St. Stephen’s Cathedral has watched over Vienna for more than 700 years.
It is a magnificent monument, reflecting Austrians’ history and intricate architectural capabilities.
Built in the Gothic style in the 13th century, this Cathedral is often referred to by its German name, Stephansdom.
This article explains everything you need to know before buying St. Stephen’s Cathedral tickets.
Top St. Stephen’s Cathedral Tickets
# Tickets for St. Stephen’s Cathedral & Dom Museum
# Walking tour to St. Stephen’s Cathedral
# Private tour to St. Stephen’s Cathedral
Table of contents
- What to expect at St. Stephen’s Cathedral
- Where to book tickets
- How do online tickets work
- St. Stephen’s Cathedral ticket prices
- St. Stephen’s Cathedral tickets
- How to get to St. Stephen’s Cathedral
- St. Stephen’s Cathedral hours
- Stephansdom’s Mass times
- St. Stephen’s Cathedral for free
- Dress code for St. Stephen’s Cathedral
- St. Stephen’s Cathedral map
- What to see in St. Stephen’s Cathedral
- History St. Stephen’s Cathedral
- Tips about the visit
What to expect at St. Stephen’s Cathedral
The facade and four towers of St. Stephen’s Cathedral symbolize the grandeur of the Vienna Diocese.
You can climb the towers for breathtaking views of Vienna, with the South Tower reaching the city’s highest point at 136 meters (446 feet).
Explore the towers housing 23 bells, including the majestic Pummerin bell, Europe’s second-largest chimed church bell.
The extraordinary interiors of the Cathedral are also a highlight that many visitors come to see.
The interiors exude Baroque elements from the 17th century and high-Gothic features from the medieval period.
Discover over 40 altars throughout the church, including the High Altar depicting the stoning of St. Stephen and the Wiener Neustädter Altar from the mid-15th century.
The decorative stone pulpit is another highlight. It is considered a masterpiece of the late Gothic period.
Other highlights of the St. Stephen’s Cathedral are:
- “Fenstergucker” (window-gawker) statue
- St. Katherine’s Chapel
- Chapel of the Cross
- St. Valentine’s Chapel
- Catacombs
Where to book tickets
You can buy tickets for the Stephen’s Cathedral online or at the venue.
Online ticket prices tend to be cheaper than tickets on the spot.
When you buy online, you can avoid the long queues at the ticket counters.
Because some tourist spots sell a limited number of tickets, they may sell out during peak days.
Booking early helps avoid last-minute disappointments.
How do online tickets work
To buy tickets online, go to the Stephen’s Cathedral ticket booking page.
Choose your guide language, preferred date, and the number of tickets, and buy the tickets.
Once you purchase tickets, they get delivered to your email address.
There is no need to get printouts of the ticket.
You can show the e-ticket on your smartphone when you visit the attraction.
St. Stephen’s Cathedral ticket prices
St. Stephen’s Cathedral & Dom Museum Wien tickets cost €25 for visitors between 19 and 64 years.
Reduced tickets are available for kids between six and 18 years, students (with a valid ID), seniors above 65 years, and disabled visitors on-site.
St. Stephen’s Cathedral tickets
St. Stephen’s Cathedral & Dom Museum Wien ticket gives you admission to the Dom Museum Wien, and access to the Dom Museum media guide.
You will get access to the St. Stephen’s Cathedral and Treasury audio guide in various languages, 30-minute guided tour of the Catacombs in English or German languages.
You also get access to the South Tower & North Tower of Cathedral with ticket.
Ticket Cost (19 to 64 years): €25
Note: Reduced tickets available for kids, students, seniors, and disabled visitors.
Walking tour to St. Stephen’s Cathedral
A local guide leads this highly-rated two-hour-long walking tour to St. Stephen’s Cathedral.
You meet the local guide at 9.30 am and start your city exploration, and on the way see historical masterpieces such as:
- St. Michael’s Church
- Hofburg Palace
- Heroes’ Square,
- Imperial Treasury
- Austrian National Library
- Albertina Museum
- State Opera
- Providentia Fountain (at Neuer Markt)
- Imperial Crypt
- St. Stephen’s Cathedral
At the end of the tour, the guide gets you at the doorsteps of Stephansdom Cathedral, which you can enter and explore for as long as you want.
This tour is available in both English and German.
Ticket Cost: €29
Private tour to St. Stephen’s Cathedral
This personalized private tour starts at 3 pm and lasts for two hours.
A certified Austrian tour guide takes you through Vienna’s old town highlights before reaching St. Stephen’s Cathedral.
At the St. Stephen’s Cathedral’s entrance, you pay 6 Euro per person (extra) and explore the historic building.
Once you are out, you continue exploring the city of Vienna.
We highly recommend this St. Stephen’s Cathedral tour to families or groups bigger than five members.
Ticket Cost: €165 (per group of 10)
Tip: If you want something cheaper, try the morning walk to St. Stephen’s Cathedral
How to get to St. Stephen’s Cathedral
St. Stephen’s Cathedral is in Stephansplatz, Vienna – on the edge of a large and lively square that shares its name.
The cathedral’s colorful tiled roof helps identify the beautiful building from all parts of Vienna.
By Bus
If buses are your preferred mode of travel, you can board bus numbers 1A, 2A, or 3A to get down near the Cathedral.
By U-Bahn (Subway)
Stephansplatz Metro Station is the closest station, right opposite St Stephen’s Cathedral.
Stephansplatz station is served by U1 and U3 Lines.
