Unofficial visitor guide · Vienna
Official audio guide · English Yes · 12 languages · €5
Klimt's The Kiss hangs in the Upper Belvedere, the Baroque palace that holds the Belvedere's collection from the Middle Ages to the 1970s; the Lower Belvedere, at the other end of the garden, shows temporary exhibitions. The Upper Belvedere rents an audio guide in 12 languages for €5. If yours isn't one of them, or you want the labels read to you, here is what helps.
Independent guide by the makers of Tales of Museums. Not affiliated with the Belvedere.
Checked on 21 October 2026 from the sources linked above. Museums change their guides and rules; confirm on the official Belvedere website before you go.
Checked on 21 October 2026 from the sources linked above. Museums change their guides and rules; confirm on the official Belvedere website before you go.
Swipe for the works and stories worth knowing before you go.
Klimt's best-known painting was bought in 1908, during his lifetime, by the Imperial Ministry of Culture and Education for the Modern Gallery, the state museum that had opened in the Lower Belvedere in 1903. Today it hangs in the Upper Belvedere, whose collection includes the world's largest group of Klimt paintings.
belvedere.at: History and architecture · belvedere.at: Picture this! (collection display)
In the Baroque section of the collection display you meet Franz Xaver Messerschmidt's "Character Heads", among them The Simpleton (No. 17, 1777/83). The museum calls the series mysterious: it has inspired several interpretations and still fascinates viewers.
Carlo Carlone was commissioned in 1720 to paint the ceiling fresco of the Upper Belvedere's Marble Hall. Bombs destroyed parts of the hall in the Second World War, and on 15 May 1955 the Austrian State Treaty was signed in the Upper Belvedere, the moment remembered as "Austria is free!"
In 1776 Maria Theresa and her son Joseph II moved the Imperial Picture Gallery from the Stallburg to the Upper Belvedere so the public could see it; it opened in 1777. In 1888 the imperial collections left for the new Kunsthistorisches Museum, which opened on 17 October 1891.
The general Prince Eugene of Savoy had Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt build the Lower Belvedere from 1712 and the Upper Belvedere from 1717 to 1723. The garden between them, finished in 1718, was planned by Dominique Girard, who had learned water technology and garden design at Versailles.
Look for the five senses on the gold panels: Venus gripping Cupid's arm stands for touch, a woman holding a mirror for sight, and a monkey eating fruit for taste. Before the Orangery was built, rooms in both wings of the Lower Belvedere housed orange trees.
Karl Schwanzer designed the steel-and-glass building as Austria's pavilion at the 1958 World's Fair in Brussels, where it won the Grand Prix d'Architecture. Rebuilt in Vienna, it opened in 1962 as the Museum of the Twentieth Century and now shows contemporary art.
Tales of Museums reads the label in front of you aloud in your language, for any label you can photograph. Calls are not allowed in the exhibition rooms and the museum asks for quiet, so bring headphones and mobile data, and come with your phone charged.
