Visiting Vienna’s Naschmarkt

Visiting Vienna’s Naschmarkt is a must-have experience in the city. What was once a thriving fish market is now a culinary experience featuring many different regional cuisines. Across from a kebab stand you will find Indian spices and Greek olives. The various cuts of meat are fresh. If you’re a cheap backpacker like myself, it’s a nice place to get ingredients for whatever you come up with in the hostel kitchen.

Upon my arrival in Vienna, I was greeted with miserable weather, rainy and windy. It didn’t help that I had been wearing a t-shirt and jeans in Salzburg. After two weeks of nothing but meat and potatoes, I needed a proper salad. I pulled up a chair at Neni, a popular Israeli cafe in the market, where I watched the chefs doing prep work like chopping onions and shaping falafel balls.

While on weekends there is a flea market and at the furthest end of the stalls there are people selling cheap sweatshirts and souvenirs, the food puts the “nasch” (or “nosh,” if you will) in Nashmarkt.

On my second day in Vienna, I ventured out into the cold again for a free walking tour with my hostel. Our guide led us through the stalls again, pointing out where you could buy the best wiener schnitzel, Vienna’s most famous dish.

If Indian food is your game, you’re in luck. All of the mixes, basamati rice and spices, not to mention the real-deal sriracha, are sold in the Indian shops like this one.

Despite the miserable weather, I fell in love with the vibrant colors of the market, like this flower above. There were already pumpkins for sale and it made me ready for fall. I wish you sunny skies if you ever visit the Naschmarkt!

To see Anthony Bourdain at the Naschmarkt, you can skip to 11:04. Thanks Josh for sending me this link!

If You Go

Getting There

From the Vienna Main Train Station (Westbahnhof), Follow the signs to underground U3/U6. Take the U6 (direction Siebenhirten) to ‘Laengenfeldgasse’ and change to U4 (direction Heiligenstadt). Then get off at ‘Kettenbrueckengasse’. Take exit ‘Kettenbrueckengasse’. Cross Kettenbrueckengasse and Rechte Wienzeile. Turn left and walk the last 100 meters to Wombats City Hostel Vienna at ‘The Naschmarkt’ (next to Hofer supermarket).

From the airport, take the City Airport Train to Wien Mitte and transfer from there.

Staying There

I highly recommend Wombats Hostel at The Naschmarkt. While it is further outside of Vienna, it has its own unique atmosphere because of its proximity to the market and art museums. I enjoyed the comfort of a private room at the hostel and it’s super cheap happy hour specials. The staff was very helpful, giving directions and mailing postcards for me.

My stay at Wombats Hostel Vienna Naschmarkt was complimentary but all opinions are my own.