The Athena fountain
The helmeted goddess of wisdom over a vast fountain — the most recognisable image of Austrian democracy.
D-Kuru — CC BY-SA 4.0 · D-Kuru — CC BY-SA 4.0 · D-Kuru — CC BY-SA 4.0
Through Parliament's official website in advance, choosing your tour language. Places are limited, especially in English, so book days ahead rather than same-day.
Worth it if architecture or politics interest you, and it has the advantage of being entirely free. On a first day in Vienna, though, the Hofburg, Schönbrunn and the cathedral come first.
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The only building on the Ring raised in pure Greek classicism: marble columns, a rising staircase, a temple front. The reason was intellectual rather than aesthetic — its architect wanted to say that Austria's young democracy belonged to Athens, where the idea was born, not to imperial tradition. Before it stands the Athena fountain: a vast helmeted goddess of wisdom with a spear, holding up a small figure of victory, surrounded by four statues representing the empire's rivers. This is the building's most photographed image by far. After a major restoration lasting years, Parliament reopened to the public to a degree unusual in Europe: a modern visitor entrance, a rooftop restaurant open to anyone, and guided tours that enter the main chamber under its new glass roof. Entry is free, which is rare for a working parliament.
The helmeted goddess of wisdom over a vast fountain — the most recognisable image of Austrian democracy.
A glass roof added in the last restoration floods the hall with daylight — transparency made literal on purpose.
Open to anyone without a tour, overlooking the Ring from an angle no other public building offers.
Dr.-Karl-Renner-Ring, Vienna