Schonbrunn Palace

Our last tour was of Schonbrunn Palace.  We got the Grand tour of 40 rooms and really enjoyed the audio guide narrative that tells a lot about the family history of the Hapsburgs.  The palace has a lot of period furniture in it that made is seem more alive than the Palacio in Madrid (which was also beautiful, but empty of furnishing for the most part).

I was glad I made a reservation for the opening tour time.  The sheer size of the ticket selling area was daunting to consider if it were fully queued!

The gardens in Schonbrunn were much better kept and full of flowers compared to the gardens at the Palacio in Madrid.  This kind of surprised me since Spain exports so many flowers.  I had really expected a lot more window boxes and other gardens in Madrid that simply weren't in evidence. 

Part of the group decided to climb up the hill to the Gloriette for an amazing view.  It was much quieter and more peaceful there than in the palace. 

You can't appreciate the sheer size of the Gloriette until you are up close. Its huge.