The good news is the Belvedere palaces and gardens are relatively easy to get to. They cover quite a bit of ground, which means plenty of public transport options.
And Belvedere is fairly central, so quick to reach – even on foot from the center if you don’t mind a bit of a walk.
- See also:
By car
Lower Belvedere palace is at Rennweg 6, 1030 Vienna, Upper Belvedere palace at Prinz Eugen-Straße 27, 1030 Vienna. See the road map above for details.
Neither has on-site parking for visitors.
Street parking is tricky: it’s a busy area and also a district-wide short-term parking zone. The latter means limited street parking durations and you need to understand the ins and outs of displaying a parking ticket (not a simple pay and display system).
Google can no doubt help find a public car park. There’s one next door to Lower Belvedere, for example, under Palais Schwarzenberg. But I’d recommend walking or using public transport (or a taxi).
On foot
(Looking up from Schwarzenbergplatz you can see the Red Army monument with the soldier atop the column. Take the road peeling off to the left for Lower Belvedere)
Although Belvedere is not right in the middle of the city among all the old town landmarks like the cathedral, it’s not far off.
(At the time they built the palace complex, of course, this was more or less a country residence. Not anymore.)
If you’re sightseeing anywhere central, head south to the Ring (the wide boulevard that encircles the inner district and also features many of the main sights).
Head east or west along the Ring, whichever way takes you to Schwarzenbergplatz, which forms pretty much the southernmost point.
Look down the roads heading away from the Ring and south. You should see a McDonald’s on the right and a theater-like building on the left.
In the distance is a fountain and a tall column with a soldier on top carrying a flag (the Red Army monument).
Walk south until you reach the monument, then pass it using the road on the left (called Rennweg). Keep walking for 150m or so and you’ll hit the Lower Belvedere entrance on your right.
Go on a little further to find a gateway into the Belvedere gardens, which you can walk through to reach the Upper Belvedere palace as well.
By public transport
The main Belvedere complex is well-served by public transport, particularly trams…
For Upper Belvedere
Tram: take the D line to the Schloss Belvedere stop right outside the main entrance to the upper palace.
Catch the D from any of the stops on the west side of the old town, as this tram travels around the Ring boulevard all the way from the Börse stop before turning off towards Belvedere at Schwarzenbergplatz. This route takes it past Schottentor, the Rathaus, Parliament, Heldenplatz, and the State Opera House.
You can also take the 18 or O line to Quartier Belvedere and walk for around 7 minutes (or go one stop on the D back in the direction of Nußdorf).
Subway: U1 (get out at Hauptbahnhof station and walk around 15 minutes to the palace, or catch the D tram from Hauptbahnhof Ost down to Belvedere). The U1 crosses the old town, so you can jump on at, for example, Stephansplatz or Schwedenplatz.
The Hauptbahnhof is Vienna’s biggest station, so often serves as your arrival point if you’re travelling to the city by rail.
This enormous station can be a bit confusing when it comes to finding the right way out of it. I’ve given up trying, frankly, though to be fair my sense of direction is bad at the best of times.
(Look for the local area maps dotted around the station concourse.)
For Lower Belvedere
To reach the lower palace, walk down from Upper Belvedere or use the tram line 71. The relevant stop is opposite the palace entrance and called Unteres Belvedere. Staying on this tram takes you out to Mozart’s grave at St.Marx and on to the main cemetery with more famous graves.
Like the D, the 71 follows the Ring boulevard between Börse and Schwarzenbergplatz.
You can also simply catch trams D or 2 to Schwarzenbergplatz and walk up around 10 minutes to the palace as described above in the “on foot” section.