Bestattungsmuseum

What Bestattungsmuseum does

Bestattungsmuseum am Wiener Zentralfriedhof (Funeral Museum at the Vienna Central Cemetery) is a cultural facility operated by Bestattung Wien GmbH, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Wiener Stadtwerke municipal utility group of the City of Vienna. Established in 2014 in the basement of Aufbahrungshalle 2 (Hall 2), a historic mortuary building designed by architect Max Hegele in 1907, the museum spans 300 square meters and houses over 250 original historical objects, 30 exhibition stations, and 13 multimedia monitors displaying video content including previously unreleased historical footage from the Austrian Film Archive. Its purpose is to document and exhibit Viennese funeral culture (Wiener Totenkult), burial traditions, and the historical development of death rituals in Vienna.

The museum's product portfolio includes standard admission (9 EUR full price, 7 EUR reduced), public guided tours on selected Saturdays (18 EUR regular, 15 EUR reduced), special lectures with combined admission, rotating special exhibitions such as 'Scheintot' on the historical fear of premature burial, group tours for parties of 15 or more (15 EUR per person), school group programs with puzzle rallies (6-12 EUR per person by age), and an online shop selling tickets and merchandise. The underlying technology centers on interactive multimedia, including perspective installations with scenic elements, light moods, 3D video insertions, and audio stations for historical funeral music. The facility is partially WCAG 2.2 Level AA compliant and operates under the parent entity's ISO 27001 certification, with an Onlim chatbot supporting website visitor inquiries.

The business model is direct-to-consumer and unit-priced. Go-to-market relies on physical museum attendance during limited opening hours (Wednesday to Friday, 10:00-16:00) and online ticket booking via the museum's own e-commerce storefront. Customer segments comprise tourists and cultural enthusiasts, school groups, and organized groups of 15 or more persons. Marketing channels include the museum website, Facebook and Instagram profiles, press outreach through Press Officer Bernhard Salzer, and discount partnerships with Vienna City Card, Vorteilsclub Stadt Wien, and Niederösterreich Card. The museum does not operate as a profit-driven commercial venture; rather, it is a cultural amenity within the municipal utility group's portfolio, sitting alongside Wiener Linien (public transit), Wien Energie, Friedhöfe Wien (cemeteries), and other city services.

Name

Bestattungsmuseum

Legal name

Bestattung Wien GmbH

Website

https://bestattungsmuseum.at

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Bestattungsmuseum is a Vienna-based museum operated by Bestattung Wien GmbH that documents Viennese funeral culture and burial traditions. It serves tourists, school groups, and cultural visitors through exhibitions, guided tours, and merchandise sales at Vienna Central Cemetery.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cultural Museum Services

NAICS

Museums (71211), Museums (712110), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYTHAJADAF

Specialty Museums (e.g., Maritime, Aviation, Sports, Music, Film)

Travel & Hospitality/Tours, Attractions & Experiences/Museums, Galleries & Cultural Institutions

SECONDARYTHAJADAI

Cultural Heritage Institutions (Archives, Historic Houses, Monuments Foundations)

Travel & Hospitality/Tours, Attractions & Experiences/Museums, Galleries & Cultural Institutions

SECONDARYBPAGAHAA

Museums & Heritage Sites (History, Science, Specialty)

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Arts, Culture & Heritage Nonprofits

Keywords

• Funeral culture museum
• Cemetery exhibitions
• Guided museum tours
• Cultural heritage tours
• Educational museum visits

Headquarters

HQ city

Vienna

HQ country

Austria

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Museum Admission Fees: Entry fees charged to visitors for museum access. Full price 9 Euro, reduced 7 Euro for seniors, Vienna Card holders, disabled visitors, apprentices, military service, and students under 27.
2. Guided Tours: Ticket sales for public guided tours and special lectures. Public tours at 18 Euro/person regular, 15 Euro reduced. Special lectures and combined museum visits also available.
3. Museum Shop: Online shop selling 'cult' museum merchandise and souvenirs with Viennese charm, shipped domestically and internationally.
4. Group Bookings: Revenue from group tours (15+ persons) at 15 Euro per person, school groups at 6-12 Euro per person depending on age.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Bestattungsmuseum am Wiener Zentralfriedhof is a cultural museum located in the basement of the historic Aufbahrungshalle 2 at the Vienna Central Cemetery. It presents Viennese funeral culture, burial traditions, and the history of Viennese cemeteries through a 300 sq m exhibition featuring 250+ original objects across 30 stations, complemented by multimedia installations, guided tours, special exhibitions, school programs, and an online museum shop for merchandise and tickets.

