The Belvedere Palace is one of the most popular tourist attractions of this magical city, Vienna. In Italian, Belvedere means “a beautiful view” and it really is beautiful- both the view from the palace and the view of the palace. The Belvedere complex consists of two smaller palaces, the upper and lower Belvedere, which together create an impressive complex. The Belvedere is a Baroque castle, along with most buildings in Vienna. A famous Baroque architect is Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt, and the Belvedere is his most famous work.
In 1697, Prince Eugene started landscaping the park and building his summer house, and in 1714, the building of the Lower Belvedere started, which, though was built for the purpose of enjoying it, like a gallery, soon became a residence. In the central Marble Hall of the palace, there is a fresco painted by Martin Altomonte. On this fresco, there is Prince Eugene represented as Apolon, the god of beauty, art and the god of muses. What used to be a summer residence of one military leader is converted into a museum today. On one of the floors, there is the biggest painting collection in the world by the famous artist Gustav Klimt. Apart from his paintings, there are also the paintings of Van Gogh and Claude Monet.
In front of the palace, there is a big lake and a magical park, which partly resembles the parks of the Palace of Versailles, and not only them, but also the gardens of French emperors. The garden is decorated with sculptures, neat trails and fountains, even with some fountains with tiers. There is a wonderful view of the city from the upper palace, hence this place has the name of Belvedere- a beautiful view. In 1955, in the upper palace, the Austrian State Treaty was signed between the Austrian government and the occupation forces, therefore the modern state of Austria was established on this place.
For many people, the Belvedere is one of the most beautiful Baroque buildings. We have seen with our own eyes that this is truly the case and we hope that you will agree, as well.
Ticket price for Belvedere Palace
Regular ticket price 20 €
Ticket price for the lower palace: 13 €
Ticket price for the upper palace: 15 €
You can also buy tickets online via this link.
Opening hours of the Belvedere Palace
Every day from 10 am to 6 pm for the lower palace
from 9 am to 6 pm for the upper palace.
Friday is the day when both palaces are open until 9pm.
Author of the article:
Maja Glavaš, Bachelor with Honours in Communicology. Works in Tourism.
Contact: [email protected]; instagram: travel_europe1
photo credit: Daniel Plan
