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Out of the eleven places Mozart once called home in Vienna, only one is still standing鈥攁nd lucky for us, it鈥檚 the Mozarthaus at Domgasse 5. Restored in 2006 to mark what would鈥檝e been his 250th birthday, this is where the maestro supposedly had his happiest鈥攁nd most productive鈥攜ears. Think: Haydn-dedicated string quartets, a sprinkling of piano concertos, and, of course, The Marriage of Figaro and Don Giovanni. Not a bad output for one address...

Sadly, like many good things in life, the golden days didn鈥檛 last. Financial woes eventually pushed Mozart out to the suburbs鈥攁 polite way of saying, 鈥渢he rent was too damn high.鈥�

Now, before you get too excited: no original furniture here, folks. But that鈥檚 actually a plus鈥攂ecause instead of staring at dusty chairs, you鈥檒l dive straight into the brain of a genius. The museum lets you imagine the space as it once was: spacious, elegant, and echoing with arpeggios. And yes, they do host concerts and even a few activities to keep the little ones from turning feral.

Here鈥檚 a pro tip: start at the top. Take the lift to the third floor and work your way down. Begin with Mozart the wonder-child, dazzling 18th-century Europe. Then descend into the delightful chaos of his Vienna years, peppered with gambling, womanizing, and a jaw-dropping knack for draining bank accounts. The second floor gets theatrical, literally, as you explore his operas鈥攕ome in surround sound. And the first floor is the main event: the very rooms where musical magic once happened.

And in case you wonder, why go? Because nowhere else did Mozart compose more music, more joy, or more drama. It鈥檚 your chance to walk the parquet path of a legend, right in the heart of Vienna.

Bonus tip: Want to save a few Euros? Combine your ticket with a visit to Haus der Musik or the Dom Museum Wien. Mozart would approve鈥攈e loved a good deal...

In a city where 鈥渟tunning architecture鈥� is practically the dress code, Saint Stephen鈥檚 Cathedral still manages to steal the spotlight鈥攁nd possibly your neck muscles too, as you crane to admire that towering spire. Known locally as Stephansdom, this Gothic-Romanesque powerhouse has stood at the heart of Vienna鈥檚 skyline and soul since 1147, rising on the bones of two earlier churches like the overachiever it is.

In the 14th century, Duke Rudolf IV decided the cathedral needed a serious makeover. The idea worked. As a result, today we have the building stretching 107 meters long, 40 meters wide, and topped by the South Tower鈥攐r 鈥淪teffl,鈥� if you're on nickname terms鈥攁 136-meter-high feat of medieval determination that took 65 years to complete. It even moonlighted as a lookout post during Vienna鈥檚 sieges, complete with a live-in watchman until 1955. One heck of a long shift...

Meanwhile, the North Tower never quite hit its growth spurt. It stalled at 68 meters and got a Renaissance hat in 1578鈥攂asically the architectural equivalent of saying 鈥渢his is fine鈥� and walking away.

But the real showstopper here is the roof. A kaleidoscope of 230,000 glazed tiles arranged into imperial emblems like the double-headed eagle of the Habsburgs and the crests of Vienna and Austria. After being torched in World War II, it was rebuilt with steel instead of wood鈥�600 metric tons of it鈥攎aking the new roof not just durable, but also self-cleaning. Because even cathedrals love low-maintenance routines...

Inside, things get just as grand. There鈥檚 Pummerin, Europe鈥檚 second-largest swinging bell, forged from Turkish cannons in 1711 and recast in 1951鈥攂ecause nothing says peace like a bell made from wartime leftovers. Oh, and she lives in the North Tower, ringing out for special moments and daily rituals.

Musical legends haunt these hallowed halls too: Beethoven figured out he was deaf here (tragic), Haydn sang here as a kid (sweet), Strauss got married here鈥攖wice (bold), and Mozart? He got married and buried here. Yes, Saint Stephen's is basically the VIP lounge of Viennese music history.

Inside, you鈥檒l find 18 altars, miraculous icons, bone relics鈥攊ncluding those of Saint Valentine鈥攁nd a maze of crypts holding 11,000 souls, including Habsburg royalty.

Tip:
Do a lap around the outside. Gargoyles, engravings, medieval graffiti鈥攜ou never know what stories the stones will whisper...

Tucked away in a side street not far from Saint Stephen's Cathedral, this is a small, quirky and lesser visited church belonging to the Order of Teutonic Knights 鈥� one of the three main military-religious orders to emerge during the Crusades in the 12th century. The building never fell prey to the baroque frenzy that swept the city after the Counter-Reformation, so you can see it pretty much in its original form 鈥� a Gothic church decorated with the Order's numerous coats of arms.

