Jubiläumswarte, Observation tower in Ottakring, Austria.
Jubiläumswarte is a concrete tower in Ottakring that rises 31 meters above the ground with a circular observation platform reached by an external spiral staircase of 183 steps. From this viewpoint at 480 meters above sea level, visitors can see Vienna's rooftops and the surrounding woodlands.
A wooden tower was built in 1898 to mark the 50th anniversary of Emperor Franz Joseph I's reign but fell during a storm. It was later replaced by an iron structure, which eventually became the concrete tower that stands today.
The name commemorates Emperor Franz Joseph I's 50-year reign in 1898, when the first wooden tower was built here. Since 1998 the neighbouring former inn has housed the Wiener Waldschule of the city forestry office (MA 49), where school classes spend "Waldschultage" learning about the Vienna Woods; display boards explain its animals and trees.
The tower is reached by bus 52B to the Jubiläumswarte stop, served only a few times daily, or by the more frequent Siedlung Kordon stop; lines 46A and 46B stop about twenty minutes' walk away. The 183-step staircase is 90 cm wide, and access is closed in ice or snow.
The staircase winds counterclockwise in 8.4 turns, and its eight half-round projecting platforms alternate between roughly south and northeast. The steel-pipe railing carries a second handrail, and plates on the viewing platform name the distant peaks visible on clear days, from the Schneeberg to the Hainburg hills.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 94,211 contributors worldwide.
