01/04/2024
The Belvedere is a Baroque palace complex in Vienna, a 10-minute walk from the State Opera and part of the city’s UNESCO-listed historic centre. Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt built it in 1712–1723 as the summer residence of Prince Eugene of Savoy: the Lower Belvedere for living and the grander Upper Belvedere for receptions, linked by a terraced French-style garden with fountains, cascades and sculptures.
After Eugene’s death the Habsburgs bought the palaces. From 1781 the Upper Belvedere displayed the imperial picture collection, making it one of the first public museums in the world; later Archduke Franz Ferdinand lived here until 1914, and in 1955 the Austrian State Treaty, which restored Austria’s independence, was signed in its Marble Hall.
Today both palaces belong to the Belvedere museum. The Upper Belvedere holds the world’s largest collection of paintings by Gustav Klimt, including “The Kiss” and “Judith”, as well as works by Schiele, Kokoschka, Monet, Van Gogh and Jacques-Louis David’s “Napoleon Crossing the Alps”; the Lower Belvedere shows temporary exhibitions in the prince’s state rooms. The garden is free to walk through. Start at the Upper Belvedere at the top of the slope and walk down to the Lower Belvedere.
Key Facts
- Hours: Upper Belvedere daily 9:00–18:00 (to 19:00 from mid-July to August); Lower Belvedere daily 10:00–18:00.
- Tickets (2026): Upper Belvedere €23 (seniors and students under 26 €19); Lower Belvedere €20; free for under-19s.
- Getting there: tram D to Schloss Belvedere, or about 10 minutes on foot from Wien Hauptbahnhof.
Weather in location: Belvedere Palace, Vienna, Austria
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