Donaupark
{{Short description|Park in Vienna}}
File:Donaupark & Donauturm Vienna 2024.jpg
File:Wien 22 Donaupark 2021 Plan a.jpgThe Donaupark is a 630,000 m2 park in Donaustadt, Vienna, Austria. Originally built on former wetlands between the New Danube and the Old Danube in Kaisermühlen, it was created for the 1964 Vienna International Garden Show and now sits adjacent to the UNO-City.
History
The area now occupied by Donaupark was originally the site of a landfill and two informal settlements, Bruckhaufen and Bretteldorf, which emerged in the early 20th century. Despite construction bans, both settlements expanded and faced conflicts with the city administration. Bruckhaufen was legalized in 1929, while Bretteldorf remained until its last residents were relocated by 1963 to allow for the expansion of the landfill.{{Cite web |title=Donaupark |url=https://www.geschichtewiki.wien.gv.at/Donaupark |access-date=2025-02-24 |website=www.geschichtewiki.wien.gv.at |language=de}}
Following its rehabilitation, the site was identified as a potential recreational area due to its proximity to the city center, approximately 4 km away, and its location near the main traffic corridor at the Reichsbrücke. The City of Vienna decided to develop the area into a park as part of the 1964 Vienna International Garden Show.
Donaupark was officially inaugurated on April 16, 1964, alongside the Donauturm (Danube Tower), as part of the garden show. The park also featured the Donauparkhalle, an indoor ice rink, as well as a chairlift and a narrow-gauge railway to transport visitors. While much of the original 1960s park infrastructure has disappeared, some elements, such as the railway, remain.{{Cite web |last=ktv_wwalter |title=Donaupark |url=https://www.wien.gv.at/english/environment/parks/donaupark.html |access-date=2025-02-24 |website=www.wien.gv.at |language=en}}
In 1983, Pope John Paul II celebrated a holy mass during the Katholikentag on a 20-hectare section of Donaupark near the tower, now known as Papstwiese ("Pope's Meadow"), which was attended by approximately 300,000 people. For the occasion, a 40-meter-tall steel cross, the Papstkreuz, was erected.
Features
= Structures =
The Donauturm is Austria's tallest structure, standing at 252 meters. Opened in 1964, the tower offers panoramic views of Vienna and features a revolving restaurant, an observation deck, a slide, and a bungee-jumping platform. Below the tower is the Papstkreuz, a 40-meter-tall steel cross, built to commemorate Pope John Paul II’s visit in 1983. Restaurants in the area include the Chinese Sichuan and Brunchhouse am Irissee, which offers a Korean menu as part of the Korea Kulturhaus Wien, a centre for Korean culture that hosts exhibitions, language courses, and cultural events.{{Cite news |title=Donaupark |url=https://kidslovevienna.com/de/listings/donaupark-2/ |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20240908120240/https://kidslovevienna.com/de/listings/donaupark-2/ |archive-date=2024-09-08 |access-date=2025-02-24 |work=Kids Love Vienna |language=de}}
Originally introduced during the garden show, the Donauparkbahn is a narrow-gauge railway that once transported visitors through the park. It has three stops: Donauturm, Rosenschau, and Donau-City.{{Cite web |title=Doni's surprise: A journey of discovery with the Donauparkbahn |url=https://www.donauturm.at/en/event-news-and-culinary/news/a-lunch-break-full-of-surprises/ |access-date=2025-02-24 |website=The Danube Tower |language=en-US}}
= Leisure =
The park includes multiple sporting facilities, such as a basketball court, a skate park, table tennis tables, and an outdoor chessboard.{{Cite web |title=Donaupark {{!}} Wien {{!}} sport-oesterreich.at |url=https://www.sport-oesterreich.at/donaupark-wien |access-date=2025-02-24 |website=www.sport-oesterreich.at |language=de}}
The Irissee is a small artificial lake that was created for the garden show. It was restored in 1993 to enhance its ecological function. The lake is surrounded by a natural landscape featuring silver poplars, reeds, and aquatic vegetation, such as roundhead bulrush and flowering rush.
Near the lake is the Schmetterlingswiese (Butterfly Meadow), a sanctuary home to 50 species of butterflies, including the Large copper and Jersey tiger, as well as wild bees, bats, reptiles, and amphibians.{{Cite web |last=red |first=wien ORF at |date=2024-10-06 |title=Neues Feuchtbiotop im Donaupark |url=https://wien.orf.at/stories/3275980/ |access-date=2025-02-24 |website=wien.ORF.at |language=de}}
= Monuments and statues =
The park contains numerous memorials, including ones dedicated to multiple Latin American figures such as Salvador Allende, Simón Bolívar, Che Guevara, José de San Martín, José Martí, and José Gervasio Artigas. Others memorialized in the park include Paracelsus and Azerbaijani composer Uzeyir Hajibeyov. The park also features several statues, as well as a mosaic by Helmut Leherb.
20210620_Donaupark_Salvador-Allende-Denkmal_02.jpg|Salvador Allende
Josemartidonaupark.JPG|José Martí
Bueste_Don_Jose_de_San_Martin_Donaupark_Wien_DSC_8110w.jpg|José de San Martín
Statue_Simon_Bolivar_Donaupark_Wien_DSC_8333w.jpg|Simón Bolívar
Donaupark_Che_Guevara.JPG|Che Guevara
Uzeyir3.jpg|Üzeyir Hacıbəyov
Helmut_Leherb_Kaffeehausszene_Donaupark_Wien_2016.jpg|Mosaic „Im Café“ by Leherb
Donaupark_Papstkreuz-2.jpg|The Papstkreuz
Skulpturdonaupark.JPG|„König und Königin“ (King and Queen)
Skulpturengruppe-Donaupark-Wien-DSC2382b.jpg|Sculpture „Das Goldene Kalb“ by Karl Anton Wolf
Koreahaus_Donaupark-DSC_4321w.jpg|Korea culture house on the Irissee
Donaupark_Wien_Kaskaden_beim_Rosengarten_2017_(5)_Vienna_International_Centre.jpg|Cascades
Schachdonaupark.JPG| Chessboard
Nina_Hartmann_Donauparkbühne_2019_011.jpg|The stage
Wien_22_Donaupark_2021_Sichuan_b.jpg|Garden of the Sichuan restaurant
See also
References
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