Hermesvilla

Franz Joseph had the Hermesvilla built between 1882 and 1886 inside the walled Lainz hunting ground as a present for Elisabeth, in the hope - by most accounts unrealised - that it would give her a reason to stay in Vienna rather than travelling constantly. Karl von Hasenauer designed it, with interiors involving Hans Makart and a young Gustav Klimt, who painted ceiling work in Elisabeth's bedroom; the room was fitted with gymnastic equipment and mirrors for the exercise regime she kept obsessively. The name comes from a marble Hermes in the garden, a gift from the emperor. It is now run by the Wien Museum, with the historic rooms shown and temporary exhibitions in the rest, and it stands about half an hour on foot inside the reserve with deer and boar around it.

What you actually see

• Elisabeth's private villa - built 1886 as an attempt to keep her in Vienna.
• Klimt ceiling painting - early work in the empress's bedroom.
• Her gymnastic rooms - the equipment and mirrors of her exercise regime.
• A house inside a game reserve - deer and boar in the grounds around it.

When to go

April to October, with the Tiergarten gates. Two hours.

Honest expectations

You must walk about half an hour in from the gate, and the reserve closes seasonally and early. The house shows temporary exhibitions alongside the historic rooms. Closed Mondays.

Nearby

The Lainzer Tiergarten surrounds it; Schönbrunn is east.