Puppy standing by the riverside, Old Danube, Vienna

01-Oct-2025 | moving to austria A Dog's Guide to Vienna 2025

To say Vienna is dog-friendly is an understatement. Vienna loves dogs! If you're moving to, or living in, Vienna with your canine companion – here's your guide to everything dog.

Rules, Routes and Paw-Friendly Places

Dogs are possibly the exception to the Viennese "Grantigkeit”. With nearly 59,000 registered dogs across the city, you’ll notice them everywhere — on trams, in cafés, even at the cinema. Vienna is a city that embraces its four-legged residents, but daily life here comes with a mix of rules, rituals and plenty of perks.

🛄 Moving to Vienna With a Dog

If you’re relocating, there are a few administrative steps you’ll need to tick off before you and your pup can settle in:

Before Arrival	After Arrival
🐾 Microchip ISO standard, required for all dogs	🏛️ Registration Register your dog with the city (MA 60 – Veterinary Office and Animal Welfare) within one month.
💉 Rabies vaccination Must be up-to-date (administered at least 21 days before entry if first vaccination)	💶 Dog tax (Hundesteuer) Approx. €72 annually; exemptions for service / assistance / rescue dogs; possible reduction or exemption for certain cases
📘 Travel documents EU: EU Pet Passport (shows valid rabies vaccination) Non-EU / Schengen: Veterinary (animal health) certificate with vaccination record	🛡️ Liability insurance Mandatory for all dogs
✈️ Entry to Austria Non-EU arrivals via designated airports (Vienna, Linz, Salzburg, Innsbruck, Graz, Klagenfurt) ; EU / Schengen entry by car, train or plane	📑 Hundeführschein (Dog handling licence) Mandatory for listed breeds (within 3 months, repeat after 21–24 months) Voluntary for non-listed dogs; in Vienna, passing it exempts you from dog tax for the following year

Failing to follow the rules can get expensive: fines of up to €50 for not cleaning up after your dog; and for listed breeds, owners even face an alcohol limit. Handle your dog while over the legal alcohol limit of 0.5 g/L blood alcohol, and you risk a €1,000 fine. It’s an unusual detail, but it underlines how seriously Vienna takes responsible ownership.

🐕‍🦺 Bark Density by District

Vienna is home to almost 59,000 registered dogs, that's about 1 dog for every 34 people. In other words, you'll never be far from a wagging tail.

The Doggiest Districts

Some districts will feel more 'doggy' than others. Donaustadt and Floridsdorf (on the city’s edge, with big green spaces) top the list in sheer numbers. If you head west, leafy areas like Hietzing, Döbling, and Liesing also stand out – families with gardens, easy access to the Wienerwald, and plenty of space for four-legged friends.

Meanwhile, in central districts like Neubau or Mariahilf, dogs are less common – apartments are smaller and green space is limited. The Innere Stadt looks like a dog hotspot on paper – 32.1 dogs per 1,000 residents – but that's more to do with so few people living in the 1st district (c.16,000), so even a few hundred dogs make the ratio look high.

🔍 The map below shows density of dogs by district, looking at the number of dogs per 1,000 residents.

📜 Rules, Realities and Everyday Dog Life

Vienna’s rules are more than etiquette; they are law. But they exist for a reason: to keep dogs and people living happily side-by-side.

🐕‍🦺 Leash and muzzle	Dogs must be on a leash in public. On public transport, they also need a muzzle.
💩 Clean up	It’s the law. And the right thing to do. Use the city’s dispensers (3,900+ of them). Otherwise risk a €50 fine.
🚎 Transport	Small dogs in closed carriers travel free of charge. All other dogs require a half-price ticket, leash and muzzle.
☕ Shops, cafés, malls	Most welcome dogs, provided they are leashed. Some may ask for a muzzle, especially larger breeds or when near food. Always check first.
🚫 No go areas	Dogs are prohibited, among other places, from children’s playgrounds, sandpits, museums, theatres, supermarkets, bakeries and certain ornamental gardens and nature reserves (for example, parts of Schönbrunn or Volksgarten).

It may feel strict, but the effect is clear: dogs are so well-integrated into everyday Viennese life because the framework makes it possible.

🏞 Where to Go With Your Dog

Now the paperwork and rules are out of the way, the fun begins. As mentioned, dogs are very welcome in the city, and are a familiar part of daily life in Vienna.

However, for pure unadulterated dog-friendly delight, Vienna has it covered – with more than 200 dog zones and dog walking areas with a total area of over 1,000,000 m²:

Hundezonen and Auslaufplätze – fenced or designated off-leash areas in every district.
Hundebadeplätze – official dog swimming areas along the Danube and other waters.
Donauinsel and Prater – iconic outdoor spaces, with some paths reserved just for pedestrians and dogs (no bikes).
Hiking trails – the city’s official hiking routes offer weekend adventure for all.

