SOP Vienna: Cemetery Walk
World Cafe
Tour the Vienna cemetery where some of the world’s most famous composers are buried
On the outskirts of Vienna, more than 3 million people are buried in the Vienna Central Cemetery — including Mozart, Beethoven, Strauss and one of Austria’s most celebrated musicians, Falco.
With around 2 million people, Vienna is the most populous city in Austria. But the Vienna Central Cemetery is home to even MORE people. Opened a century and a half ago, the cemetery on the outskirts of the city takes up three and half times as much space as Disneyland and has more than 3 million people buried there. It’s really, really big! Which is why, if you’re going, you’re probably smart to go with someone knows their way around.
Enter Deter Unrath, who took me on a walk through those hundreds of thousands of graves to see the resting places of some of the most famous composers of all time: Mozart, Beethoven, Strauss — most of those guys are grouped together in one section. But to begin, we go for a walk to different area of the cemetery to see the grave of another one of Austria’s most celebrated musicians. Ooh, Rock Me Amadeus — it’s Falco.
So lace up those walking shoes, and join us in this historical tour around the Vienna Central Cemetery.