Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna Highlight Tour: Is It Worth It?

Alright, so you’re thinking about visiting Vienna and, naturally, you’ve heard about the Kunsthistorisches Museum, right? It’s almost impossible not to, actually. Very few places contain so much history and beauty as Vienna, that is, the Kunsthistorisches Museum being very high on that list. With its seemingly endless collections, deciding just what to see and how to see it can be a bit, or maybe slightly, overwhelming. So, the question is, is the Kunsthistorisches Museum Highlight Tour a good choice for your trip? Let’s take a closer look!

First Impressions: A Grand Welcome

Well, first of all, walking into the Kunsthistorisches Museum is something of an experience, it really is. You’re greeted by this grandiose hall, full of marble, paintings, and statues – so it’s quite the initial ‘wow’ moment. Apparently, this museum was specially created by Emperor Franz Joseph to house the gigantic art collections of the Habsburgs, his family. So in some respects you get the feeling of being treated like royalty just by walking in. Now, before you even begin the Highlight Tour, arguably just take a minute to soak it all in! That’s a top recommendation from me before anything else.

Taking the Highlight Tour, by the way, is seemingly like having a friend show you around. Not a friend who just knows a little, though, but one who knows the secrets and stories of every single piece. A professional will walk you through the most important rooms, highlighting masterpieces that you might simply walk past otherwise. Now, the thing that strikes you quickly, as a matter of fact, is that the guide does a pretty good job of bringing the artwork to life. The art turns from just pictures on the wall, or statues on display, to items that carry the memories, beliefs, and experiences from long ago.

What You’ll See: Art Through the Ages

Alright, so what can you see on this Highlight Tour, or more specifically, what can you expect? Well, it certainly gives you a good overview of the museum’s massive collection, that it really does. Now, remember, the museum spans several floors and has multiple wings, more or less. That means, that you won’t be seeing *everything* (and you simply couldn’t, on one single tour, apparently). It does concentrate on some rather noteworthy things.

What you’ll likely experience, is that the tour takes you through these areas:

Egyptian and Near Eastern Collection: Alright, you get a look at artifacts from ancient Egypt and the Near East. A few examples would be statues, sarcophagi, and items related to everyday life from a very long time ago. Very interesting, if you are interested in ancient history, that’s for sure.
Greek and Roman Antiquities: In some respects this area has an amazing selection of classical art. Expect to see things like sculptures, pottery, and various other items showing off Greek and Roman artistic talent and culture. That, in a way, brings the ancient world to life, too.
Picture Gallery: What I mean is, that is where some of the big shots live. What the Habsburgs picked out, their collection. You’ll view artwork from European masters – for example, Raphael, Rembrandt, Caravaggio. You’ll also get details regarding these artists’ styles, history, and important things from their lives that affected how and why they painted what they painted.
Kunstkammer Vienna: This is seemingly a treasure trove, no doubt. Think intricate works made of ivory, gold, and gemstones. You’ll get an idea of the skills of the artists back then, which were great, and the luxurious lifestyle the Habsburgs enjoyed, which I can’t say was bad at all, to be fair.

Something to keep in mind, the guide will concentrate on certain pieces to represent larger styles or periods, basically. So even though you are seeing ‘Highlights,’ you are very likely still getting a complete view of the art around you. In this manner, in the same way it’s like a crash course, just quite a cool one.

The Guide Makes a Big Difference

One thing to think about is how much of a difference your guide will make on your experience. The guides can very, very much add depth and interesting trivia to each thing that you observe. As I was saying, so often, if it wasn’t for their knowledge, that work would have gone by without as much thought as it would otherwise get. What that really means is, your guide can explain the stories, symbols, and context behind art. Apparently it just enhances the whole adventure.

