Vienna - Sisi Ticket...purchase online?

We purchased onsite. We purchased a ticket combination that included Schonbrunn. If you are doing both, do Sisi first so that you have tickets already purchased when you get to Schonbrunn. The Hofburg treasury (not the silver collection which is also nice) is wonderful with the crown of the holy roman emporer. If you have time, I'd visit the treasury as well. We were there in January, so I can't speak to crowds. I have little patience for lines, so when possible, (type A :( ) I always get to places just a bit before opening.

Doing the interiors of the Hofburg and the Schonbrunn is total palace overload and very repetitive. Not a good use of time in a city that has so much more to offer. I was bored as a gourd in the Hofburg - unless you’re obsessed with Sisi, skip it. Crowds and lines are never large. I wouldn’t worry about buying in advance.

Stephanie, I don't know if Emily is local, but for me, the palaces and the royal dynasties are not something I see much of in Minnesota! I've been to the Hofburg and Schonbrunn--twice. More because on a return trip, I was with a different group of people. The Hofburg concentrates more on Sisi, the Austrians seem to be particularly enamored with her. Even though the stuff about Sisi got to be a bit much, I really enjoyed seeing the rooms. Schonbrunn is lovely and inspired by Versailles. It concentrates on Maria Therese and others. The grounds are quite lovely, too. Actually, my first trip to Vienna also included time in Budapest and Prague. I found that combination to be really interesting because of the connection they all have as a part of the Austro-Hungarian empire. I guess, the length of lines are always relative, but both times I was at Schonbrunn, the lines got to be a bit lengthy. I've seen lines at the Hofburg, but none that lengthy.

I’d consider living in Vienna for 11 years a local. In rural Louisiana, where I’m from, we don’t have too many palaces either. Jules - you can typically read contributors’ bios to understand their background.

I'm very sorry Emily. That was exactly my point, I didn't word it the way I wanted to. It wasn't meant to be a slam to you in the least. I was guessing that you were a local person and local people often have different perspectives than travelers. I could tell by many of your posts that if you weren't local, you'd at least lived in Vienna a long time. I still feel, however, that many appreciate both the Hofburg and Schonbrunn, especially since the focus is on different family members and they are two very different types of residences. I think there is room on this forum for a variety of opinions, and I think that is what people want. I'm sure some people are bored to tears with Vienna's art museums and the national library, and actually the library and the naschsmarkt are among my favorites in Vienna. People say everyone should try the sacher torte. I have twice, and I feel its dry even with the whipped cream and would prefer apple struedel. I think people should express their opinions based on their own experiences and not shoot down the OP or other commenters. And I guess I don't check bios often because many, now, don't have them, I've actually removed mine for privacy reasons.