Why go
The Hofburg was the Habsburgs’ winter residence and the seat of their power for more than six centuries. It is a city within the city, with courtyards, chapels, museums, the Spanish Riding School and the Austrian National Library all inside its walls. For most visitors the place to start is the route through the Sisi Museum and the Imperial Apartments, where Emperor Franz Joseph and Empress Elisabeth lived and worked.
Elisabeth, known as Sisi, has become one of the most famous figures in Austrian history: a restless, private empress who travelled constantly, wrote poetry and was assassinated in Geneva in 1898. The museum separates the woman from the legend that grew after her death, through her dresses, letters and personal belongings.
What to see
The Sisi Museum has been redesigned and reopens on 19 November 2026, with additional rooms and new displays on the empress’s life. Until then the museum rooms are closed, but the Imperial Apartments remain open. These include Franz Joseph’s study and bedroom, with the plain iron bed of an emperor who rose before dawn to work, the audience rooms where he received petitioners, and Elisabeth’s rooms with her gymnastics equipment, a reminder of her strict fitness regime.
Each room is furnished as it was in the late 19th century, with chandeliers, silk wall coverings and portraits of the family. The route is one way and well signed, and the audio guide explains the court ceremony that governed daily life.
Plan your visit
Until 18 November 2026 a reduced day ticket costs €15 for adults and €9 for children aged 6 to 18, and the route is open daily from 10am to 4.30pm. New seasonal prices and regular hours apply from 19 November, so check the official site before you go. From 20 November a guided tour of the museum and apartments costs €33, with an English tour every day at 2pm. The Sisi Pass, at €60, adds Schönbrunn Palace and the Imperial Furniture Collection and is valid for a year.
Tickets come with a fixed admission time. Buy them from the official shop or a reputable reseller, as the museum warns of fake ticket sites. Allow about an hour for the visit, or longer if you read every display. The entrance is under the dome on Michaelerplatz.
House rules are strict. Luggage cannot be taken inside, flash photography and selfie sticks are banned, and dogs are not allowed, so leave large bags at your hotel. The apartments are on an upper floor of a historic building; check access details with the museum if you have limited mobility.
Nearby
The Imperial Treasury and the Spanish Riding School are a few steps away inside the Hofburg, and the State Hall of the Austrian National Library opens onto Josefsplatz. Walk through to Heldenplatz for views of the Neue Burg, then on to the Burggarten and its palm house. The Albertina and the State Opera are about five minutes south. In Advent, the Christmas markets on Am Hof and the Freyung are both within ten minutes’ walk.
