Schönbrunn Palace was my first tourist stop in Vienna. As soon as I checked into my hotel and…read moredropped off my things, I went on the subway and booked it to Schönbrunn Palace with the hopes I could make it on time for the private tour and concert deal package. I could no longer purchase a ticket online for the post-closing private tour and concert package, but when I got there, there was a guy at a cart who sold me a Section A ticket for €89 (online it was € 132.00), with a pre-concert private tour for free. Sweet! I was really looking forward to this, because the private tour+concert deal is only available on Fridays and Satudays, I'm SO GLAD I made it on time! It was very beautiful to walk through Schönbrunn Palace, listen to the audio tour (I was surprised that Franz Joseph was described as worshipping his wife Elisabeth, because she was miserable in their marriage and even through their estrangement, he always dearly loved her), and then be led to the orangerie for the concert. I was amazed by the beautiful and grand rooms, a must-see when you're in Vienna! The orangerie was also gorgeous, and the lights were beautiful. Since I was in section A, I got a free drink. I didn't want alcohol, so I had orange juice with ice, which they served me in a wine glass. The concert was very beautiful. Even though I pretty much knew nothing that was played except for I think one song, it was a beautiful performance, and the orchestra and opera singers are all incredibly talented. When in the classical music capital in the world, it's a must to catch at least one classical concert!

Awful needed my flashlight in the beginning walking thru dark hallways & claustrophobic w people…read moreand all. Miserable. Not worth your money They checked tix so many times throughout it was so annoying never seen any place every do this it was sooooooo annoying while trying to enjoy certain parts it really took away from the experience. We did not really enjoy our time visiting.

What a treat!!! A beautiful palace, stunning grounds, and a world-class art museum all in one…read more.. WOW!! A must visit while in Vienna. We purchased skip-the-line tickets via Viator and rented the self-guided audio headsets (I think they were around $5 each, maybe a little more). The collection of art is beautiful, spanning many different periods. Their most famous piece is Klimt's The Kiss. I'll be honest -- I didn't know much about Gustav Klimt before, but after seeing his work, I'm now a big fan. After touring the art museum, stroll through the vast gardens. They are beautiful, both in the front and back.

We loved it when we visited the Museums Monet van Gogh etc…read moreLower Belvedere too (2 blgs) down the hill We would visit again

This is pretty much the main reason why I went to Vienna. I've been a fan of Pieter Bruegel since…read morehigh school and this museum has the largest collection of his art in the world. I pretty much spent an hour sitting and looking at their exhibition of his paintings. While most of the art here is Renaissance or just after (and mainly Dutch, German, Italian, and French), there's other good stuff as well. If you like Spanish paintings, there's a lot of Diego Velasquez. Many of the exhibits have German and English descriptions of the art, but there are some that just have German, especially the ancient Greek/Roman and Egyptian parts of the museum. Of course, there are exhibits on relics from the Austro-Hungarian empire. The second (or kinda third) floor of the museum does not have much in terms of exhibits but has an extensive coin collection from that former empire. I liked some of the model ships they had to entertain the royalty during their long dinner parties. Knowing that I would go to other museums, I opt-ed for the 7 Museums annual pass for 53 Euros (as of this writing). It's worth it only if you go to at least two other museums. Just going to the Neue Hofburg across the street and the Imperial Treasury further down will equal the price you paid. I went to those, along with going to Kunsthistorisches another time and Imperial Carriage Museum at Schoenbrunn Palace. You also get re-entry privileges in case you wanted to get some food, because the cafe seemed pretty "touristy" here. Note, this pass does not get you into the Sisi Museum (or related ones) There aren't a ton of restrooms at this museum, so plan accordingly. You could probably cover this museum in about 90 minutes.

We visited this museum in the afternoon of the same day when we had visited the Belvedere Museum in…read morethe morning. If I had it to do over again, I think I'd split up the two art museums on different days. This museum is adjacent to the Hofbrug palace. It was designed as a museum originally, and the Hapsburgs spared no expense on the interior decor. I think I bought tickets in advance, but they were not assigned a time (or even a date). It was just 'one entry'. I suppose that is thanks to the museum's interior size - rooms are generally huge so crowding probably isn't much of an issue. You enter from the front stairway and have your ticket checked. As at the Belvedere, you need to check large bags in lockers that cost 2 Euros but which return your coin at the end. The lobby is a circular tower. There is a hole up through several floors. The 2nd level is a cafe and you can take an elevator up to a 3rd level and have interesting views back down to part of the ground floor. The layout of the museum is on 2 floors. Most people ascend to the upper floor first as that is where the more famous works are located. Here you'll find paintings from the 1600s forward. You'll see works by Velazquez, Caravaggio, Vermeer, Rembrandt, and Reubens (among others). The audio guide here had the 'select a number' when you encounter a numbered work you wanted to learn more about. It was worthwhile. The rooms are large and the paintings are spread out enough to allow a good flow. I never felt claustrophobic in here. The main stairway up to this floor is breathtaking as well. The ground floor had Egyptian, Greek, and Roman stuff on one side. This also had the largest collection of Roman jewelry I've seen too (maybe the only large set of it). There was at least one room dedicated to all manner of rings, necklaces, etc.). On the other side / wing of this floor is an odd collection of small statues and other odds and ends from the Hapsburgs. This was my favorite art museum in Vienna. I would definitely recommend a visit.

