Haus des Meeres – A fascinating aquarium in Vienna
The House of the Sea is one of the largest aquariums in Europe and offers exciting insights into the underwater world on several floors. In addition to exotic fish and sea creatures, there are also crocodiles, sharks, turtles and a tropical house to discover. In the former flak tower in Vienna's Mariahilf district, you can look forward to over 10,000 animals and enjoy a breathtaking view of the city from the roof terrace. An absolute highlight for young and old!
Short info:
- Where is the House of the Sea? Fritz-Grünbaum-Platz 1, 1060, in the 6th district of Vienna (in Esterházy Park)
- What is the House of the Sea? An Aqua Terra Zoo and Tiergarten in the heart of Vienna
- How much time should I plan for a visit? At least 2.5 hours
- Is there an entrance fee? Yes, you can find them here price list and opening hours
- What used to be in the building? The building is a former flak tower from World War II
- How many animals are there? Approximately 10,000
The House of the Sea is next to the Schönbrunn Zoo and the Lainzer Tiergarten one of three zoos in Vienna. On 11 floors and almost 50 meters high, the former flak tower is home to over 10,000 animals, mainly consisting of marine aquariums and terrariums.
We first buy a ticket. At €22.90, a visit for adults isn't exactly cheap. Even for toddlers ages 3 and up, you'll have to dig deep into your pockets (€6.50). This is hardly surprising, given that the crowds here are mostly families with children.
Tip: an annual pass is worth it even if you only visit the House of the Sea twice a year. However, annual passes are not valid on weekends!
Ground floor. Atlantic Tunnel, koi pond, ticket office, shop & cloakroom, and restrooms
Tip for families: If you're traveling with children, leave the stroller downstairs and start on the top floor. There's only one elevator, and the wait is quite long during rush hour. So it's best to take the elevator up once and walk down the 11th floor.
For the sake of simplicity, we would like to go from bottom to top for you. We will first go through the Atlantic Tunnelwhere you can discover sharks, rays and other marine fish.
The koi pool is a magnet especially for children, as they can put their hands in it.
1st floor: snakes, lizards, turtles, ant trail
Snake lovers will get their money's worth here. There are several giant snakes, including all types of boa and python. You will also find snakes, venomous snakes, a cobra, mambas and vipers.
Along the glass railing climbs the presumably longest ant trail in the world with a total length of about 70m - it extends over two floors. You will also find some turtles and iguanas here.
2nd floor: Mediterranean: jellyfish, octopus, nibble fish tank, piranhas and other tropical freshwater fish. Access to the tropical house and crocodile park
The highlight here is the tropical house. This is where you see animals walking freely for the first time. It is impressive how close the monkeys and birds come to you. Feeding and touching them is of course strictly forbidden here!
You can short rainforest hike do: coming out of the water, so to speak, over paths and suspension bridges, past the waterfall up to the treetops. You can observe the animals from all angles.
It goes past fish from mangrove regions, past swamp and land turtles, up to the free-flying birds and monkeys running around freely.
Below, somewhat cordoned off, you will find two more tortoises, namely the charcoal-faced tortoise and the wood tortoise.
If you look closely, you can also spot Nile fruit bats, which grow up to 15cm tall.
The animals also roam freely in the crocodile park - but not the crocodiles, of course 😉 We are not professionals, but the largest is certainly 5-6 meters long. A special feature of this section is that part of the floor in the water area was made of glass, so that visitors in the entrance foyer can look up directly into the crocodile pool.
If you leave the tropical house and the crocodile park, you will come across jellyfish and piranha tanks. If you are lucky, you will even spot an octopus. There is also a tank with reddish suckerfish, also known as a surgeonfish. If you put your hand in the tank, the fish will suck onto you or nibble on your fingers.
3rd floor: living corals, tropical marine animals
Here you will find corals and tropical sea fish such as triggerfish and surgeonfish. There are also rays here. Children can go into the interior of the ocean using a glass tube.
4th floor: Aquarium of the sea turtle “Puppi”, seahorses, tropical house and the Café Sharky, toilets
Here you have your first glimpse of the huge two-part aquarium in which the giant turtle “Puppi” frolics. You can also see sharks, a huge perch, several rays and beautiful sea fish.
Here you will find the upper entrance to the tropical house as well as the Café Sharky, which is much cheaper than the Panorama Bar on the top floor. You can also get a beautiful view of Vienna from the Sharky, albeit through glass.
5th floor: shark tank, deep sea aquarium, toilet
Here you can see the aquarium from above, with the same animals as mentioned above. There is also an aquarium with giant spider crabs, which live up to their name.
6th floor: Native fish, marine conservation exhibition
To be honest, this floor is a bit boring with its only aquarium with local fish. Then around the corner you can learn some interesting facts about marine conservation.
7th floor: Desert Terrarium, New Guinea Paludarium, Pacific Eye, 360° Shark Tank
The highlight of this floor is the recently built 360° shark tank. Here you can walk around the aquarium and watch the animals from every angle. There are even armchairs here to relax in. The Pacific Eye is supposed to give you a direct view of the sea. Well
8th floor: Chameleon, Spine, Scorpion & Co
Here you will find the grotto with chameleons, scorpions, spiders and other small animals
9th floor: Amazon jungle, Komodos, ring-tailed lemurs, Australia tour, meeting point for ring-tailed lemur encounters (on the 9th and 1st floor)
Here you will find a large uncovered tank with various fish and creatures that live in the Amazon. There is also a suitable background noise.
In a glass cage you can meet giant turtles and ring-tailed lemurs.
The Australia tour leads along the outer edge of the flak tower, sometimes even onto a secure outdoor terrace – protected by bars to prevent the free-flying parrots and budgies from escaping. The view over Vienna is very beautiful in places, but the Australian flair is only subtly apparent.
10th floor: Caribbean hammerhead shark baking, “Remembering Inside”, Victor-Otte-Sall, Lighthouse 10 (Events and Culture Wave)
Here you will find one last very beautiful and large tank with all kinds of sea creatures. The highlight here are the much-vaunted hammerhead sharks. However, some of the fish are larger than the sharks, which are hardly longer than 70cm.
11th floor: 360° Ocean Sky Restaurant Bar, rooftop terrace
One last highlight of the Haus des Meeres. The food and drinks are not cheap, but you don't have to consume anything to enjoy the fantastic 360° view over Vienna! After all, it is the highest rooftop location in Vienna's city center.
