Snapshot: The Maze at Schonbrunn Palace in Vienna

Looks can be deceptive. This giant of a labyrinth looked like a walk in the park to me initially, until I got completely lost amongst the neatly manicured walls of greenery and in utter frustration.

The Maze at Schonbrunn is a must-visit if you’re making a trip to the Palace. To be honest, I didn’t think I’d visit the maze, considering I wasn’t even aware of its existence. My initial plan was to visit the palace, but bad time management led to a two-hour waiting time to just enter the palace, so I decided to forego the palace and explore its inviting gardens instead. The vast lush grounds make for a nice stroll while you admire the beautifully manicured plants.

Then I chanced upon the maze.

It has an unassuming entrance. I only noticed it because I saw strings of people coming in and out of it, with varying expressions- from giggly kids to furrow-browed adults.  From the outside, you can’t really tell that it’s massive because the walls are pretty tall, but not tall enough to miss the smug looks of the people who completed the maze, hanging out on the elevated platform in the middle of the maze. From there, you can overlook the entire maze structure and watch how others are faring.

The maze was developed back in the early 1700s, and had four quadrants that lead you on winding paths with narrow hedges and plenty of dead ends. It was eventually cut down to only one entrance. I spent a good 20 minutes circling around in the maze. At one point, I got so frustrated, I came out of it, and begin all over the again. If it had stayed in its original state, I might have taken hours to solve the maze.

The victory was worth it. Standing on the elevated platform in the maze’s core, I had more fun than I thought I would just watching people walking on long paths between the tall lush hedges only to meet a dead end. Some throw helpless glances at me, and I did a bit of rescuing, nodding when they are headed the right direction, and shaking my head when they’re traipsing down a road to nowhere.

Plan enough time to try the maze when you visit the Schonbrunn, it’s worth the effort.

Do not that it costs € 5,20 to experience the maze.

Tip: If you are visiting in summer, you might wanna hydrate before you enter the maze, it might take some time before you stand triumphant on the pavilion in the center.