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At the Upper Belvedere the rented device covers the permanent collection in 12 languages: Cantonese, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Polish, Russian, Spanish and Ukrainian, for €5. The Lower Belvedere's exhibition guides are in German and English only. The collection tour for your own phone, bought with an online ticket, is in German, English, French, Spanish, Italian, Ukrainian, Polish, Russian, Japanese, Chinese and Korean. belvedere.at: Visit · belvedere.at: Audio tours
Klimt's The Kiss is in the Upper Belvedere, in the collection display that runs from the Middle Ages to the 1970s. The Lower Belvedere, Prince Eugene's former residence, shows temporary exhibitions and the Middle Ages and Renaissance gallery. A single ticket is for one building; the 2-in-1 day ticket covers both on the same day, with its time slot for the Upper Belvedere. belvedere.at: Upper Belvedere · belvedere.at: Lower Belvedere · belvedere.at: Picture this! (collection display) · belvedere.at: Visit
The house rules allow photos for private, non-commercial use without flash, tripods or selfie sticks, from at least one metre away. Rooms, exhibitions and works marked with a no-photography sign are excluded, and you may not photograph other visitors, especially children. belvedere.at: House rules · belvedere.at: House rules (PDF, 9 July 2026)
Yes: the Upper and Lower Belvedere admit only with a time-slot ticket, and once inside you can stay as long as you like. Prices are set per day; on 21 October 2026 the ticket shop showed €23 for the Upper Belvedere, €20 for the Lower Belvedere and €32 for the 2-in-1 day ticket. Under-19s enter free. With an online ticket you go straight to the entrance. belvedere.at: Visit · belvedere.at: Tickets · belvedere.at: FAQ
The museum says it is busiest between 11 am and 2 pm, and quieter early in the morning or later in the afternoon. The Upper Belvedere opens daily from 9 am to 6 pm and the Lower Belvedere from 10 am to 6 pm. Last admission is 30 minutes before closing. belvedere.at: House rules · belvedere.at: A perfect visit to the Belvedere · belvedere.at: Upper Belvedere · belvedere.at: Lower Belvedere · belvedere.at: FAQ
Yes. All areas are reached by lift, there are accessible toilets, and wheelchairs are lent free at the cloakrooms. At the Upper Belvedere the accessible ticket counter is at the group ticket counter, and the Lower Belvedere has a ramp in the courtyard at Rennweg 6. The garden path between the two palaces is not barrier-free. belvedere.at: Inclusion at the museum · belvedere.at: FAQ
Yes. The Belvedere's Baroque Palace Gardens between the Upper and Lower Belvedere are free to enter, with hours that change by month, from 6:30 or 7 am until between 5:30 pm in winter and 9 pm in summer; dogs and other pets are not allowed. The Privy Garden beside the Lower Belvedere needs a valid museum ticket and is entered through the Lower Belvedere's Marble Gallery, and the Alpine Garden, open from late March to early August, costs €4 for adults. belvedere.at: Gardens
For a first overview, the Belvedere says many visitors find 1 to 2 hours per location enough. The museum suggests allowing a little more time to see 2 or 3 different exhibitions. belvedere.at: A perfect visit to the Belvedere
Yes. Everyone under 19 enters the Belvedere free, strollers can be taken anywhere or left in the stroller parking areas, and coats and bags go in the free cloakroom or lockers. The Belvedere also runs family workshops, where admission is included in the event ticket and at least 1 adult must come for every 3 children. belvedere.at: Visiting the Belvedere with kids · belvedere.at: FAQ
Each of the 3 Belvedere locations has a café with hot and cold dishes and cakes: the Schlosscafé inside the Upper Belvedere, whose terrace looks over the Baroque garden to the Lower Belvedere, the Parkcafé at the Lower Belvedere, and the Lucy Bar at Belvedere 21. Food and drink are not allowed in the exhibition rooms. belvedere.at: Culinary breaks around the Belvedere · belvedere.at: Visiting the Belvedere with kids · belvedere.at: Upper Belvedere · belvedere.at: Lower Belvedere
At the Belvedere, backpacks, travel or sports bags, coats, umbrellas and anything 36 × 22 × 35 cm or larger cannot go into the exhibitions, nor can tripods, selfie sticks or containers of liquid, and smaller bags must be carried in front of you or at your side. Items up to 60 × 45 × 30 cm can be left free of charge, subject to space, in the cloakrooms of the Upper and Lower Belvedere or in free lockers that take a €1 or €2 coin; larger items and luggage cannot be stored. belvedere.at: House rules (PDF, July 2026), points 12 and 14–16 · belvedere.at: FAQ (luggage, lockers)
Tales of Museums is an independent app and is not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to the Belvedere. Translations, narration and the extra facts use AI and can contain mistakes, so for anything important, check the museum's official information and the linked sources. Please follow the museum's photography rules.