Time spent visiting a natural history museum in any city is never time wasted, especially one of…read morethis size and spectre. Prices were reasonable for entry and the exhibits were very well done, with not a lot of dinosaur skeletons on exhibit, you can see a wonderful selection of rocks and minerals.

This is the Science museum and they have a lot of different options and fun facts…read more It was cool to see the dinosaurs skeleton and other science items that are worth seeing.

It's not a huge museum, but the Albertina packs a lot of world-class stuff. If you're into…read moreImpressionist art, you'll find a good amount here. The "Monet to Picasso" exhibit is well-curated and you'll definitely enjoy their collection. The special exhibit they had during my visit was a modern art one, which isn't much my interest but definitely a change from their regular exhibits. Additionally, the museum has staterooms from the old Habsburg days. If you only have time for one small museum in Vienna, this one would be a very good choice.

Cute museum in Vienna We enjoyed the art- it was enjoyable…read moreto see. Took a few pics- Enjoy!

I found the Technisches Museum Wien to not be very well organized in terms of the visitor…read moreexperience. There were large walls/dividers that made it unnecessarily difficult to get around -- they would block movement between sections, for no apparent purpose, since they weren't leading the visitor to look at exhibits in any particular sequence that made sense. Note that this museum is more of a History of Technology museum than a Technology/Technical museum. Some parts of the museum just feel like an old department store from a few decades ago; it feels like they haven't updated the exhibits on some tech in 30 years. There are some interactive exhibits, although some of them do not appear to work properly. More interactive exhibits would be better. They do have many impressive artifacts on display, including trains, automobiles, & musical instruments. A particular highlight was the train car of Empress Elisabeth. Unless you have a special interest in a particular exhibit, or you are already in the area and have nothing better to do, I would not think it's worth making the trip.

Expansive museum exploring a range of topics including transportation, energy, automation, and…read moremovement. There are enough interactive exhibits to engage kids, but it's not a US-style science center that's entirely for kids; there's much more informational displays that adults can learn a lot from. And unlike some museums in this part of the world that have literal walls of text, the information is presented in just the right depth and spread around artifacts. Who knew I'd be interested in European train coupling or the evolution of domestic cleanliness? Where at all possible, content is local, so the museum has a strong sense of place. For example, there's some depth around how Austria specifically generates & distributes electricity, and the Vienna Airport growth is a case study in transportation challenges. To explore everything in the museum could take 4 hours; 2 hours would be a more manageable visit. As you get further from the center core, some of the less-visited exhibits could be skipped, unless you have a particular interest in for example printing presses.

Hofburg Palace is a MUST-visit in Vienna. Chances are, if you're going to visit a museum as a…read moretourist, at least one of them will likely be at Hofburg Palace or within its vicinity. The Sisi Museum was one that I visited, and all day long, the palace grounds are teeming with tourists. Even if you don't enter the palace, you can walk through the grounds, enjoy the garden, people watch, and enjoy watching the horse-drawn carriages. Baroque architecture heaven!

The Hofburg is a giant complex of museums, government buildings, the Austrian president's home, and…read moreso much more. Much of it is open to the public and the grounds are free to walk around on. Everything else is either closed to the public or requires an entrance fee. There is something for everyone here: the Sisi Museum, the national Library, the Spanish Riding school (home to the famous Lipizzaner horses), a Butterfly house.....you couldn't possibly see everything in a day! It's quite possibly THE most visited spot in all of Vienna, and you will more than likely find yourself here at some point during your visit. Good luck choosing what to see first! 68/2025

