Why go
The Natural History Museum, the Naturhistorisches Museum, faces the Kunsthistorisches Museum across Maria-Theresien-Platz and is its twin in architecture and ambition. It opened in 1889 to display the imperial natural history collections and is still one of the largest museums of its kind in the world. The building is a sight in its own right, with a domed entrance hall, painted ceilings and rows of 19th-century display cases, some original to the museum.
It is the best family museum in central Vienna, and because everyone under 19 goes free, it is also one of the best value.
The collections began in 1750, when Emperor Francis Stephen bought a large private cabinet of natural curiosities, and now run to millions of objects. Scientists still work behind the scenes, and research from the museum’s departments feeds into the displays.
What to see
The star exhibit is the Venus of Willendorf, a small limestone figure of a woman about 30,000 years old, found in the Wachau valley in 1908. It has its own darkened room in the prehistory galleries. Nearby are the mineral and gemstone halls, with glittering crystals and precious stones from the imperial collections, and one of the largest meteorite displays in the world, including fragments you can touch.
Children head straight for the dinosaur hall, with full skeletons and a moving model of a predatory dinosaur. Upstairs, galleries of mounted animals trace the diversity of life, from insects and fish to birds and mammals, with some extinct species. Halls 31 and 32 are currently closed for reconstruction, so a few animal galleries may not be open during your visit.
The museum also has a digital planetarium and runs workshops for children, listed on its website.
Plan your visit
The museum is open Thursday to Monday from 9am to 6pm and on Wednesday until 8pm. It is closed on Tuesdays, but opens on a few holiday Tuesdays, including 8 and 29 December 2026 and 5 January 2027. On 24 December it closes at 3pm, and it is closed on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. Last entry is half an hour before closing.
Adult tickets cost €18, and a reduced ticket for students, seniors and other groups costs €14. Under 19s go free. An annual pass is €44, and a combined ticket with the Narrenturm, the museum’s pathology collection in a former asylum tower, costs €22. Allow two to three hours, or longer with young children. The café under the dome is a good place to rest between floors.
The main entrance is on Maria-Theresien-Platz. A step-free entrance is at Burgring 7. Tickets bought online carry a time slot, and reduced prices need proof of eligibility at the entrance.
Nearby
The Kunsthistorisches Museum is directly opposite, and the MuseumsQuartier, with the Leopold Museum and mumok, is across the road. The Volkstheater and the Parliament on the Ringstraße are a few minutes’ walk north. In Advent, from 20 November to 26 December 2026, a Christmas village fills the square between the two museums.