Enter through the arched gateway into the cobbled courtyard 鈥� a peaceful spot adorned with ivy and flower boxes, where Johannes Brahms spent the best part of 1863鈥�65, though inevitably it's Mozart who gets a plaque for his brief sojourn here in the spring of 1781 (March 10th to May 2nd). Despite the span of only a few weeks, this was to be a crucial period for the then 25-year-old composer's future, who lived in Salzburg and was in the service of that city-state's ruler, Prince-Archbishop Count Colloredo. During a Vienna visit by the Archbishop and his retinue, Mozart had a row with him and resigned his commission, instead deciding to stay in Vienna where he worked his way up from an unemployed artist to a respected and prosperous pianist, composer and music teacher.

Before you leave, pop inside the ground floor's Sala Terrena to admire the Baroque trompe l'oeil murals of flowers, animal scenes, statues and carousing gods; the room was where Mozart gave concerts for the Viennese aristocracy (even some of his premieres were at this very place) and is now used for concerts of his works.

Tip:
The treasury 鈥� one of the oldest in Vienna 鈥� is open less frequently than the church, but well worth checking out for a small fee as it displays various fine collections acquired by the Order's Grand Masters over the centuries. Apparently, too, you can stay in the adjacent "hotel" owned by the Order 鈥� one of the cheapest places in central Vienna, albeit cash-only and somewhat hidden (you'd have go up some stairs to find it).

Vienna's oldest caf茅, which has been going since 1824, is, as you'd likely expect, unchanged and traditional: vaulted ceiling, huge chandeliers, deep burgundy upholstery, newspapers on racks, classically attired waitstaff and no recorded music. One little change is that these days they have an outside terrace, but there is still one other good reason to come: the caf茅's storied history, including performances by Mozart and Beethoven. The former gave his last concert in public here on March 4th, 1791 (the famous Piano Concerto No. 27), while the latter was a regular as patron and pianist, having usually sat in the back room which is easily visible from the front.

The waiters expect you to walk in and seat yourself 鈥� something that is unexpected to foreign visitors who think that such beautiful "period restaurant" must require that they be seated. No, no, go ahead and take the menu, sit down and try the usual fine Viennese fare of schnitzel, beef goulash, and either Kaiserschmarr or Haustorte for dessert. As well as these, they serve good breakfast and a range of vegetarian dishes.

The oldest building on Michaelerplatz, and the source of its name, Michaelerkirche was first built in the 13th century, though the Neoclassical facade, added in 1792, somewhat obscures this fact. The high polygonal Gothic bell tower from the 16th century may be seen from far away, having become one of the Inner City's symbols. Above the entrance, on top of the pediment, resting on Doric columns, stands a group with winged angels and Saint Michael slaying Lucifer (1725). These sculptural figures were executed by the Italian sculptor Lorenzo Mattielli, who also sculpted the Hercules figures at the Hofburg entrance, just opposite the church.

Inside, the church retains its plain Gothic origins, but sculptor sculptor Karl Georg Merville's "Fall of Angels" steals the show: a monumental stucco alabaster Rococo sculpture, tumbling from the ceiling above the high altar. The gilded pipe organ (1714) 鈥� Vienna's largest Baroque organ 鈥� is very fine; it was once played by the 17-year-old Joseph Haydn, who lived next door in a small attic room. The very first playing of Mozart's unfinished "Requiem" first took place here on December 10, 1791, in a requiem service for the composer. Just to the right of the church's entrance, you will find two dark reliefs commemorating said performance.

Off the north choir is the entrance to a huge crypt, discovered by U.S. soldiers in 1945, when they forced open its doors, which had been sealed for 150 years. Found lying undisturbed for centuries were hundreds of mummified former wealthy parishioners, clothed in their burial finery that was perfectly preserved by the rarefied air within.

In the quiet oasis of Burggarten stands an elegant statue of Mozart, moved here from the Albertinaplatz after the war, when the city's charred ruins were being rebuilt. This intimate place is an excellent spot for Mozart lovers to have a photo with the 7.5-meter-high statue made by architect Karl K枚nig (1841鈥�1915) and sculptor Viktor Tilgner (1844鈥�96) which features Mozart with a music stand. The putti on the socle, representing the power of Mozart's music, are stylistically suggestive of Art Nouveau.

On the front, a relief refers to two scenes of Mozart's opera "Don Giovanni", while above it are a stone keyboard, masks, instruments and music-making cherubs. The rear side relief shows the six-year-old prodigy at the piano, with beloved sister Maria Anna ("Nannerl") and father Leopold by his side. Unfortunately, the siblings' partnership would experience a sudden and severe fracture in 1769, when Nannerl turned 18, meaning she was of marriageable age, which, as far as father Leopold was concerned, signaled the end of her performing career. As father and son continued to travel Europe and play to distinguished audiences, Nannerl remained at home with her mother.

From spring to autumn, the statue is surrounded by a small manicured lawn with a trebleclef-shaped flower bed. The steeples of Saint Stephen's and the Augustinerkirche, old trees and blooming shrubs add to the atmosphere. Noteworthy, also, is the nice sculpture of famous philosopher Goethe in the same area.