An Evening at the Ball
From November to Carnival, Vienna dances. We put your ball evening together: from the ticket to the gown to the last waltz at four in the morning.
More than 400 balls fill one Viennese season, in the Hofburg, the City Hall, the Musikverein and, once a year, the State Opera. Anyone who has lost their way in the midnight quadrille and walked home along the Ring with a sausage roll in hand understands why the Viennese love these nights so much.
The two of us, Martha and Sebastian, are passionate dancers. So we turned the ball night into an experience we have created for guests several times, including for journalists we accompanied through the ball season together with the Vienna Tourist Board. You tell us when you are in Vienna. We take care of everything else.
At midnight, strangers hold each other by the hand. That is the moment when Vienna is at its most Viennese.
November to Carnival
One evening, two to three days with preparation
Couples, families with teenagers, small groups, companies
The balls of the 2026/27 season
Every ball has its own character. We listen to what you are looking for, suggest the right evening, get the tickets and reserve your table.
Plus the New Year’s Eve Ball in the Hofburg, the Hunters’ Ball, the Flower Ball at City Hall, the Lawyers’ Ball, the Rudolfina Redoute and many more. Organisers announce the remaining dates one by one; we keep track of them.
How an evening becomes an experience
The right ball for you
We ask what you feel like: a grand stage or a cosy round, Musikverein or Hofburg, debutantes or the disco in the basement. Then we suggest the right evening, get the tickets and reserve a table close to the dance floor.
Good to know: tickets for the Opera Ball and the Philharmonic Ball sell out months in advance. For the Hofburg balls, four to six weeks are enough.
Gown, tails and tuxedo
A ball begins with getting dressed. If you have nothing suitable in your suitcase, we take you to a rental house or, if you prefer, to buy at one of Vienna’s traditional outfitters. We choose gloves and shoes to match and arrange hair and make-up on the evening itself.
Dress code: floor-length evening gown, tuxedo or tails with a white bow tie. At most Hofburg balls a tuxedo is enough; at the State Opera and the Philharmonic Ball, tails are compulsory. Uniforms and festive traditional dress are welcome.
The waltz lesson
Left waltz, right waltz and a little quadrille for midnight: at the Elmayer dance school, where Vienna has learned to dance since 1919, we book a private workshop. Two hours are enough to step onto the floor with confidence. For teenagers this is often the best part of the preparation.
Tanzschule Elmayer, Bräunerstraße 13, 1010 Vienna. Private lessons are possible on the day before the ball.
The night itself
We accompany you through the evening, show you the halls, tell you what happens behind the scenes, and know where to find the best goulash soup at three in the morning. For companies and small groups we set up a table of your own with a host.
For teenagers it is a real Bridgerton experience: the gown, the gloves, the first waltz in a state room.
How a ball night unfolds
- from 8.30 pmDoors open. Hand in your coat, up the grand staircase, a first glass. If you have a table, this is when you find it.
- 10.00 pmThe opening. Fanfare, the entry of the debutantes and their partners in white and black, polonaise, waltz, and then the call everyone waits for: "Alles Walzer!"
- until midnightDancing and wandering. Waltz, foxtrot, quickstep, and in between a walk through the halls. At the big balls every hall has its own musicians, from orchestra to jazz band, and the disco in the basement plays something else entirely.
- 12.00 midnightThe quadrille. The highlight of the night, more on that below. Some balls add a midnight show; the Zuckerbäckerball has its cake lottery.
- after midnightSomething to eat. Goulash soup, sausages or a doughnut at the bar, then back onto the floor. The second quadrille comes around two, the music plays until four or five.
- around 4 amThe way home. By carriage or on foot along the Ring, with the "Damenspende" in hand, the small gift every lady receives at the entrance.
The midnight quadrille
At midnight everyone lines up in long rows facing each other, couple beside couple, right across the hall. A dance master calls the figures in French. You walk towards each other, swap places, bow and turn, and in the finale the tempo gets so fast that the rows fall apart and everyone laughs.
You learn the steps in your waltz lesson at Elmayer; half an hour is enough. If you want a preview: the Fledermaus quadrille is on YouTube with instructions and music.
Good to know
- Price
- We put every ball experience together individually, depending on the ball, the wardrobe and the dance lessons. You receive an offer listing every item, so there are no surprises on the night.
- Shoes
- Dance shoes with leather soles, no rubber. Ladies wear high heels for the opening and bring a second pair for the night.
- Language
- We accompany you in English or German.
- To get in the mood
- The episode "Waltzing through the City of Music: Vienna" from "The Reluctant Traveler with Eugene Levy" (season 3, episode 2) on Apple TV+: Eugene Levy helps prepare a Viennese ball and learns to dance along the way. Watch the episode
Tell us when you are in Vienna
A ball night is not a sightseeing tour, it is a piece of Vienna you experience with your whole body. Write to us and we will put your evening together.
