Vienna Photos -- National Geographic's Ultimate City Guides

Stadtpark
Photograph by Siegfried Layda/Getty Images
In Vienna’s central park, Stadtpark, a statue honors Austrian composer Johann Strauss the Younger, known as the "Waltz King."
Debutante Ball
Photograph by Susy Mezzanotte/SIME
Long gowns and tuxedos take to the floor during the debutante ball at the Hofburg Palace, one of the many gala events that take place during Vienna’s Ball Season.
Auersperg Palace
Photograph by Susy Mezzanotte/SIME
In a city known for its glittering winter Ball Season, couples waltz in the ballroom of Vienna’s Auersperg Palace.
Music Performance in Hofburg Palace
Photograph by Susy Mezzanotte/SIME
Music performances both classic and contemporary now take place in the imperial Hofburg Palace’s many rooms.
Karlskirche Frescoes
Photograph by Renato Valterza/TIPS Images
Vibrant frescoes of saints and angels decorate the vaulted interior dome of Vienna’s Karlskirche (St. Charles’s Church).
Kunsthistorisches Museum
Photograph by Reinhard Schmid/SIME
Vienna’s Kunsthistorisches Museum displays masterpieces, including Antwerp painter Abraham Janssens’s "Venus and Adonis" (pictured).
Nationalbibliothek
Photograph by Ingolf Pompe/Aurora Photos
A librarian shelves books at the opulent Nationalbibliothek (National Library) in Vienna, built between 1723 and 1735.
Cafe Central
Photograph by Kisic Sladja/SIME
Coffee or tea and a slice of cake at a refined spot like Cafe Central is an essential Viennese experience.
Plant Designed by Hundertwasser
Photograph by Heimo Aga
Austrian artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser designed this bold and whimsical garbage-burning and heat-generating plant in Vienna.
Hundertwasser Haus
Photograph by Olimpio Fantuz/SIME
In contrast to Vienna’s archetypal baroque architecture, Hundertwasser Haus (completed in 1985 and home to about 200 tenants) incorporates mosaics, onion domes, and living trees into its design.