National Library

No, you absolutely do not need to buy a ticket for the library in advance. They have self service ticket machines which take two seconds.

I think the Vienna Pass is ridiculous. No need for HOHO buses.

Belvedere and Schönbrunn are completely different. One is an art museum and one is a major palace. Do you really have to pick one? What else are you doing?

If you had to chose between Schoenbrunn and Belvedere which would you pick?

Schonbrunn is one of the top handful of palaces in the world.

Belvedere is a fine arts museum, but it’s not one of the top handful of arts museums in the world.

Schonbrunn is more of a must-see attraction.

I haven’t been to Schoenbrunn on either of my two trips to Vienna, so if it’s a must see, I guess I’ve missed out big time. I hope to get there next time. The first visit was in the winter and I did the Hofburg, so it seemed a bit redundant to also do the fairly time consuming trip to Schoenbrunn, which was the summer palace particularly known for its gardens as well as interior, and gardens aren’t at their best covered with the heavy snowfall at the time. The second visit was in March, also not ideal for gardens although better than winter, and we simply didn’t have enough time to fit it in compared to everything else we wanted to do, including the Belvedere. I really like the Belvedere. Firstly, you won’t miss out on seeing a palace by going there, because it is a palace as well as a museum, although one built by Prince Eugene of Savoy rather than the Emperor. Secondly, although not nearly as extensive as a great encyclopedic museum such as the Kunst, the art collection in its areas of specialization is really fine, especially the famous Klimts. Thirdly, it’s more convenient to get to from the rest of central Vienna than Schoenbrunn, although I understand that is not particularly difficult either. If you do go to Belvedere it is wise to get an advance timed ticket to Upper Belvedere. Then if you want you can see Lower Belvedere, which is also worthwhile especially if there is a good special exhibit, but Upper is the highlight.

Two visits to Vienna and you haven’t been to Schönbrunn, the most iconic attraction in Vienna? I’d take your advice with a grain of salt, for sure.

you won’t miss out on seeing a palace by going there, because it is a palace as well as a museum

This is like saying you don’t need to go to Versailles because you went to the Louvre.

it’s more convenient to get to from the rest of central Vienna than Schoenbrunn

It takes 25 minutes by metro. Is that really a reason not to go? I mean, you travel halfway across the world, spend thousands of dollars on the trip, but skip Schoenbrunn because it’s 25 minute away. I don’t think so.

I was in Vienna with my sister in March 2025, and we did not go to Schönbrunn and lived to tell about it. :-)

Everyone has different interests, and that is perfectly fine. My sister is a huge Klimt fan, so that was the focus of our trip.

It’s your trip, so I suggest doing what interests you, not what others think you should do and see. There really is no one-size-fits-all list of “must-sees.”

I don't think it's necessary to denigrate other peoples' advice about a city because they have not been able to visit a particular attraction, especially since I certainly wasn't saying don't go to Schoenbrunn, but rather, pointing out some good things about the Belvedere that the previous posters had not mentioned. We don't all have the luxury to be able to live in Vienna with unlimited time to see everything. As Rick always says, you need to make choices and it's not unreasonable, in a city blessed with two Hapsburg imperial palaces, to choose to see one of them. My first visit to Vienna was decades ago as a college student, in very cold winter weather as I said, and I remember it as including the Kunstmuseum, Hofburg (long before the Sissi craze), the Cathedral and two performances at the Opera, in the standing room area, plus over to Budapest for two nights, which was much more of a challenge then than now, what with it being Iron Curtain times, needing a visa for Hungary, and so on. I was studying in Paris at the time, with its palaces, so trying to fit in two more of them in a short Vienna visit wasn't a priority. On a much later visit with my wife, we did the Kunst and Cathedral again (she hadn't been), Belvedere, Hofburg Treasury, the military museum (a particular interest of mine), and a daytrip to Bratislava. I like a good palace tour as much as the next guy, having seen them in Madrid, Paris (Versailes and Fontainebleau), Windsor, Potsdam, Leningrad (as it was then) Wurzburg and Asheville NC (the Vanderbilts weren't royalty, but they certainly could afford to build and furnish like them) among others, and definitely intend to add Schoenbrunn the next time I'm fortunate enough to visit beautiful Vienna, along with other unfinished business (haven't been able to get to Wachau Valley either).

It’s your trip, so I suggest doing what interests you, not what others think you should do and see

In deciding what to see and do, there’s nothing wrong about asking for opinions about potential attractions, and there’s nothing wrong with people who visited those attractions giving their opinion.

... but skip Schoenbrunn because it’s 25 minute away.

There are several ways to get to Schönbrunn palace, the fastest is taking the U4 subway (green line) from Karlsplatz/Oper right in the center, a ride of 10 minutes.

Right? It’s a 10 minute subway ride and still well within the city.

In deciding what to see and do, there’s nothing wrong about asking for
opinions about potential attractions, and there’s nothing wrong with
people who visited those attractions giving their opinion.

Correct. But I do see something wrong with criticizing others for having a contrary opinion. At times, there seems to be an attitude that one person’s opinion is the only correct one.
Everyone should be able to share their opinions freely without being criticized simply for having a different point of view.

It’s funny you think living here is a luxury. I worked hard to be able to live here and I’m grateful every day. Many days I’d rather live closer to my parents and have better relationships with my nieces and nephews.

And, yes, of course it is fine to give an opinion but the OP wants a comparison. You can’t really give a comparison if you haven’t seen both. Just facts.

Why does everything have to become an argument?

Input of any kind is appreciated.
Positive,negative or indifferent.
Now back to the matter.

After watching the Vienna Phil Summer 2026 concert on PBS,we've
decided to go to Schoenbrunn.
Assume it wont be as beautiful as it is in Summer because of possibility of gardens being covered in snow.
But that might add it's on beauty.....
Planning on taking bus that drops one close to Gloriette entrance then walking down hill.
Hope it not too slippery since one of us is 96 and not too sure footed .
Thinking it's best to pass on a Saturday or Sunday visit to avoid weekend tour groups and go on Monday.
But you guys in the know, I'm sure will guide us to which day is better.
Only booked plan is 7p Lippizaner on Friday.
Cheers!

I don't particularly like to argue either, but I am being argued with, and feel I do need to say that it is simply not "the facts" that if someone asks whether they should go to see attraction A or attraction B (or city A or B, country A or B, airline A or B, hotel A or B, whatever), no one can weigh in who hasn't experienced both. That is a logical fallacy. It is perfectly fine to say that while one hasn't seen A, here are some things they liked (or didn't like) about B. People post that kind of answer all the time, and I find it helpful when they do. And if I happened to think A was a great and important thing that the person really should have made time for, I would not for that reason dismiss whatever they had to say about B and urge others to do the same.