One of the most opulent and extravagant palaces in Continental Europe is Schönbrunn Palace just outside of Vienna. Make sure to plan a visit to this vast palace on your next trip to Austria!
History
Schönbrunn Palace was built in the late 17th century on the site of a 16th century mansion and beautiful spring (schön-brunn). It became the summer home of the Hapsburgs including Maria Theresa, her husband, Francis, and their sixteen children (including Marie-Antoinette)! She renovated the palace into what we see today, and her husband used the grounds to construct the world’s first zoo (which you can still visit!). It was during her reign that six-year-old Mozart played his first big concert here.
The Hapsburg emperor, Franz Joseph, and his glamorous wife, Empress Sisi, made the palace their summer home, although Sisi didn’t spend as much time here. Franz Joseph died here in 1916, and just a few years later, the Hapsburg empire dissolved at the end of WWI.
Schönbrunn Palace was bombed during WWII but survived, serving as the British military’s headquarters after the war. It’s now open to visitors and even has a hotel room where you can actually stay in the palace!
Visit
Schönbrunn Palace is one of those “wow” places. It brings to mind the grandeur of Versailles and the opulence of the Hapsburgs’ other palace in Vienna, Hofburg. It’s easy to get to the palace via a twenty-minute taxi ride from the city center. The entrance is just as impressive as Versailles.
We chose to have a guided tour through Context Travel, but you can use the provided headsets to tour as well. Whatever you do, make sure to buy your timed-entry tickets in advance!
You’ll enter into the grand palace and go up this amazing staircase. Don’t miss the portrait of Maria Theresa here!
The guards’ room with its wood paneling begin the tour.
I found the portraits of Maria Theresa’s children here to be so moving. A young Marie-Antoinette before the horrors of the French Revolution is so sad.
You’ll get glimpses into Franz Joseph’s study.
The billiard room is beautiful.
Franz Joseph’s office is gorgeous! Note the statue of Sisi behind his desk.
His study and adjacent Ketterl room contain many mementoes and pictures of his wife and children.
He died in this bedroom in 1916 in the middle of WWI. In just a few years, his beloved country would be decimated and the empire disbanded. Note the portrait of Empress Sisi above his bed. She was assassinated decades earlier, but he always kept her image close.
Sisi’s apartments are small and unique – she had access to the outside via a spiral staircase in the middle of her rooms.
Her dressing room is preserved as if she was standing there. It’s a little creepy!
Franz Joseph and Sisi’s joint bedroom is not a place they spent a lot of time as their marriage was troubled.
One of the prettiest rooms is Sisi’s salon.
The dining room (also called the Marie Antoinette room) is beautiful.
The children’s rooms with their own tiny dining room contain portraits of Maria Theresa and her daughters. Every room leading up to the grand gallery is gilded and opulent in its own unique way!
It was in the mirrors room that six-year-old Mozart gave his first big performance, even asking six-year-old Marie-Antoinette to marry him!
These rooms all pale in comparison to the main room of the palace – the grand gallery. Much like the Hall of Mirrors in Versailles, this room is too gorgeous to capture in photos! Imagine the beautiful balls held here. Thankfully the one bomb that hit the palace during WWII only damaged one of the frescos in this room. This is also where President Kennedy met with Soviet leaders Khrushchev in 1961.
This is a private room off the mirrors room where Maria Theresa would meet with world leaders. There is a dumb waiter here so that servants wouldn’t bother them.
The rest of the rooms are just as spectacular! So elaborate and unique! One room is dedicated to Napoleon who made the palace his home when he conquered Austria.
This is Maria Theresa’s state bed.
You can also learn more about Maria Theresa’s extensive family in these final rooms.
To see all of the rooms, check out this interactive map!
Exit the palace through the amazing gift shop (don’t miss all of the Empress Sisi items and books!).
The palace gardens are extensive and beautiful. Kids will love wandering the maze made specifically for them! They were setting up for a concert during our visit so we didn’t get to experience its true loveliness.
We made sure to visit the world’s oldest zoo which was created in the 18th century by Emperor Francis I (Maria Theresa’s husband). We spent over three hours wandering its paths and seeing amazing animals. Kids will love it!
My favorite part was visiting the Imperial Carriage Museum. It is full of much more than dusty old carriages. If you are a Sisi fan, you must go here!
The museum has many amazing historical carriages and sleighs which are fascinating in and of themselves.
The most amazing carriage is the imperial state carriage in the back room.
Sisi fans will love the dresses included here – one may even be her wedding dress.
Just look at her impossibly tiny waist in this mourning gown she wore after her son died (in a very tragic story of murder/suicide)!
Upstairs are artifacts from Sisi’s extensive riding collection including her whip and saddle.
It’s a must-see addition to the palace! Don’t miss it!
Schönbrunn Palace is a wonderful way to experience the grandeur of the Hapsburg court and is a site not to be missed when visiting Vienna!
Helpful hints:
- Cost: a range of ticket prices from €30-49; there is a specific children’s tour available as well for €12; be sure to buy your tickets in advance. There are seperate costs for parts of the garden, the zoo, and the carriage museum.
- Recommended: ages 10 and up
- Tour time: 1-2 hours for palace and gardens; 3+ hours for zoo; 1 hour for carriage museum
- Gift shops located throughout the museums and zoo
- Transportation: It’s a quick cab ride from central Vienna to Schönbrunn. You can also take the subway very quickly.
- Dining options: There are many options to eat at the palace. We ate wonderful chicken schnitzel at the Schnitzel Garden restaurant in the zoo.
- Nearby hotels: The most unique stay would be to stay in the palace itself! The Schloss Schönbrunn Suite is currently closed through spring 2027, but I now have this on my bucket list! There are dozens of great hotels in the historic center of Vienna. Check out the Vienna Tourism site for details. We stayed at the Steigenberger Hotel Herrenhof, which was nice. I also recommend the Hotel Sacher and Park Hyatt.
- Nearby attractions include: Vienna Museum of Science & Technology and the Klimt Villa. Don’t miss the other Hapsburg Palace in Vienna, the Hofburg which has a Sisi Museum.
Books to Read:
All links are Amazon affiliate links. You can visit my Bookshop.org shop to support independent bookstores and creators.
Adults/Young Adults:
- The Habsburg Empire: A New History
- Twilight of the Habsburgs: The Life and Times of Emperor Francis Joseph
- The Reluctant Empress (link is to Blackwells in England)
- Seven Sisters: Captives and Rebels in Revolutionary Europe’s First Family
- The Rebel Empresses: Elisabeth of Austria and Eugénie of France, Power and Glamour in the Struggle for Europe
- The Accidental Empress
- Sisi: Empress on Her Own
- The Empress
Middle Grade:
