3 Best Sights in Bad Ischl, Salzkammergut

In Bad Ischl the quickest way to travel back in time to the gilded 1880s is to head for the mammoth Kaiservilla, the imperial-yellow (signifying wealth and power) residence, which looks rather like a miniature Schönbrunn: its ground plan forms an "E" to honor the empress Elisabeth. Archduke Markus Salvator von Habsburg-Lothringen, great-grandson of Franz Josef, still lives here, but you can tour parts of the building to see the ornate reception rooms and the surprisingly modest residential quarters (through which sometimes even the archduke guides visitors with what can only be described as a very courtly sense of humor). It was at this villa that the emperor signed the declaration of war against Serbia, which officially marked the start of World War I. The villa is filled with Hapsburg and family mementos, none more moving than the cushion, on display in the chapel, on which the head of Empress Elisabeth rested after she was stabbed by an Italian assassin in 1898.

Don't overlook the small but elegant "marble palace" built around 1860 in Kaiservilla’s Imperial Park and used as a breakfast salon by Emperor Franz Joseph I and Empress Elisabeth. It houses special exhibitions covering the region and the House of Hapsburg. You'll need to purchase a ticket to park (along with a museum ticket) to visit.

In the center of town, St. Nikolaus Parish Church graces Ferdinand-Auböck-Platz. It dates back to the Middle Ages but was enlarged to its present size during Maria Theresa's time in the 1750s. The decoration inside is in the typically gloomy style of Franz Josef's era (note the emperor's family portrayed to the left above the high altar). Anton Bruckner used to play on the old church organ.