Product overview

The Bestattungsmuseum am Wiener Zentralfriedhof is a museum operated by Bestattung Wien GmbH, offering a 300 square meter exhibition space with 250+ original objects and 30 stations exploring Viennese funeral culture. The museum operates as a single core product complemented by multiple add-on services including public guided tours, special lectures, rotating special exhibitions, group tours, educational puzzle rallies for school classes, and an online shop for tickets and merchandise.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bestattungsmuseum am Wiener Zentralfriedhof (Museum Admission) Core museum offering dedicated to the history of Viennese funeral culture, burial practices, and death rituals, featuring 250+ original objects and 30 exhibition stations. Open to individual visitors Wednesday through Friday.
• Public Guided Tours (Öffentliche Führungen)

Quantifiable outcome

• 13 multimedia monitors display previously unreleased historical footage

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration10 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Vienna City CardminorGTM or Marketing PartnerDiscount partner offering Vienna City Card holders reduced admission prices to the museum. Card holders receive discounted entry rates.
• Vorteilsclub Stadt Wien (Vienna City Advantage Club)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership providing discount benefits to members of the Vienna City Advantage Club program.
• Niederösterreich CardminorGTM or Marketing PartnerDiscount partner included in the Lower Austria regional discount card program. Also features in the annual Christmas promotion extending card validity from 12 to 15 months.
• Wiener Stadtwerke GruppecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent company structure. Bestattung Wien GmbH is part of the Wiener Stadtwerke municipal utility group, which includes Wiener Linien, Wien Energie, Wiener Netze, Friedhöfe Wien, and others.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Museum für Sepulkralkultur: Germany's leading museum of funeral and sepulchral culture based in Kassel. Directly comparable as a dedicated death-culture/funeral-heritage museum operating educational exhibits, guided tours and special programming for a general audience.
• Friedhöfe Wien (Vienna Cemeteries): Sister organisation within the same Wiener Stadtwerke parent, managing Vienna's cemeteries (including the Zentralfriedhof). Operates cemetery tours and cultural programming overlapping with Bestattungsmuseum's visitor base and is part of the same corporate family.
• Brno Funeral Museum (Muzeum pohřebnictví): Czech funeral museum housed in the historic undertaker's house at the Brno Central Cemetery. Comparable as a regional European funeral-heritage museum in a cemetery setting, serving tourists and school groups.
• Imperial Crypt Vienna (Kaisergruft): Vienna's famous burial site for the Habsburgs offering ticketed tours of death-related heritage. Competes for the same Vienna tourist attention focused on Viennese death culture and burial tradition.
• Museum of Death (Hollywood): Independent museum dedicated to death, mortality and funerary culture in the US. Comparable thematic positioning, ticketed admission model, and reliance on a niche but globally recognisable death-culture brand.

Regional players

• Catacombs of Paris (Catacombes de Paris): Iconic underground ossuary/visitor experience in Paris. Comparable as a death-related ticketed heritage attraction with high tourist footfall, though at substantially larger scale and outside Bestattungsmuseum's home market.
• Père Lachaise Cemetery (Paris): Paris's largest and most-visited cemetery with guided cultural tours and a recognised museum of funerary art. Comparable as a cemetery-based cultural tourism site focused on funerary heritage and notable personalities.
• Recoleta Cemetery (Buenos Aires): Famous Latin American historic cemetery offering cultural tours and operating as a heritage tourism site. Comparable as a cemetery-based cultural attraction offering ticketed guided tours and merchandise, though geographically distant.

Broad incumbents

• Wien Museum: Vienna's principal city history museum, operated by the City of Vienna. A broader incumbent that absorbs much of the local cultural-tourism demand in the same geography and competes for Viennese visitors' time and ticket spend.
• Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna: Vienna's flagship art and cultural museum. A broad incumbent competing for the same tourist attention and school-group market within the Vienna cultural-tourism landscape, though with a mainstream rather than death-culture focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Bestattungsmuseum
• Instagraminstagram.com/bestattungsmuseum/?hl=de

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bestattungsmuseum