The Belvedere is a baroque palace complex in the formal French manner with gravelled walks and jeux d'eau in the 3rd district of Vienna, south-east of the city centre. The architect Johann Lukas von Hildebrand, one of the most important architects of the Austrian Baroque, was the one who produced the complex of buildings : Lower Belvedere (garden villa, with an orangerie and paintings gallery, with suitable living quarters) and Upper Belvedere (originally intended simply to provide a suitable end to the main garden axis). Since World War I, the Austrian Gallery museum resides in the Belvedere.

Palais Rasumofsky was built as an embassy for Count Andrey Kyrillovich Razumovsky. He was the Russian ambassador of Alexander I in Austria. The palace is located in what is now the third district of Vienna. The Count was a patron of the arts and had acquired an extensive collection. He threw a ball for Tsar Nicholas I when he came to Vienna on New Year’s Eve 1814.

Unfortunately, the winter chill was eliminated in the ballroom by way of a flue that was run from the fireplace. Early the next morning the ballroom caught fire and extensive damage was done to the building. Although the damage was repaired, the palace was never returned to its previous grandeur during the life of then Prince Razumovsky.

The palace passed through several hands during the next several decades. The great gardens surrounding the palace were sold for private apartments and houses. The building was heavily damaged during WWI. After the war, the building was repaired and renovated. The building again has become a beautiful example of neo-Classical architecture of the early 1800s on the outside with modern conveniences on the inside. Ballrooms once again are resplendent in their Baroque appointments and there is no need to heat the rooms by a temporary flue.

Palais Coburg was built in the mid-19th century for Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. It remained in the family until 1970 at which time it was sold. The palace is built upon the wall that was part of the defensive system for the city of Vienna.

The palace has now been turned into a luxury all-suite hotel. Extensive renovations were required to make the palace worthy of being a luxury hotel, so don’t expect to be staying in a old drafty castle type building. The suites are very modern and extremely well appointed. There is a choice of suites all on one floor, or two floor suites in addition to choosing view and how much space is needed. The rooms are all named after famous rulers in the Coburg and Gotha lineage.

For the wine aficionado traveling to Vienna, a tour of the wine cellar here is a must. The sommelier guides visitors through the extensive wine collection. One of the cellars has the feel of the inside of a ship complete with port holes in the doors. The Champagne cellar is the old ice storage portion of the palace, which makes the temperature just perfect. A wine tasting is a must after seeing all those rare and vintage wines.

The Stadtpalais des Prinzen Eugen is the winter Palace of Prince Eugene. The Prince was born in France, but moved to Austria as a young man and switched his allegiance to that country. He had a very successful career in the Imperial service of Austria. It was this success that and rise to power that allowed the Prince to afford several large palaces. His winter palace in Vienna broke ground for construction in 1697.

Prince Eugen died in 1736 with no male heirs to inherit his possessions. A niece, Princess Maria Anna Victoria of Savoy, inherited his vast land holdings and immediately put the Stadtpalais up for sale. This palace along with several other land holdings was purchased by the Habsburgs. The building was renovated and finally became the ministry of finance building in 1848.

The palace has just recently been renovated again and the Austrian Ministry of Finance has returned home after a brief move while the refurbishing was taking place. Although the building was updated to accommodate this austere group, the building is still worth seeing. The grand staircase remains and it is easy to imagine what it must have been like to draw up to the castle and climb the stairs to enter into the large ballroom.

Palais Dietrichstein is a beautiful palace owned by Vienna’s noble family, the Dietrichsteins. This former Medieval court was sold to the Republic of Austria in the year 1955. It underwent a highly modern transformation and has since been used by the Austrian government.

The Palais Lobkowitz, or Palais Dietrichstein-Lobkowitz is a baroque palace in the first Viennese municipality district of the inner city. It is located on the Lobkowitzplatz, a square named after it which previously had been called the "pig market", at which time it was a less distinguished address. The Lobkowitz Palace ranks among the oldest palace buildings of Vienna. The palace is the first important baroque city palace built after the Battle of Vienna, when the aristocracy no longer had to invest its money only for military purposes. The palace façade, unlike its interior, is still to a large extent in its original condition from the time of its construction. After end of the Second World War, the house was used as seat of the Institut Français de Vienne. In the year 1980, the palace became government property, and since the year 1991, after a comprehensive renovation, it has served as the theatre museum of the Austrian National Library.

The Palais Pallavicini is still occupied by the family for which it is named and who bought it in 1842. Built in the late 18th century, the palace was originally named for the first owners the Fries family. In fact, the building sometimes still known as the Palais Fries-Pallavicini, and it was the first neo-classical building in Vienna.

Its beauty was not appreciated at the time, and a large Baroque gate was added to appease the neighbors. The design was marvelous and has withstood the test of time well. The neo-classical interior has been renovated and little remains. However, the parquet floors are exquisite and the chandeliers are absolutely lovely.

The palace is also home to a museum dedicated to Salvador Dali. Concerts and other public attractions are held at this venue. Lovers of older films will remember the house from the Orson Wells movie, “The Third Man” as the apartment of Harry Lime. The palace was designed with a section that was divided into apartments for rent. It’s a rather ingenious way to help pay for the upkeep of the large building. The Palais is located at Josefsplatz 5 across from the Austrian National Library.

Palais Harrach has had a long and interesting history. Although it is no longer used as a palace it is easy to imagine the grandeur the building once had. The building is now home to high end shops and offices. The whole area in fact has some of the best shopping in Vienna.

The first palace to be built on this site was erected in 1435 by Jörg of Puchheim. Then in the early 17th century to home was bought by Karl of Harrach. Unfortunately, most of the original palace was destroyed by fire in 1683. The current building was then constructed with the architecture being design by Domenico Martinelli. Mozart and his sister performed at the palace in 1762 when they were children.

Count Harrach was a huge collector of fine art, and that was a tradition that was carried by the family throughout the centuries. The art collection finally outgrew the Palais and gradually the collection was moved to other family holdings. By the beginning of WWII, all of the art was no longer housed here.

It is fortunate that the art collection was not here during the war. The building suffered severe bomb damage that was repaired. But the damage to the gardens around the palace was not repaired. There is a patch of cobblestone that remains from the original Vienna street but otherwise, the building does not look or feel like it is centuries old.