Vienna Psychology Trip

Day 1

Flight to Vienna

Flight to Vienna: You are met on arrival by your private transport and transfer to your central accommodation.

Vienna’s Jewish History: After lunch you have a walking tour to explore the remnants of what was once a rich Jewish culture in Vienna. You begin at Tempelgasse where you can see the site of the Leopoldstadt Temple, the largest and most historic synagogue in the city. Dating from 1854 it was burned to the ground by the Nazis in November 1938. All that now remains are four of the building’s original columns which serve as reminder of the imposing size of the building that once stood here and which was a vital part of the community.

Judenplatz Museum: You continue to Judenplatz, the historical centre of the Jewish community in the city where excavations have unearthed the remains of a synagogue dating to the 14th century. Here you can see the Holocaust Memorial, a brutalist concrete structure designed by the British artist Rachel Whitbread, which commemorates the thousands of Vienna’s Jews who were deported to Nazi concentration camps. Also in Judenplatz you visit the museum which documents the earlier history of the Jewish community from the 14th century onwards.

Dinner this evening will be at a city centre restaurant.

Day 2

The Vienna of Freud and Frankl plus the Vienna Circle's Café Central

Sigmund Freud Museum: You begin this morning learning about the founder of psychoanalysis. Freud was very closely associated with Vienna, working at the hospital and living most of his life in the city until the rise of the Nazi Party forced the family to flee to England. This museum has been converted from his former home and office and you can discover the personal and professional life of the man who first explored the inner workings of the human psyche.

Viktor Frankl Museum: You continue in the same district of the city at the Viktor Frankl Museum which honours the famous Viennese doctor, philosopher and founder of logotherapy. The house that now forms the museum was Frankl’s home from the end of the Second World War until his death in 1997.

Café Central: In the afternoon enjoy an espresso and Viennese pastry at the Café Central which was a favourite watering hole of the Vienna Circle. In the 19th century, Viennese coffee houses became institutions for writers, artists and intellectuals who would gather to exchange ideas and Café Central is one of the most famous of these.

Historic Vienna: You can also explore some of central Vienna including the imposing Stephansdom Cathedral and the Hofburg Palace at Heldenplatz. The grandeur of some of the buildings on the Ringstrasse reminds us that Vienna was once the capital of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, ruling a territory that stretched across Eastern and Southern Europe and playing a pivotal role in the European power politics of the nineteenth century.
Dinner this evening will be at a city centre restaurant.

Day 3

The Belvedere Palace and the Wittgenstein House. Evening trip to the Prater Amusement Park

Belvedere Palace: This morning you visit the baroque Belvedere Palace which was originally built as a summer residence for the Habsburg Empress Maria Theresa. In 1781 it became one of the first public art galleries in the world and with the exception of a hiatus during WW2 this has continued to the present day. At the heart of the collection are the works of the illustrious Viennese artist Gustav Klimt, founder of the Vienna Secession movement. Two of his most famous paintings – The Kiss and Judith – can be seen here. Also found in the collection are works by Egon Schiele, a protégé of Klimt and a major figurative painter of the early 20th century, known for his explicit nude figures which originally saw many of them banned from display for offending public decency.

Wittgenstein house: After lunch you visit the Wittgenstein villa which was built for the philosopher’s sister in the 1920’s modernist style, reminiscent of Bauhaus architecture, and said to reflect the logical nature of Wittgenstein’s thinking. The building now houses the Bulgarian Cultural Institute and although there is now nothing of Wittgenstein to be seen here, it is one of the very few remaining places in the city with which he is linked.

Prater Amusement Park: In the early evening you can visit the Prater Amusement Park, an historic fun fair which originates from the building of the iconic Big Wheel – the Wiener Riesenrad – in 1897. This famously featured in the Orson Welles film The Third Man, set in the divided city of post-war Vienna. Today there are a wide range of rides to choose from. Entrance to the Park is free and you simply pay for each ride or attraction.

Dinner this evening will be at a city centre restaurant.

Day 4

Narrenturm Tower and Schönbrunn Palace

Narrenturm Tower: This morning you visit the former Vienna Old General Hospital which was founded by Emperor Josef II in 1784. As well as treating the sick, the hospital also acted as an asylum for the mentally ill who were housed in the cylindrical building known as the Narrenturm or Fools Tower. The round shape was conceived so that patients could not get lost. This is generally regarded as the World’s first psychiatric clinic and heralded a change in attitudes towards the mentally ill. Today the building is home to the Vienna Pathological-Anatomical Museum which has a macabre collection of over 4000 specimens of physical abnormalities preserved in formaldehyde, as well as wax copies of various bodily deformities.

Schönbrunn: In the afternoon you visit the Palace of Schönbrunn, the official residence of the Habsburg Emperors until Austria became a republic at the end of the First World War. The Palace was built in the 1740’s and all the Habsburg rulers since this date have lived here, most famously the only Habsburg Empress, Maria Theresa who ruled during the critical years from 1740 to 1780. Besides touring through the authentically furnished residential and ceremonial rooms of the Imperial Family, there are also extensive and exquisite gardens to explore which include a maze.

Flight Home: There will be free time for shopping before in the evening you transfer to the airport for your flight back home