In October of 1828, Franz Schubert moved in with his brother Ferdinand a few weeks before he died at just 31 years of age. Although the Schubert Sterbewohnung (Schubert’s Death Apartment) doesn’t have many of the composer’s personal items, it exhibits a lock of the composer’s hair, an antique piano, and an original invitation to his requiem Mass. Plus, you can view touching letters to and from his family that were written around the time Schubert discovered he was dying.
This small apartment can be visited in just 10 minutes, so is easy to pair with other nearby sights in central Vienna.
Most of the information about the documents and objects displayed is in German with no translation.
The ticket office sells a selection of souvenirs related to Schubert, but there is no separate gift shop or café.
The museum occupies an upper-floor apartment, so it’s not accessible to wheelchairs or strollers.
Schubert Sterbewohnung is located close to Vienna’s Naschmarkt, and it is worth combining the two in one visit. To get there by public transit, take the metro line U4 line to the Kettenbrückengasse stop or the 59a bus to the Schönbr. Str./Kettenbrückengasse. or Preßgasse stops.
This pocket-sized museum has very limited opening hours, so it’s a good idea to reconfirm that it’s open before planning a visit. It is generally open only on Wednesdays and Thursdays, unless they fall on a major holiday; keep in mind that Schubert Sterbewohnung closes over the lunch hour.
Schubert was a keen admirer and contemporary of Beethoven, and even carried a torch at Beethoven’s funeral (when he had no idea he’d only outlive the great composer by a year or so). It was Schubert’s final wish that he be buried next to his idol, and he was initially laid to rest beside Beethoven in the local cemetery at Wahring. Both composers' remains have since been moved to Vienna’s central graveyard, Zentralfriedhof Cemetery.
