Schönbrunn Palace
Vienna · AT
Why visit: 1,441-room Habsburg summer palace where Mozart played at six and Sissi held court at sixteen.
Habsburg summer palace with sprawling baroque gardens.
On the map
Schönbrunner Schloßstraße 47, 1130 Wien
A Habsburg summer palace with 1,441 rooms
Schönbrunn became the imperial summer residence in 1696, was rebuilt to its current Baroque form between 1743 and 1755 under Empress Maria Theresia, and remained the Habsburg seat until the dynasty fell in 1918. The palace has 1,441 rooms, of which 45 are open to the public. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart performed here at age 6 in 1762 for Empress Maria Theresia; Emperor Franz Joseph I was born here in 1830 and died in his bedroom upstairs in 1916.
What's included in which ticket
Three tour options in 2026: Imperial Tour (€27, 22 rooms, 35 min); Grand Tour (€32, 40 rooms, 50 min); Sisi Ticket (€42, includes Hofburg + Imperial Furniture Collection). The gardens are free and worth an extra hour: the Gloriette hill view, the maze, the Tiergarten (world's oldest zoo, 1752, €28) and the Palmenhaus (€8). Allow half a day for palace + gardens.
How to avoid the queue
Book online with a timed entry slot — same-day tickets are usually sold out by 11:00 in summer. The 08:00 first slot has the fewest other visitors. Get there by U4 to Schönbrunn station (2 min walk). Audio guide is included in the ticket; the German + English versions are 30 min longer than the others because they have more historical detail. Photography is allowed in the gardens but not inside the palace.
