Excursion

As with every meeting, there will be an excursion in a hamster habitat at this meeting too. Common hamsters inhabit natural landscapes, parks, and green areas surrounding buildings in several districts of Vienna, but mainly in the south and northeast. Not all of these spots are free accessible to everyone and/or not appropriate to be visited by a huge party as the IHWG 2023 fellowship. Therefore, the excursion will be held at the huge central cemetery (Wiener Zentralfriedhof, https://www.friedhoefewien.at/wiener-zentralfriedhof).

The main entrance (2nd gate) of the central cemetery is located at Simmeringer Hauptstraße 234, 1110 Vienna.

The central cemetery can be reached from the venue (UBB) by public transport, e.g. after a short walk using tram line 71 (from station St. Marx to station Zentralfriedhof 2. Tor). We will travel together (but in smaller groups) to the central cemetery using the tram or subway.

Of course, you can also get there on your own. We will provide detailed information on the hamster observation route through the cemetery, but the meeting point will be at the 2nd gate inside the cemetery at around 4.30 pm. For the excursion, however, you should move around the  area on your own in small groups, because this increases the chance to observe hamsters.


The central cemetery is one of the largest cemeteries in Europe covering a total area of 2,5 km2 with over 3 million people of all religions being buried here. It also represents a special sight in Vienna because of several Jugendstil buildings and honorary graves (among others, Ludwig van Beethoven, Franz Schubert, and Johann Strauss are buried here). The cemetery is structured like a park and contains forest-like areas and a rich fauna, including several bird species, deer, squirrels, and common hamsters.