Vienna highlights: a fall garden tour at Schonbrunn
Vienna highlights: a fall garden tour at Schonbrunn
Ah fall in Austria is really a spectacular time to be visiting Vienna and enjoy some of the wonderful gardens like Schonbrunn, on the outskirts of the city. It seems like all the autumn colors are just starting to come out now with those saturated colors popping out around the gardens Even while the annuals are being pulled out of the rotating garden beds, the gardens are still presenting a wonderful fall show that dazzles. The beautiful trees and shrubs around Schonbrunn are dressed in a shocking palette of crimson, ochre, sienna and burnt orange. It is very festive walking through these topiary allees lined with these squared off maple trees in vivid yellows, greens and oranges below. Leaves floating around pathways stir up my senses and imagination – adding excitement and crunch underneath each step I’m taking through these gardens.
The grand allees at Schonbrunn gardens
Grand walkways/allees
There are so many grand allees at Schonbrunn. It’s fun to follow them to something interesting like a folly or fountain located at the end of each path. These landmarks punctuate the ends, and you can explore all around them and be rewarded with nice vistas of the grounds, or a nice view back to the main palace. The gardens at Schonbrunn presents everything on such a monumental scale, so everything you see is grandiose including: fountains, grottoes and statues that you should come up close to and investigate.
Wouldn’t you like to come over and explore the aviary?
The grand aviary at Schonbrunn gardens
A side garden below still has the summer plantings which will soon be pulled out. I’m not sure what they will replace these with for wintertime, or do you think they will they just leave it bare during winter? Hopefully not, it sounds too bleak compared to the fall glory in these gardens.
A side garden at with the last blooms of summer annuals
More summer annuals with garden statues
A side garden with summer annuals at Schonbrunn
A sculptural Vignette against an autumn palate
The statuary and fall gardens at Schonbrunn
The folly at the end of this promenade is so striking and mysterious at the same time. A scary looking face in the middle creates this strange and underworld feeling above the grotto. I’m sure this is intentional and makes you want to explore all around this huge edifice. Beautifully restored statues balance each end of the grotto, and create a beautiful vignette against the yellow maples n the background. Above the grotto is a large Egyptian obelisk capped with a golden eagle. I had to climb up and around the small hill, behind the grotto, hoping to find a marker or explanation of the sculpture or symbols. But, I didn’t find anything except a nice view looking back towards the palace grounds.
The ornate grotto at Schonbrunn gardens
Graceful fountains adorn the gardens at Schonbrunn
Sculpture fountain with Schonbrunn palace in the background
The garden exudes this electrifying atmosphere, even though it’s very quiet outside and you almost have the place to yourself. In between these elegant topiary trees below are these stoic statues that lining the walkway, and lending an air of formality and royal splendor. The warm color scheme continues throughout the entire grounds of the palace and present a magnificent showcase. This is such a wonderful walk and I’m really enjoying every moment touring the gardens – I’m just glad I took so many amazing pictures that I can look back and revisit this incredible garden.
A line of statues at the Schonbrunn gardens
The main promenade garden against these striking yellow maples
A line of statues at the Schonbrunn gardens
Along the main promenade fronting the palace, a crew of gardeners are starting to pull out all the summer annuals which are past their prime. Hopefully something cheerful will still be planted, prior to the cold and dull winters that will soon come to Vienna.
The main promenade at Schonbrunn gardens
Behind the promenade is this prominent fountain adorned with sculpture and fronting a large crescent shaped pond. It seems like everything in the gardens are really grandiose, just the right scale to match the palace itself.
The central fountains at Schonbrunn gardens
Detail of the central fountain at Schonbrunn
Detail of central promenade fountain at Schonbrunn
A view from above at the Schonbrunn gardens
Can you ever get tired of this view?
Panorama above Schonbrunn
The baroque structure at the top of the crest overlooking the main palace is the Gloriette monument. With symmetrical arcades and a central pavilion, it is now being used as a restaurant. Originally the Gloriette was a monument built to signify an accomplishment in war, now you can relax in the cafe and enjoy the panoramic views of the city below.
The Gloriette monument at the crest of a hill overlooking Schonbrunn
A detail of lions at the entrance of the Gloriette
Lions guard the Gloriette
After a nice walk up to the Gloriette, I decided to take a break and have a nice lunch. Below, I ordered a nice beef and cheese crepe with a simple salad and it was just the perfect meal. I also ordered a side of salmon carpaccio. After such a long and strenuous walk, I thought I deserved it… and yes it was fresh and tasty. Overall lunch was wonderful, and the views looking out to the palace and gardens were spectacular and worth the uphill climb to top.
A simple and delicious lunch at the Gloriette
Maples of every fall color and shape, do you have a favorite?
A collection of fall colors in the Schonbrunn gardens
Thanks for visiting the fall garden at Schonbrunn. If you enjoyed the post, please do share it with any of the social media buttons below, thanks. Also, please check out my earlier post highlighting the main palace at Schonbrunn here or check out my tour of The Belvedere palace here.
V akom obdobi su schonbrunnske zahrady na jesen najkrajsie a uz aj dostatocne sfarbene koncom oktobra pripadne zaciatkom novembra by to uz aj stacilo?
To take wonderful pics like yours, which month is the best to visit? Early, mid or late October?
Thank you in advance.
Somporn from Thailand.
Fall is the season of colors and your photos have recorded some of the most beautiful scenes possible! Thanks for sharing them with us.
What caught my attention is how carefully these gardens are well-kept. Great!
These photos make me so happy!!! Well done.
A fall garden tour at Schonbrunn looks like it would be the perfect way to enjoy the fall in Vienna. I love the colors in your photos. Gorgeous!
Ohh you’re making me miss fall sooo much! Those colors are absolutely amazing.
Stunning gardens and photography. I think my favorite photo is the one of the leaves up close. We’ve got another 3-4 weeks before the leaves change in the Southern USA and you’ve got me yearning for Fall.
Beautiful fall photo essay Noel. I love the fiery orange of fall, but all of the images you shared are pretty spectacular. I particularly like the one of the grotto at Schonbrunn gardens where they have trimmed the tree to enhance the view. What a backdrop for all the sculptures!
Such wonderful colours! I love walking through piles of crisp autumn leaves, kicking them up as I go, especially on sunny days when the air feels clean and fresh.
Gorgeous pictures!! I miss Autumn so much.
I’ve only been to Schonbrunn in the winter, and it’s lovely then. But it’s jaw-dropping in the fall!!
You’ve caught some beautiful colours in the foliage there, Noel… a fantastic time of the year to visit by the looks of it. And Schonbrunn itself looks very grand, too!
I love autumn and it looks like a great time to visit Vienna. We are heading over in November to visit friends and now I’ve seen your photos I definitely want to go to Schonbrunn
Autumn’s such a photogenic season. Thanks for sharing, Noel. Some amazing photos here.
Great photos. We were there in March last year — it was very gray and not quite so photogenic 🙂
I was at the Schonbrunn about 20 years ago (yikes!) and thought it was spectacular and really enjoyed your pictures brining back the experience! (I have film pictures somewhere – remember those?) Thanks for rekindling fond memories!
Autumn looks like the perfect time to visit, the colors are just gorgeous! What month were you there? I need to start planning for next year!
I’ve never been a fan of the famous Maria Theresa yellow used on the Palace, but it takes a new meaning to me after seeing your pictures of the garden during fall. The leaves just seem to have the right colours to compliment the palace.
Wow wow. Some palace! People really lived like that, huh. It gives me pause for thought.
Yes, When it’s a Hapsburg dynasty then grand is nothing but spectacular