Top Dog Hangout RECOM-mendations

1. Prater Hundezone (1020)

Vienna's largest dog space, where dogs can run, sniff and leap with joy!

Approximately 300,000 m² of doggy paradise – a beautiful green space of both meadow and forested sections for dogs to explore, leash-free. It's a popular unfenced area, so be prepared to encounter not only other dogs, but cyclists and joggers.
Tip: Stop off at the numerous drinking and eating establishments within the Prater.
📍 Google Maps link – Prater Hundezone

Scotty enjoying the quiet of Schwarzenbergpark

2. Schwarzenbergpark Hunde Auslaufplatz (1170)

Beautiful walks by the Vienna Woods

Approximately 85,000 m² of green space for dogs, on the edge of the Vienna Woods. Also known as Tiefauswiese, this dog haven sits adjacent to the many hiking trails that run through Schwarzenbergpark – where it is mandatory for dogs to be on leash.
📍 Google Maps link — Schwarzenbergpark Hundezone

Maggie and Emma taking in the views of the Donauinsel Hundezone

Hundezone Donauinsel

3. Donauinsel Hundezone

For dogs that like to make a splash!

A popular area for off-leash fun and a lovely bathing area for dogs and their humans, with shaded areas when the sun is out. It can get busy so it's recommended to get there earlier in the day, if you like it quieter.

Be aware! Although this is supposed to be a no-cycle zone, this isn't alway adhered to, so please be cautious of errant cyclists.
📍 Google Maps link — Hundezone Donauinsel

Hedwig enjoys having Heldenplatz Hundezone all to herself

4. Heldenplatz Hundezone (1010)

Off-leash in the city

A small but perfectly-formed fenced-off area for your dog to run around, in the heart of Vienna, with dog poo bag dispenser and water fountain. Go on a Sunday morning and you may find you have the place all to yourself.

📍 Google Maps link - Heldenplatz Hundezone

Rafa and Kia walking among the vineyards on decidedly different days

5. Among the Vineyards

When you want to get out of the city, head for the hills

Any time of year is a good time of year to hike in the vineyards (see Kia above in the snow), however, October, is the perfect time – after your walk, treat yourself to a G'spritzer and a bite to eat! Where there are vineyards, there are beautiful places to wander.

Note: As these aren't strictly dog zones, it is mandatory for dogs to be on a leash.

Tip: Stop off at a heuriger or local restaurant and pat yourself on the back for a walk well done! Below are a few of our favourites:

Heuriger Hengl-Haselbrunner, Iglaseegasse 10, 1190 – great garden with old trees.
Häuserl am Stoa Hofbauer, Zierleitengasse 42A, 1190 – beautiful city views and lovely garden.
Heuriger Zimmermann, Mitterwurzergasse 20, 1190 – charming Heuriger with stunning views, next to the vineyards.

🃏 WILDCARD: Hundekino at Admiral Cinema

Full disclaimer, this has not yet been tried and tested by the Recom "Dog" Team, but we are curious! Since 2008, Admiral Kino has been running Hundekino. Every first Thursday of the month, you can go on a dog date with your best friend – and they go free – with blanket, popcorn (or 'pup-corn'?) and water available for your canine companion (muzzle and leash required).

📅 Upcoming Dog Events

Animal Blessing (Tiersegnung, Stephansplatz, 3rd October 2025) – in memory of St. Francis of Assisi and in time with World Animal Day, pets receive blessings at Stephansplatz, 1010 Vienna. Not suitable for anxious or noise-sensitive animals.
Du & Das Tier (Messe Tulln, 10th–12th October 2025) – Austria’s biggest fair for animal lovers, just outside Vienna, run by Austria's Kennel Club
Dog Sparkle Christmas Market (25hours Hotel in Neubau, 8th December 2025) – a festive one-day pop-up for dog and cat lovers.
Hundeadvent Vienna (Dog Winter Market, Neugebäude Palace, 1110 Vienna,12th–14th December 2025) – a three-day Christmas market dedicated to dogs.
Haustiermesse Wien (Pet Fair, Marx Halle, 28th Feb – 1st March 2026) – Austria’s largest pet fair. One of the two halls is dedicated to dogs: with dog gymnastics, hay bale races, a dog ball pool and dog parkour!

Vienna, Dog City

Vienna might come across as rule-heavy, but those rules are the very reason life here with a dog is so easy. From the Donauinsel to Hundekino, from blessings at Stephansplatz to winter markets for dogs, this city doesn’t just accommodate its canine residents, it celebrates them.