Palais Ferstel, Viena

Located in the heart of one of Vienna’s oldest and most beautiful areas, the first district, you will find the famous Palais Ferstel. The young architect Heinrich von Ferstel created this Palais between 1856 and 1860 while he was captivated by the impressions of a long visit to Italy. The unique combination of Venetian-Florentine Trecento architecture with classic ashlar masonry has rendered this building one of Vienna’s grandest and most interesting examples of Wilhelminian-style architecture.

At the time of its opening in 1860, the Palais Ferstel was the newest design in Vienna. The stylish rooms and the glass-covered yard not only briefly housed the Vienna Stock Exchange and the Austro-Hungarian National Bank but also provided a suitable ambience for the famous Cafe Central which became the hub of Europe’s intellectual elite towards the end of the 19th Century. Today the Palais Ferstel still captures one’s imagination with its perfect combination of various architectural styles and represents a refreshing symbiosis of impressive architecture in a classical surrounding with state-of-the-art facilities. Its sympathetic restoration, which remained true to the original down to the very last detail, has returned the building to its former splendour. At the same time, all the requirements of contemporary living have been fully taken into consideration.