With a rich history, beautiful baroque architecture, and the world's largest collection of Gustav Klimt artwork -- Vienna's Belvedere Palace is a must see destination.
Vienna in November, is a city that just begs to be walked in. Every where you look is something interesting to see and explore. Whether it's one of their Christmas Markets, a museum hidden under cool architecture, or perusing castles, Vienna has so many treasures.
We had heard about the Belvedere Palace and their impressive collection of Gustav Klimt pieces, so we decided to spend a day wandering around the castles and getting to know the Baroque history of old Vienna.
The Belvedere Palace is so much more than a palace, its more like a collection of palaces and beautiful museums. The Belvedere actually consists of 3 Palaces (the Upper Belvedere, the Lower Belvedere and the Winter Palace) that are somewhat sprawled throughout the city, and several smaller museums in the vicinity. We decided to check out the Upper and Lower Belvedere (if you can only visit one Palace I would recommend the Upper Belvedere) and the Winter Palace.
The Upper and Lower Belvedere Palaces
The Belvedere’s two magnificent palaces, the Upper and Lower Belvedere, were built in the 18th century as the summer residence for the important general Prince Eugene of Savoy (1663-1736). The palaces with their extensive gardens are considered to be one of the world’s finest Baroque landmarks.
The Upper Belvedere Palace
The Lower Belvedere Palace
The Winter Palace
Although you are only able to see a small portion of the Winter Palace (the rest of the Palace is actually used to handle city duties), what you do see is breathtaking and truly shows the Baroque elegance which was Prince Eugene's style.
For more information on the Belvedere Palace, or for opening hours and ticket information, please check out their website.