Kiara MijaresIn case it wasn’t obvious, I have a real passion for art museums, and if there’s one place where that passion truly comes to life, it’s Vienna. Honestly, if I had to pick a city that resonates with who I am, it would be Vienna. Does that even make sense? I hope so!
Vienna has this timeless elegance, steeped in history, art, and imperial grandeur. It feels like the city carries itself with a certain sophistication. And I don’t mean that in a pretentious way at all (I promise this isn’t about me anymore)! What I mean is, when you stop and watch the people in the city centre, they exude this deep connection to culture.
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With Vienna, it’s all poise, history, and imperialism. They’re so above everyone else. And I don’t mean that as a bad thing (I’ve also stopped talking about myself, btw)! What I mean to say is that when you stand still and observe everyone in the city centre, people there are just so…cultured.
I felt like they were beyond my reach because they knew their history so well, they appreciated art and knew how to play music.
When I took piano lessons, my teacher—trained by Germans and Russians—instilled in me a deep respect for music. She always said the Germans took their music seriously, and as a kid, I worked hard to match that level of dedication, even if I’m not sure I ever truly did!
Vienna, though, takes music to a whole new level. Becoming a musician here is a well-respected career, and music really is everywhere. From people riding their bikes to buskers in the streets, you get the sense that music flows through the city, not just around the Opera House but in every corner.
Now, onto my favourite art museums in Vienna. Don’t be surprised if they aren’t all filled with “classic art”—because, for me, art is much more than that.
Also read: 12 Greatest Art Museums in Europe You Need to Visit
1. Belvedere Museum
When you find yourself in Vienna, it’s almost criminal not to see Gustav Klimt’s The Kiss! That can be found at the Belvedere Museum. They also have one where you can pretend to pose in front of the work but it’s already a duplicate since photos are allowed everywhere except the wing where all of Klimt’s works were.
To see something so great in person was different. I can’t exactly explain it but it felt different from seeing Klimt’s other works. Was it because I analysed the painting during Art History class? Um, probably.
Because my mom and I were so late (we went down at the wrong stop), we made it just in time before the museum was closing. We had about an hour to go inside the wing and see the Kiss.
Oh, but waaaay beyond that – you’ll be amazed by how grand the architecture in the museum is. I only took photos of the room where they were holding the fake The Kiss but please take my word for it when I say the ceiling is as great as this one below! (and even better too)
I also had an urge to play “Empty Chairs and Empty Tables” from Les Miserables when I saw this:
By the way, the Belvedere museum is open 10am-6pm, and is located at: Prinz Eugen-Straße 27, 1030 Vienna (or Wien).
2. Natural History Museum
If you were ever doubting Vienna’s insane love for great architecture, then the Natural History Museum will definitely take your breath away. It’s located near the city centre and isn’t actually hard to go to.
We took the hop on-hop off bus for all the museums so it’s no surprise that we ended our tour here. You can actually walk going here from the Opera House, but honestly, it’s not that near each other. It’s in the city, so a ton of tourists go around it especially because it’s one of the first museums you’ll know is an actual museum.
I mean that some places in Vienna look like museums but are actually shopping centres, cafes or hotels.
When you’re greeted at the entrance with this staircase and the amazing view, you’ll be so entranced. I was. That was the moment I said to myself I totally get why they call it Imperial Austria.
In this museum, you’ll find works from across the ages in Roman, Greek, Egyptian, and Italian art movements. It’s pretty amazing when you think about how far art has come from porcelain, acrylic, gold, and the likes to technology.
Honestly, I wasn’t exactly the biggest fan of this museum besides the grand architecture and not because I found it boring or anything, but because everything wasn’t properly illuminated. It was difficult to read the descriptions for all the works.
So, I gave up early. No regrets, though.
Anyway.
The price is about 20 euros for the general entrance and 13 for students. It’s open 10am-6pm.
3. The Sigmund Freud Museum
So… There’s one thing I think you should know about me. I graduated with a degree in Psychology.
I know, I know. That’s not actually like the most surprising thing in the world but I was in Vienna and a lot of people were telling me to go to the Freud museum!
