Help with Vienna Itinerary

Go to Salzburg on Thursday plus spend Friday there as planned. You really don't have time for a Danube cruise and a visit to Melk if you want to see all the Vienna sights, so take a train to Vienna Saturday morning and then see the places you had planned for Thursday. Sunday and Monday.... as planned.
Schonbrunn's park opens at 6:00 AM. http://www.schoenbrunn.at/en/plan-your-visit/opening-hours.html

Thanks. Are my days spent in Vienna planned well though?

hi -- we were in vienna (first time) in march. we arrived 10am on a friday, and left on an early train on monday. here's my advice: if you want a tour of the opera on thursday, check times. then, you can take a tram up the hill to belvedere. seeing the klimts there will require 1 1/2 hours, and the gardens are lovely, too. walking up there eats up some time.
as for your sunday, the horses take until around 12:30. to tour the hofburg takes till about 2:30. so you have from 3p on for the kunsthistoriches, and i don't know whether that's enough time for you there.

I found the interiors of the Hofburg Palace to be much like those at Schonbrunn (surprise, surprise...same occupants). Unless you are really into Sissy, you could skip the Hofburg (the tour takes you through the silver and porcelain collection and the Sissy exhibit before seeing the Kaiser's apartments) - Schonbrunn is more extensive. The grounds are open before the museum opens and after it closes, not sure how early though.

I didn't have time for the Treasury at the Hofburg, something for next time.

At the Kunsthishoriches Museum, the Roman, Greek and Egyptian antiquities signage is all in German. If you plan to see it and don't know German, the audio guide will probably be needed.

PS - it won't get dark until very late, but Vienna is beautiful at night.

Vienna’s city center is compact but there is so much to see. It’s good to know what is next to you as you are walking. As I don’t know whether you want to visit inside of all the places you mention or just see the outside, it’s a bit difficult to guide you. However, here’s another possibility I think you’d enjoy:

June 24: I don’t know what time you’ll arrive in Vienna but assuming it’s early afternoon and you are at Stephansdom and have seen what you want to see inside, walk down the Graben and, just past the huge memorial to the Plague victims, you’ll see Peterskirche on a side street to your right. Pop in there, continue walking down the Graben till you get to Kohlmarkt street and either stop into the Julius Meinl grocery store (quite an experience) at the corner of Graben and Kohlmarkt or continue to your left down Kohlmarkt. You’ll be greeted with a lovely view of the Hofburg Palace. As you get closer to the Hofburg, on your right, look for Demel bakery. Their windows are always a treat and it’s worthwhile to pop inside. The shop looks like it did hundreds of years ago. It’s like a working museum of a bakery. Continue walking toward the Hofburg but as you enter the open area just before the Hofburg entry, look to your right. You’ll be at Loos Haus, one of Adolf Loos most famous buildings. If you turn to your left you are at the Spanish Riding School. Visit if you wish then walk through the Hofburg complex, through the palace gate, and you’ll find yourself on Vienna’s famous Ringstrasse. If you turn to the right, you are close to both Volksgarten and the Rathaus (the fabulous city hall); if you go straight you have both the Kunsthistorish Museum and (my favorite) the Natural History Museum; if you turn to the left you are only a few blocks from Burggarten and the Opera. This sounds like a lot but these places are so close together, you only need to be aware of their proximity.

I'll continue in another reply if the website will allow...

June 25: As much as I love Salzburg, I’d say save it for your next visit. It’s a three-hour trip each way by car (longer by train). Instead visit the Naschmarkt (it’s way too crowded on Saturday; go Saturday only if you get up early and/or plan to go to the Flea Market there.) If you like Indian food, there is a gourmet-quality tiny Indian restaurant in the Naschmarkt called Indian Pavilion. It’s on the north-eastern end, near the fish markets. Be sure to notice the Secession building and the other fabulous buildings that are beside the Naschmarkt. Walk over to Haus der Musik or visit the inside of any of the places that interest you.

June 26: Your Danube River cruise

June 27: Schoenbrunn, then back to the inner city for coffee at one of the famous coffee houses. Seeing Schoenbrunn can take most of the day, especially if you go swimming there or include the zoo. Some of the evening concerts are quite nice. You’ll see ticket sellers at Stephensdom, the Opera, and near the golden Johann Strauss statue in Stadtpark.

June 28: I’d suggest seeing Hundertwasser Haus, walking through Stadtpark and possibly a fiaker (carriage) ride around the first district. You’d still have time to wander around or visit a museum. You can also take the tourist tram around the Ringstrasse; there are many interesting sights to see all around the Ring. If you are interested in some photos, details or other ideas about Vienna, I invite you to visit my blog site, www.marthasvienna.blogspot.com. Have a wonderful time.