The historic center of Vienna has been added to UNESCO's World Cultural Heritage list in 2001.

Vienna's historic center, in its unity, is considered one of the most beautiful city landmarks in Europe. Three eras left their mark on the former residence of the Habsburgs: the Middle Ages with Gothic St. Stephen's Cathedral whose spire points toward heaven, one of Vienna's landmarks; the Baroque whose most important achievement is the Imperial Palace with its sumptuous cupolas. And the Ring Boulevard era of the late nineteenth century, when such splendid buildings as the Vienna State Opera and the Museum of Fine Arts were built to replace the former city walls.