If you’re really fortunate, the guides do a good job of gauging what you’re most keen on. So if, for example, you seem very interested in ancient history, the guide may spend just a little more time in the Egyptian room, or some other ancient artifacts location. The more interactive you seem to be with questions or discussions, the higher the chance that the guide is ready and able to provide more details that you might enjoy. Arguably the perfect trip makes for a great day.

You will notice guides come in multiple styles. Some guides can just rattle off facts, whilst some enjoy giving an interactive discussion, I believe you would enjoy the latter type more though, that’s my assumption. As a matter of fact, try asking a handful of questions in order to assess if your guide is right for you.

Is it Worth the Money and Time?

Here is probably the question everyone’s got, so to put it out there, ‘Is the Highlight Tour worthwhile?’ Generally, if your time is limited, and you wish to receive a decent understanding of the museum without spending days there, then it would seemingly be a great decision to go on a Highlight Tour. Guides provide an informative service to help keep you on track with time management in some respects.

However, consider what you really would like to gain out of the trip. As a matter of fact, should you simply love to roam by yourself and read the details on displays in your own time, you might be just fine skipping the Highlight Tour altogether. But then you also risk not seeing so many hidden pieces, that really enhance what’s in plain sight for those who aren’t as familiar. That does depend upon the traveler’s approach.

Consider this that’s usually something you don’t think about before visiting – at times, just a little bit of background knowledge may enhance your art admiration more. I guess this also applies for any kind of activity you have.

Tips for Making the Most of Your Visit

So if you have decided to visit Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, these guidelines may help you get most of what is available from your travel! This is my guidance from travels.

Book in advance: I cannot overstate the benefit to planning in advance of your travel! That will almost always help avoid any disappointment during the day, so this advice applies to any kind of planning to do. Should it turn out that your circumstances adjust unexpectedly, there is no worry, as it’s usually pretty easy to cancel if you have the foresight to do this ahead of the schedule.
Time of Day: Just like every popular attraction worldwide, planning a trip at times where things aren’t extremely active makes for a relaxed trip. If museums or similar landmarks provide hours beyond the normal range, it can provide you with a memorable travel and not the hustle to see and go during crowded days.
Ask Questions: Guides tend to engage more when there is dialog back and forth during tours, it helps a person gain more from whatever guide service they decide upon using! If your queries align with the direction and expertise of guides you are very prone to finding additional knowledge they may impart. The biggest thing you don’t want to do, is hold them back. A helpful suggestion is holding more generic types of queries towards the end.
Wear Comfortable Shoes: You can just expect to move and stay active on tours that are conducted for hours at a period of time. This helps keep your energy up, and reduce the focus or concern on what you may be stepping into when going on excursions for lengthy duration’s. No trip is good with injuries from poor preparation in the correct footwear!

Alternatives to the Highlight Tour

So here’s a thought, maybe a guided tour isn’t your thing, or maybe you’re simply after different choices? Don’t you worry, you can have things to suit other traveling styles, that can include but aren’t confined by. They all have advantages over others based upon you the individual!

Audio Guides: Museums will probably include some sort of prerecorded manual tours, letting you start and break when you may need to. That provides you an enhanced understanding that guides aren’t always accessible in the group tours. What may or may not be included will differ depending on different types of museums.
Themed Tours: Should you decide to see how one particular moment in history effected what happened with a culture, seeing what tours reflect those can make you more knowledge on topics and how that affected what is known now. In this case, Vienna saw multiple different conflicts change it’s history dramatically through all time eras. So naturally you might find a trip tailored towards that.
Self-Guided Exploration: Going throughout museums by themselves might be what somebody looks to pursue if on their own. People have an unique method in which they find art to observe that resonates together. The downside sometimes will be not experiencing more on deeper points within art displayed there. So a little extra research ahead of time may assist on knowing exactly what you could observe without support, which enables for better comprehension and admiration of what to look at.

Basically, you shouldn’t really be forced or feel compelled that your way is superior above others when it boils to just how your art is enjoyed. If something creates inspiration within, that has more important impact overall when all’s said and done!