So where did they film the (possibly) final series of Vienna Blood? Answers and photos below in my location guide for Season 4.
- Featured places in the Mephisto case include the MAK, Upper Belvedere, the Amalienbad, the Alte Börse, the Postsparkasse building, and Stephansdom cathedral
- Book a guided tour* of historical Vienna
- See also:
This article covers all the significant locations we found in Vienna (and one or two outside the city). For locations from previous series, see:
- Season One: this includes places that also appear in later series
- Season Two
- Season Three
Location map
This map features the places we found in every episode of Vienna Blood to date…
Season 4 locations
(Warning: may contain spoilers. Note that this covers the whole Mephisto case that makes up the season. This might be two or four episodes, depending where you watch)
The latest series is produced by MR FILM and Endor Productions in a co-production with ORF, ZDF, and Seven.One Studios International. Support for filming came from FISA+, Film in Austria (ABA), Fernsehfonds Austria, Filmfonds Wien and Land Niederösterreich.
And, as usual, the story draws on the lovely books by Frank Tallis.
We found just about every outside location and many indoor ones. But if anyone knows where they filmed Strasser’s villa or Therese’s apartment block…I’m all ears.
I don’t mention them below, but the exterior shots of the hospital and the Liebermann home are the same locations covered in Season 1.
Anyway, let us begin…
The police station
(The rather nice station entrance hall is the MAK museum; press photo courtesy of and © MAK/Katrin Wißkirchen)
The main opening scene has Commissioner von Bulow presenting the criminal Franz Burgstaller in the entrance hall of the police station. This location appears several times across the case.
That hall is the main atrium of the MAK: a lovely museum built in the mid-1800s that covers applied arts, design and contemporary art. The museum even has a special section dedicated to the same era as Vienna Blood.
(The outside of the police station)
The exterior of the police station also appears several times. That’s Palais Hatzenberg-Fürstenberg at Grünangergasse 4 / Domgasse 10 in the very centre of town. Further up Domgasse you’ll find Mozart’s former residence.
Schloss Pottendorf
Director Strasser and Burgstaller meet among the ruins of a palace. This is Schloss Pottendorf in Lower Austria (about a 50 minute drive south from Vienna).
Carlos Carillo scenes
(A suitably elegant place for a singing performance)
Max and Oskar have a lead in the singer Carlos Carillo, who they meet at a performance of his. This takes place in the beautiful oval hall of Palais Daun-Kinsky, now a prestigious event location.
Later we see Carillo make a phone call and then end his participation in the case inside a remarkable-looking public baths. The Amalienbad at Reumannplatz 23 is a municipal swimming and physical therapy complex completed in 1926 and notable for its art deco interior design.
Palais Rieger & casino
(Upper Belvedere plays the role of Palais Rieger)
Ah. The heart of the Mephisto case and Season 4 is Palais Rieger. As far as I can tell, at least three different locations play the role of the casino here.
The outdoor shots are Upper Belvedere and gardens, which we also saw in Season 3. This baroque palace now serves as one of Austria’s premier art museums. It houses, for example, a world-leading collection of Klimt paintings. Including this one.
(The Alte Börse plays the role of the casino inside Palais Rieger)
The casino itself looks to be the main hall of the Alte Börse (old stock exchange). So you might argue it makes a rather apt venue for taking risks with money. The hall now hosts, for example, regular concerts.
The underground casino scenes were filmed (at least in part) at Seegrotte Hinterbrühl. This former gypsum mine is now a major tourist attraction thanks to its caverns, passageways and huge underground lake: the largest such lake in Europe. The grotto lies just south of Vienna near the town of Mödling.
Newspaper offices
(The baron’s newspaper premises)
When Clara visits the press magnate known as the Baron, the exterior shot shows the 1906 Postsparkasse building. We also see the Grosse Kassenhalle hall inside a couple of times, which was the main counter space for what was the Austrian Postal Savings Bank.
The Postsparkasse represented a major step in the development of modern architecture and counts as one of architect Otto Wagner’s seminal designs.
The Ministry of War
(Radetzky monument and former Ministry of War)
Just before seeing General Straub in his office, we get an outside shot of a statue and historical façade.
The equestrian statue is of Field Marshal Joseph Radetzky von Radetz. The building contains government offices but was built around the time of Vienna Blood as the Ministry of War. So you can’t get more historically accurate than that.
We then see an ornate interior staircase: this is the Feststiege in the main building of the University of Vienna at Universitätsring 1.
The actress’s villa
The exterior and interior shots of Katharina Schratt’s home uses the mid-19th century Villa Pereira, located in the small town of Wördern on the banks of the Danube about 45 minutes drive northwest of Vienna.
Searching for Oskar
(Buchfeldgasse, where the search for Oskar begins)
Various outdoor street shots appear during the search for Oskar. We see, for example, a daylight view down Buchfeldgasse toward Florianigasse (also used as a location in Seasons 2 and 3).
The main confrontation between Oskar and Constable Meier takes place in the alley across from Piaristengasse 44. If you look closer you see the word Büühneneingang (stage door – deliberately misspelled) opposite the alley entrance.
The building opposite is the venerable Theater in der Josefstadt (founded 1788), which itself features in the Third Man movie and remains one of Vienna’s main theatres today.
Cathedral
(Stephansdom cathedral and roof)
The hunt for Mephisto and Season 4 of Vienna Blood reaches its crowning moment in (and on top of) Stephansdom cathedral, which plays itself. So we get some lovely close ups of the famous mosaic roof, for example.
The gothic cathedral remains Vienna’s main landmark in the centre. You can nip inside for free, but a proper look around the nave or access to the north & south towers and crypts requires a ticket.
And…cut! The curtain falls.
I love researching these Vienna Blood articles, so let’s hope they do return one day for another season.