Mozart lived in Vienna for the last decade of his life, and the city's relationship with his legacy today is a mix of the genuinely historic and the fairly commercial — here's how to focus on the former.
Mozarthaus Vienna
The only one of Mozart's Vienna residences still standing, this apartment near Stephansdom is where he composed The Marriage of Figaro among other works. It's now a museum spread across several floors, covering his life, his Vienna years specifically, and the context of his major compositions.
St. Stephen's Cathedral
Mozart was married in St. Stephen's Cathedral and later served briefly as one of its adjunct music directors — a detail easy to miss amid the cathedral's much older Gothic history.
The Hofburg and the Vienna State Opera
Mozart performed for the imperial court inside the Hofburg, and while the current State Opera building postdates him, the company continues to stage his operas regularly — seeing The Magic Flute or Don Giovanni performed in Vienna is about as close as you'll get to experiencing his work the way it was originally intended.
His grave — or rather, the lack of one
Mozart was buried in a common grave at the (now closed) St. Marx Cemetery, and its exact location was lost — a detail that surprises a lot of visitors. The Central Cemetery's Mozart monument, among the other composers' graves, is a memorial rather than his actual resting place.
Local tip
Skip the costumed street vendors selling concert tickets near Stephansplatz and book directly through a venue's official website instead — it's usually cheaper and more reliable than buying from someone in period dress on the street.