Admittedly, I didn’t. I honestly didn’t have enough time to go through all of the museums in Vienna unfortunately and the Freud museum wasn’t at the top of my list anyhow. I’m putting it here though because I believe that science — psych in particular — is like an unspoken and also silent art form.
I’m a big fan of physics and to me, I think it’s art. I like biology and I find that it’s art like any Picasso painting.
Treating people and learning about sexual drives, yeah one way or another — it’s art I guess.
But I’m also putting this here because Freud was from Vienna. He became the Father of Psychoanalysis (and Psychology) with many fond memories of Vienna. And a lot of Viennese restaurants adore Freud. To the point that they name their specialty coffee after him!
It would be an injustice to Vienna and to myself (in some way) if I didn’t put it here. I’m hoping that you get to go there though and maybe tell me all about it!
4. House of Music
The House of Music was the first museum we went to in Vienna because a.) I love music and b.) it was super near the Opera House (or as I like to think, the centre). You can actually walk from the Opera House going to the House of Music and it will only take you about 5 minutes.
One thing you have to know when you go to Vienna: music is everywhere. It’s amazing when you think about it because the city has so much to offer and then you’ll find music everywhere in the streets too! There’s no lack of music shops, musicians, and instruments wherever you go!
If you don’t get a chance to go there, the city itself is like a Music museum anyway. I keep thinking about the Sound of Music. But then that’s in Salzburg, right? Right.
Anyway.
I also really enjoyed the House of Music in comparison to the other museums because it’s very interactive like you can pretend to be the conductor and the screen will actually talk to you. I tried it and it was so fun. More than that, you can climb their stairs and each step is equal to one note. How cool is that? So, if you know how to play a simple song, you can definitely do it in their staircases!
Plus, when we got there, they had kids practising for their recitals. And you can actually watch them practice especially if it’s the Orchestra. The conductor even invited us to sit down and listen to them. Spoiler alert, we did. This is one museum I will absolutely recommend to everyone who goes to Vienna. And no, I don’t mean to disrespect Klimt. But Austria is crazy about their music and if you immerse yourself in it, it’s a spectacular experience.
The House of Music made me really want to go back to playing the piano and I think you’ll have that kind of feeling too. Or at least want to play an instrument.
It’s located at Seilerstaette 30, Vienna 1010 and is open 10am-10pm.
5. The Technology Museum
I saved the best for last!!!
Another thing I want to tell you about me is that I love technology so much. I’m planning on enrolling into a Treehouse course for Front Web Development when I have enough money to pay their monthly fees! I’m not kidding. I love tech, I love reading about it, and I love going about it.
So you can only imagine how my Mom rolled her eyes at me when I squealed when I saw the tech museum! It’s just a walking distance from the Schoenbrunn Palace where you have to pass through a park, so it’s actually a pretty great walk. I would love to do it all over again — since we don’t have many parks here in the PH.
Anyway.
The tech museum was undergoing some renovations while we were there and admittedly, I think they mostly catered to kids. Didn’t matter to me though, because it was like being in my element. They had slides inside where you record the velocity and etc. They had a lot of interactive games you can play and learn about mathematics, physics, and a bit of engineering.
Because I read and study a bit of computer science and engineering I’m a nerd so I understand everything they were explaining in the museum. My mom though, who doesn’t do that, still understood everything. The museum isn’t actually technical. You know what I mean?
You can understand everything about aeronautics while looking at the planes from centuries ago. The same way you’d be able to see trains, phones, and even clothes! They had a section where you can see all the wastelands, environmental issues, and current issues that plague our world today.
I’m not being biased, okay I am, but it was the most fun museum in Vienna I’ve been to. Although the House of Music definitely comes close because of all the interactive things you can do inside.
The tech museum is located in Mariahilfer Straße 212, 1140 Wien (it’s really near Schoenbrunn Palace), opening hours is 9am-6pm.
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For all the museums, you can dedicate at least 3 hours for one each. It really depends on your pacing because for the Natural History Museum, we didn’t exactly take long either. Give or take 1-2 hours, tops. Whereas the House of Music took me about 3.5 hours to really go through (without reading everything) because of all the sections you can go.
It really depends, and all the museums in Vienna have their own charm. I didn’t get to go to all of them.
So, what do you think? Which museum do you want to go to?
Contributed by Kiara Mijares
