Vienna is one of the most visited cities in Europe

In the 1st century AD the Romans built a military camp (castrum) on the site of today's Vienna city center near the Danube and the connected civil city Vindobona (today 3rd district) as border security of the province of Pannonia. Still today you can see from the streets of the 1st district (Inner City), the course of the wall and the streets of the camp. The Romans remained until the 5th century. The Roman legionary camp lay far to the east of the Western Roman Empire and therefore rapidly was victim the turmoil of the Germanic barbarian invasions.

Architecturally, Vienna is still characterized primarily by the buildings around the Vienna Ringstrasse from the Wilhelminian era, but also by Baroque and Art Nouveau. Through its role as the imperial capital and residential city of the Austrian Empire from 1804 onwards, Vienna became a cultural and political centre of Europe.

Around 1910, when Vienna was still the capital of the Habsburg Monarchy, the city had over two million inhabitants. The historic centre of Vienna and Schönbrunn Palace are now UNESCO World Heritage Sites. With around 7.5 million tourists and around 16.5 million overnight stays every year, Vienna is one of the most visited cities in Europe.