Best for
Every visitor — the historic and political heart of imperial Vienna
Time needed
30 minutes for courtyards alone; a half-day if visiting the museums inside
Worth it?
Yes — unmissable, and free to explore at courtyard level
Skip if
Never skip walking through — just choose which interior museums to ticket into
About Hofburg Palace
The Hofburg grew, wing by wing, from a 13th-century fortified castle into one of the largest palace complexes in the world — a working accretion of Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and Historicist architecture spanning roughly 600 years, added to by successive Habsburg rulers rather than built to a single unified plan. It remained the empire's winter seat of power and administrative centre right up to the monarchy's collapse in 1918, and today still functions as the official residence of the Austrian president.
Within its courtyards and wings sit several of Vienna's major individually-ticketed sights — the Sisi Museum and Imperial Apartments, the Kaiserliche Schatzkammer, the Spanish Riding School, the Austrian National Library's Prunksaal and the Weltmuseum — making the Hofburg less a single attraction than an entire district of imperial Vienna in miniature.
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The courtyards themselves — Michaelerplatz with its curved facade and dome, the Schweizerhof with its Gothic chapel, and Heldenplatz with its two enormous equestrian statues of Prince Eugene and Archduke Charles — are free to wander, and worth doing even if you're not ticketing into any of the individual museums inside.
What to See: Highlights
- 1600 years of continuous imperial architecture in one complex
- 2Michaelerplatz's curved facade and dome entrance
- 3Heldenplatz's monumental equestrian statues
- 4The Schweizerhof's Gothic Burgkapelle chapel
- 5Home to the Sisi Museum, Imperial Treasury, National Library and Weltmuseum
- 6Still the official residence of the Austrian president
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Insider Tips
The courtyards themselves are free — you only pay for the individual museums inside
Plan which sub-museums (Sisi, Treasury, Library) you want before arriving to avoid backtracking
The Burgkapelle hosts the Vienna Boys' Choir on Sunday mornings — check schedules
Michaelerplatz also has visible Roman-era excavations under glass
It's a genuine complex, not a single building — allow time just to navigate it
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Getting There
Michaelerkuppel, 1010 Wien
Open in Google Maps →- 1U-Bahn U3 to Herrengasse or U1, U2, U4 to Karlsplatz/Stephansplatz, all a 5–10 minute walk to Michaelerplatz.
Where to stay
Hotels in Vienna
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Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know before you visit.
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Should You Visit?
Visit if...
- You want to see the political and historic centre of the Habsburg empire
- You're planning to visit the Sisi Museum, Treasury or National Library
- You appreciate architecture spanning multiple centuries in one place
- You want free, atmospheric courtyards to wander
Skip if...
- This is essentially never worth skipping — it's central to any Vienna visit
- You have zero interest in any of its component museums and just want a quick photo stop
Ready to Book Your Visit?
More to See in Vienna
Sisi Museum & Imperial Apartments
The private world of Empress Elisabeth ('Sisi') and Emperor Franz Joseph inside the Hofburg — bedrooms, salons and offices where they actually lived and worked.
Kaiserliche Schatzkammer (Imperial Treasury)
The Habsburgs' treasure vault inside the Hofburg — the Imperial Crown of the Holy Roman Empire, the Holy Lance, and one of the world's largest cut emeralds.
Spanish Riding School
Classical dressage with the famous white Lipizzaner stallions, performed in a Baroque riding hall inside the Hofburg — one of the 'Big Four' classical riding academies in the world.
Austrian National Library — Prunksaal (State Hall)
One of the most beautiful libraries in the world — an 80-metre Baroque hall of gilded shelving, marble statues and a ceiling fresco, built to hold 200,000 historic volumes.