
Although a prestigious art museum, the Albertina also offers a behind-the-scenes look at the lifestyle of the 19th-century nobility.
- Self-guided stateroom tour included in your entrance ticket
- Access to restored palace rooms with fittings and furnishings
- Book Albertina tickets* in advance
- See also:
The Albertina as residence

(One side of the palace with views across to the Hofburg complex)
The Albertina art museum actually began life as the residential Tarouca Palace in the early 1740s.
From our perspective, the important moment was when Emperor Franz II/I made a present of it to his son-in-law and daughter: Duke Albert of Saxe-Teschen (1738-1822) and Archduchess Marie Christine (1742-1798).
Certainly beats a spa voucher and a bottle of wine.
Albert and his art collection provided the basis for both the name of today’s institution and what we see in the galleries and archives within.
Various inheritances saw the palace pass to Archduke Carl, Archduke Albrecht, and Archduke Friedrich (Austrian history has a lot of Archdukes).

(A portrait of Archduke Albrecht, one-time owner of both the Albertina and a magnificent sideburn/moustache combo. Image courtesy of the Rijksmuseum)
All these owners did their bit to extend or refurbish the building before the Republic of Austria took over in 1919, after the monarchy ended.
Stateroom highlights
Most people buy a ticket* to the Albertina for the wonderful art exhibitions that dominate the building. But that ticket also includes a self-guided tour of about 20 staterooms of this former palace.
If some of those staterooms look almost like new, it’s because they are. Blame WWII bombs, which destroyed extensive parts of the property.
So what you see is a mix of original and restored (but historically accurate) rooms and furnishings.
As part of the renovation project, the Albertina actually brought (or bought) back the original palace furniture, including many early 19th-century pieces from Danhauser: a forerunner of today’s department store.
(The Danhauser factory would take care of all interior decoration, so you could order everything from one place.)
The tour takes you through bedrooms and ballrooms, studies and Spanish apartments, and more. In doing so, it offers insights into aristocratic life away from the famous emperors.
If, however, you’re looking for staterooms and/or apartments used by the likes of Empress Maria Theresa, Emperor Franz Joseph or Empress Elisabeth, then consider a Hofburg tour or Schönbrunn tour.

(West view of the Albertina around 1880; published by Adolf F. Czihak; Wien Museum Inv.-Nr. 79000/1655; excerpt reproduced with permission under the terms of the CC0 licence)
In the Albertina, excellent information displays in both German and English give you an understanding of the contents and historical context of each room, plus background on those Archdukes and associated personalities.
The highlights for me:
- The pillared hallway, lined with a series of Roman busts and a long red carpet. It’s practically the first thing you see inside the museum and sets a regal, classic tone for your visit before you reach the staterooms proper
- The Hall of the Muses, a 19th-century ballroom with plaster marble walls, a 3m fire-gilt chandelier and “life-size” statues of Apollo and the nine muses (presumably before the band split and Apollo went off to pursue a solo career)

(The Musensaal; press photo © Albertina, Wien)
- Inlaid wooden writing desks topped by Wedgwood basalt busts. The kind of desks to use for signing proclamations or sending urgent correspondence warning of a revolutionary plot against a royal cousin in a foreign land
- The Teesalon, thanks to the connection to the alleged story behind the Teebutter name used for quality butter in Austrian supermarkets
- A gorgeous porcelain table from Sèvres. This gift from Marie Antoinette depicts Armida and Rinaldo from Tasso’s epic 16th-century poem, Gerusalemme liberata
You may not know that Marie Antoinette was actually “Austrian” and a Habsburg Archduchess: the 15th child of Maria Theresa.
The Empress married off her daughter to the future King Louis XVI as a purely political move designed to seal an alliance between France and Austria.

(A Wedgwood basalt bust of the kind you will see in the Albertina staterooms. Image courtesy of the Rijksmuseum)
As you go round the staterooms, be sure to…
- Look at the walls. No cheap wallpaper here: it’s mostly silk all the way with stylish wall linings in various colours. So you go from green to red to yellow and so on as you move through the rooms
- Look at the mirrors, lighting and windows. The artful arrangements often create a nice effect. For example, they might make a room seem bigger or draw the eye to a particular feature
And once you’re done, the main delights of today’s Albertina still await: the special and permanent art exhibitions.