Schönbrunn Palace Park

The Baroque garden behind Schönbrunn Palace, and one of the finest free experiences in Vienna — the gates open early and no ticket is needed.

The formal layout of clipped hedges, radiating avenues and marble statues took its present shape under Maria Theresa, and most of the set pieces date from the 1770s and 1780s, designed largely by her court architect Johann Ferdinand Hetzendorf von Hohenberg: the Roman Ruin, the Obelisk Fountain, the Neptune Fountain at the foot of the hill and, crowning it, the Gloriette. The park was opened to the public in the late eighteenth century and has stayed open since. The great iron-and-glass Palm House followed in 1882.

Checked on schoenbrunn.at in September 2026, the park is open daily from 06:30, with summer closing at 20:00 — earlier in winter. A few areas charge separately — among them the Privy Garden, the Maze, the Orangery Garden, the Palm House and the zoo; the Exclusive Gardens ticket was €16 at the same check.

The honest advice: come at opening, before the palace fills, and walk straight up the zigzag paths to the Gloriette; it takes around 15–20 minutes and the view back over the palace towards the city is the reward. Wear proper shoes — the main avenues are gravel. See also Vienna's palaces and Hietzing.