Schonbrunn Palace

Why the Schonbrunn Palace is special
This 1,441-room, former royal summer palace has magnificently decorated interiors, expansive gardens, and more.

Top 2 Schonbrunn Palace highlights
Grand (40-room) tour
Among the chambers visited are the lavish, mainly rococo-style rooms of the Empress Maria Theresa (ruled 1740-1780).

You can also take the shorter and less expensive 22-room tour, but you would be missing some key spaces.

Gardens
They are extensive and incorporate both classical French and English layouts and landscaping styles. The stand-alone Botanical Garden and Palm House are captivating.

Other highlights
They include: • Gloriette (graceful pavilion on a hill overlooking the palace, gardens, and Vienna) • Orangerie (greenhouse) • Tiergarten (zoo), Roman Ruin (artificial) • Wagenburg (carriage museum) • Schosstheatre (performance hall)

More Schonbrunn Palace tips and insights
Versailles wannabe
Emperor Leopold I (ruled 1658-1740) conceived Schonbrunn Palace a nd desired to have it outshine France's Versailles. His treasury lacked sufficient funds to fulfill his dream.

Mozart and Marie Antoinette
Maria Theresa heard the six-year-old Mozart play the piano in the Mirror Room. And her daughter, the guillotine-fated Marie Antoinette, was the Queen of France.

Royal end
In 1918, two years after Emperor Franz Joseph's 68-year rule, the royal reign came to an abrupt halt. Schonbrunn Palace became state property.

Name
Schonbrunn translates "beautiful spring" in English.

Location in Austria