. 

A fun running thing from the same park. 

A climbing thing from the same park. 

A fun walking-climbing thing. 

One day it was warm and the children could play without their coats on in Kongress Park.

A very large swing that can go very high on its side. 

The same park, with a train-slide. 

A second playground in that park. Henry likes slides.  

Back to the fun swing, with small people getting rides. 

Lichtenstein Park, part of the Lichtenstein Palace Gardens,
near the apartment.

A climbing thing at the same park. 

This park has a zip line in it.

One of Kirk's colleagues at another university said his children still talk about parks in Europe two years later. We can now see why.
All the playgrounds are fenced. Dogs and other animals are not allowed in. There is no smoking in the children's playgrounds, though some parents stand outside the fence and smoke. It is very nice to have fenced playgrounds, because the children stay in one area. They know they can't leave that area without asking permission.