Photos courtesy of Schloss Wilhelminenberg
In the late 18th century, Prince Dmitri Mikhailovich Galitzin, the Russian ambassador in Vienna, bought a forested area above Vienna and soon built a hunting palace to serve as a party venue.
A few decades later the falling-apart palace was sold to Duke Julius de Montléart, a French noble and his wife Princess Maria Christine of Saxony. His son, Duke Moritz de Montléart, eventually inherited the property and in turn gave it to his wife, Wilhelmine, whose name today’s palace now bears. In 1895, the palace became the property of their nephew, Archduke Rainer Ferdinand of Austria.
Archduke Leopold Salvator soon acquired the estate in 1903 and had it demolished. He built a second palace in the Second Empire style, but events of the 20th century soon had other plans for the property. After WWI, it became a miliary hospital, an orphanage, and even the home of the Vienna Boys Choir. By WWII, the palace was confiscated and turned into an army hospital, becoming after the war housing for concentration camp survivors and later as another orphanage.
In 1988, the palace opened as a hotel and later as a four-star hotel in 2003.
Pamela’s Perspective
This palace hotel is an excellent option if you have a car and don't want the hassle of driving and parking in Vienna—and parking here is free! Public transportation into the center of the city from the hotel is easy, taking about half an hour.
Like many European hotels there is no air conditioning, which may be problematic in some guest rooms.
Schloss Wilhelminenberg
A 20th-century palace
Contact
Savoyenstrasse 2
1160 Wien
Tel: ++43 (1) 485 85 03
Hotel website
Reserve with Booking.com
Fast facts
83 room and 4 suites
Double rooms: 74–179 euros
Rates include tax; breakfast extra
Open: all year
Getting there
Schloss Wilhelminenberg is just 8 km west from the center of Vienna. The Ottakring metro stop is just a short walk from the hotel—or take a bus that leaves every 15 minutes from the front of the hotel. You can reach the center of Vienna in about half an hour.
What to do
Nearby: hiking; Vienna
Weddings
Yes. Inquire hotel for details.
Don’t feel you like you need to spend a princely sum to stay in a Viennese palace hotel. If you don’t mind sleeping just outside the city, this old, classical property provides excellent value. Best of all, it sits in a quiet, upscale neighborhood, surrounded by lawns, forests, and vineyards, with a simply spectacular view across Vienna.
The building is a bit worn in places—don’t be surprised by a creaking floorboard here and there—but you’ll find plenty of ambiance in its high ceilings crowned by sparkling chandeliers.
Clean and comfortable guest rooms vary in size from large to small, and, unusually, a number of them feature two stories with a small staircase leading up to a loft with a big double bed. Downstairs is the living area and bathroom. A welcome touch when it’s cold out is a heated floor in the bathroom. Views look out to either Vienna or the woods.
When the weather is warm an outdoor terrace is the perfect place to enjoy a drink and/or meal and gaze out over one of Europe’s most beautiful cities.
Something special
Commanding views of Vienna