Nearby parking
The city center of Vienna is a pedestrian-only zone, which is why driving to the Cathedral isn’t a good idea.
If you must drive to the Cathedral, we recommend parking the vehicle in the outskirts and using public transport for the last mile. Or better still, walk it.
No parking is available near the monument.
St. Stephen’s Cathedral hours
From Monday to Saturday, St. Stephen’s Cathedral opens at 6 am and closes at 10 pm, and on Sunday, it opens at 7 am and closes at 10 pm.
The historic Cathedral is open all through the year.
Stephansdom’s Mass times
Being the mother church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vienna, St. Stephen’s Cathedral holds regular masses for its visitors.
Mass timings on Sundays and holidays
| Time | Type of Mass |
|---|---|
| 7 am | Holy Mass |
| 9 am | Parish Mass |
| 9 am | Children’s Mass (Lower Church) |
| 10.15 am | Main Service |
| 11 am | Holy Mass |
| 12 pm | Holy Mass |
| 5 pm | Vespers |
| 5.30 pm | Rosary |
| 6 pm | Holy Mass |
| 7.15 pm | Holy Mass |
| 9 pm | Holy Mass |
Mass timings on working days
| Time | Type of Mass |
|---|---|
| 6.30 am | Holy Mass (on Maria Pocs Altar) |
| 7.15 am | Chapter Mass with Laudes |
| 8 am | Holy Mass (on Maria Pocs Altar) |
| 12 pm | Holy Mass |
| 5 pm | Prayer Service (Saturday: 1st Vespers) |
| 5.30 pm | Rosary |
| 6 pm | Holy Mass |
| 7 pm | Holy Mass (Saturday in English) |
Mass timings change during Summer Ordinance. For detailed Mass timings, click here.
St. Stephen’s Cathedral for free
A small part – the front of the nave and part of the Northern side – of the St Stephen’s Cathedral is free to enter.
You can also enter the Cathedral’s shop without a ticket.
However, everything else requires a ticket.
Free with Vienna Pass
The only way to explore the whole of St Stephen’s Cathedral for free is by buying the Vienna Pass.
If you buy the Vienna Pass, you pay once but can access over 60 of Vienna’s top attractions for free.
Besides saving money, it also helps you save time because you can skip the long waiting lines and walk right in with a Vienna Pass.
This Pass is available for 1, 2, 3, or 6 days, and the price varies accordingly.
Dress code for St. Stephen’s Cathedral
There is no obligatory dress code for St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna.
However, since it is a religious place, visitors are expected to dress moderately.
We recommend respectful clothes which do not hurt the sentiments of others.
Halter tops, short shorts, low t-shirts with cleavage, etc., aren’t advised for women.
It is common for tourists wearing halter tops to throw a scarf over their shoulders.
As for the men, it is better not to wear a hat. Also, it is best to avoid t-shirts with rude wordings such as “I hate God” or “Girlfriend beater!” etc.
St. Stephen’s Cathedral map
St. Stephen’s Cathedral stands with its colorful mosaic roof in the heart of Vienna.
With its wide choir halls to giant staircases, St. Stephen’s Cathedral’s every nook and corner carries its own importance.
That’s why you mustn’t miss out on any part of this famous Cathedral.
We suggest keeping St. Stephen’s Cathedral map with you while you visit the religious attraction.
What to see in St. Stephen’s Cathedral
St. Stephen’s Cathedral has stood tall for the last seven centuries.
There are many exciting things to see and explore at the Cathedral.
One of the oldest remaining parts of the Cathedral is the Giant Gate and the Towers of Heathens, dating back to the 13th century.
St. Stephen’s houses a wealth of art treasures in its treasury.
Visitors can see the most valuable pieces of the Cathedral Treasury in the West Gallery.
The Exhibition houses sculptures, textiles, paintings, and many more items dating back many centuries.
No Cathedral is complete without bells, and the St. Stephen’s Cathedral has 22 bells in total.
One of these bells is St. Mary’s Pummerin and weighs over 20,000 kgs.
Statues and elaborate works of art throughout the Cathedral make the gothic monument even more beautiful.
While visiting the Cathedral, don’t miss out on two of its highlights – the wiener-Neustadter Altar built in 1447 and the High Altar made with black marble.
The statues in these altars represent the Patrons of the province, Leopold and Florian.
You can also see the figures of St. Roch and St. Sebastian, who were invoked during the time of plague to save the city.
History St. Stephen’s Cathedral
The building of St Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna started in 1137.
The Cathedral has gone through many calamities like fires in ancient times and, more recently, the destruction caused by WWII.
However, St. Stephen’s has been constructed and reconstructed time and again.
St. Stephen’s Cathedral also holds particular importance to classic music lovers.
One of the greatest composers, Mozart, shared some of his life’s most precious moments like his marriage in this church.
It is also the church where Joseph Haydn sang as a choir boy.
The Cathedral took over 200 years to take shape it is in today.
Tips about the visit
The St Stephen’s Cathedral and Dom Museum combo is the best way to explore this attraction.
At the Cathedral, you get an audio guide, a 30-minute tour of the Catacombs in its basement, and you can also visit the South Tower & North Tower.
Once you have explored the 860-year-old Cathedral, you can visit Dom Museum in the next building.
Or you can book a two-hour-long walking tour to St. Stephen’s Cathedral, in which a local guide historical masterpieces of Vienna.
A local guide takes you around during this highly-rated tour and drops you at the Cathedral entrance, after which you are free to explore on your own.
Sources
# TripAdvisor.com
# Wikipedia.com
# Wien.info
# Britannica.com
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