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Sisi Museum - claustrophobic overcrowding

Just wanted to warn others and also see if others have had similar experiences.

We were in Vienna Oct 19 and visited the Sisi Museum. We bought tickets around 1:20pm, but they were staging entry to limit crowding, so our actual entrance wasn't until around 2:15pm. Almost as soon as we entered, we found ourselves in a dark, narrow, incredibly crowded space that led us through a collection of Sisi's personal effects - letters, envelopes, dresses, etc (all behind glass). The room was dark presumably to protect the contents, but why the space was so narrow is a mystery; it reminded me of the jetways you pass through to board a flight.

There were far too many people in the space, and there was a constant pressure from behind to keep moving forward. But then half the people insisted on taking a photo of every single item, so the space was just horribly disorganized and claustrophobic. The first passageway led to another narrow passageway, and this continued for a while. Finally, we entered some typical big 'museum-like' rooms that were naturally lit, and spacious, and from that point on, we were able to relax.

Has anyone else experienced this? It just seemed so inappropriate and unnecessary. We absolutely hated the visit and wouldn't recommend it to anyone.

Posted by
4400 posts

Once I watched Kentucky play #1 ranked Florida in basketball on its home floor. Kentucky was well on its way to winning in the last 2 or 3 minutes of the game when some in the crowd started chanting "Overrated" interspersed with a series of 5 claps. Sisi reminds me of that moment.

Posted by
2623 posts

The rooms in the Hofburg were not designed and built to be a museum, they were actually used by the royal and imperial tenants.

Posted by
6 posts

In September we looked for a indoor activity to do on a rainy day and went to Sisi. It wasn't particularly crowded but to be honest, we found Sisi to be underwhelming and a waste of time. Just my opinion.