Schönbrunn was where the Habsburg court spent its summers for two centuries — a 1,441-room baroque palace that Maria Theresa turned into the dynasty's real center of power in the 1740s. Franz Joseph I was born here in 1830 and died here in 1916; the six-year-old Mozart played for Maria Theresa in the Hall of Mirrors in 1762. UNESCO listed the palace and park in 1996, and it remains Austria's most-visited paid attraction, with entry to the state rooms by timed slot.
Two self-guided routes cover the interiors: the Imperial Tour (22 rooms, about €22) sticks to the Franz Joseph and Sisi apartments, while the Grand Tour (40 rooms, about €26) adds the Maria Theresa rooms — the Millions Room's rosewood panelling and the Great Gallery where the Congress of Vienna danced. Book the Grand Tour online a few days ahead in summer; morning slots go first, and same-day tickets often mean a two-hour wait between purchase and entry.
The park costs nothing and opens from about 06:30 until dusk: the Gloriette colonnade on the hill (climb it for the classic palace-and-city panorama), the Neptune Fountain, the hedge maze, and the Palm House. The west wing of the grounds holds Tiergarten Schönbrunn, founded in 1752 as the imperial menagerie and the world's oldest zoo (around €24). Plan at least half a day; the U4 stops at Schönbrunn station, ten minutes' walk from the gate.