Okay, what was I doing in a chocolate museum last week? I don't really like chocolate very much…read more(give me fruits or nuts any day) but the people I was giving a tour of Vienna to had read about the Schocko Museum at the Heindl and Pischinger Chocolate Factory located in Liesing in the deep south of Vienna and wanted to go. It's kind of hard for me to rate this experience. Here's what you see. You visit two production rooms in the factory itself which you view through glass panels. Okay this part is not like visiting Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory. Then there is a movie as much about the history of Heindl's as it is about making chocolate. But the best part of the museum is the exhibition on the history and production of chocolate. In the middle of this exhibition is a chocolate fountain where you can taste the flowing assortments of dark, milk, and white chocolates. For me I found that chocolate tastes better as a liquid flowing from a fountain than it does in a cake or ice cream. There were lots of Heindl's and Pischinger's chocolate candies around to sample and there's also a company store where you receive a discount if you show your museum ticket. Most importantly, the people I was providing a tour of Vienna to enjoyed themselves at the Schocko Museum so that made me happy as well.

Another tourist trap! The tour is 5 euro a person...unless you want it "guided" which consists of a…read morestaff person reading from the German or English signs located throughout the museum for an extra 2 euro (NOT WORTH IT). You see a movie which is pure advertising for the company and little history about the actual chocolate process. Then you go through 2 small rooms that display pictures of the actual process of chocolate making and molds of the different shapes of chocolates made, also here you can sample drips of chocolate from encased fondue fountains of white, milk, or dark. You go through the door to another small area of the factory where there is minimal work being done..a few people are putting chocolates in bags from the conveyer belt. They give you a 10% coupon to visit their shop to so you can spend more money on their chocolate. This place is over advertised and expensive for what is seen. The chocolate is not fair trade..which I find disappointing.

The Haus der Musik is a museum dedicated to sound and music. It's large (four floors) and has…read moreseveral interactive exhibits and displays. I enjoyed the exhibit on the Vienna Philharmonic (with artifacts from the Philharmonic and a screening room where you can watch/listen to concerts); Sonotopia (an interactive exhibit with experiments relating to sound); and a room with large instruments, where you can learn about how the instruments generate their sounds. The museum was fun, because it was so interactive and because its exhibits explore a range of issues and information relating to sound and music. We didn't have a ton of time to explore, but we had a good time. I think it would be fun and interesting for a range of people (from kids to older fans of classical music). If you need a break from art museums and palaces, Haus der Musik might be a nice change of pace!

Vienna's Haus der Musik is the place to visit when you cannot bear to view more art, more palaces,…read moreor more art in palaces. Vienna is home to the world's most noted classical composers so a museum dedicated to music seems a logical offshoot, but whether such a place is compelling is up for debate. I didn't find it compelling; it's low key and enjoyable but had I missed it I've have had no regrets. My favorite part of this experience was an opportunity to see the Viennese Philharmonic Orchestra albeit, in film format. A small theater on-site screens 60 minutes worth of performances in a running loop. The sound is excellent, the seating is comfortable, and because of the nice, close-up camerawork I think I enjoyed it more than I'd have enjoyed seeing a live performance. Aside from that, Haus der Musik is a hodgepodge of things that were of interest in the following order: * an interactive exhibit that let visitors create music; * an interactive exhibit that lets visitors conduct the Philharmonic; and * A room full of body-sized pillows to lay down on while listening to music and watching amorphous shapes float above. There were other things to view here but none worthy of mention. I came to Haus der Musik very late in the day after having had a full day doing other things and it felt like I'd prioritized appropriately. I'd not set out to come here with intention but if you stumble upon it and decide to drop in you'll likely find a thing or two to amuse yourself and make the experience feel worthwhile.

Mozarthaus (the apartment building where Mozart lived) was a worthwhile visit on my last day in…read moreVienna. It was on my nice-to-visit-but-won't-cry-if-I-run-out-of-time itinerary. It was interesting to see that this was where he lived. There were multiple rooms and displays with information about his life and career. While I enjoy classical music, I'm not terribly well-versed, though I'm sure Mozart nerds will enjoy exploring the rooms. Was able to walk through Mozarthaus under 1 hour. It's a short walk from St Stephen's Cathedral and easy to find with the help of Google Maps.

I visited the Mozarthaus with a friend a few weeks ago when we were in Austria on vacation. Mozart…read morelived in this house from 1784-1787, and it is his only surviving Viennese residence. Today, the house is a museum and houses historical exhibits and audio-visual installations. It's probably worth visiting if you're a big Mozart fan, but I wouldn't say it's a must visit for the more casual Mozart listener. We spent a few minutes in each room, but I didn't find it the most compelling museum, and I would probably skip it in favor of other attractions in Vienna if I had a do-over. I learned a bit about Mozart, but it wasn't one of my favorites from our time in Vienna.