Palmenhaus (palm house) at Schönbrunn

The Palmenhaus in the Schönbrunn Palace gardens is a giant steel and glass palm house over 110m long, 28m wide and over 25m high.

• Built in 1882 during the reign of Emperor Franz Joseph
• Full of exotic trees and shrubs
• Decorated with colourful flower displays, too
• Be sure to take all the paths inside for little surprises
• See also: The Desert House | Schönbrunn tickets & visitor info

Inside the palm house

(The 19th century saw many palm houses appear in Europe, particularly in Victorian Britain. The one pictured above is from Kew Gardens in the UK, built in 1844. Photo courtesy of the British Library)

At the time of its construction (1882), the Schönbrunn palm house was the largest of its kind. The builders – Firma Ignaz Gridl – survive today, albeit under a different name.

Waagner-Biro bought up the original company in 1934 and still contribute to iconic buildings, such as the roof of the Louvre Abu Dhabi or the dome of London’s “Gherkin”. Rather aptly, they also helped with the palm house’s renovation, completed in 1990.

As you face the main entrance, the palm house is split into three botanical (and physical) sections:

• The middle section (the largest) – a temperate, Mediterranean climate
• The tropical section (at the end on the right)
• The “cold” section (at the end on the left)

The huge palms that give the building its name dominate the first central part. The federal garden service usually enhances the trees and shrubs with pot plants. So a blaze of colour likely greets you as you walk in through the entrance and throughout the building: on my visit in May, it was hydrangeas and lilies.

Be sure to explore the paths leading off toward the sides of the building; they reveal such delights as a carnivorous plant section (featuring a selection of the hundreds of “flesh-eating” plants in the wider collection maintained by the authorities).

The real highlights grow in the tropical section. For example:

• Two plants with absolutely enormous leaves: a Lodoicea palm (Coco de Mer) and Ravenala madagascariensis (the Traveler’s Palm)

• Various plants you recognise from supermarket shelves, but have probably never seen before, such as…
  • A banana “tree”
  • The vanilla orchid
  • A lychee tree
  • A fig tree
  • Cacao tree (chocolate!)
  • A star fruit tree
  • A papaya tree
  • An African oil palm tree (the source of the infamous palm oil)

The English names were not given on plant labels on my visit, so take your botanical dictionary with you (or a smartphone).

Tickets & visitor tips

At the time of writing, a standard adult ticket cost €7, with the palm house opening daily all through the year.

• Frequent seats and benches mean you can sit down and enjoy the atmosphere immersed in tropical greenery

• The tropical section is warm and wet – watch your camera when taking photos upwards as drops of water fall down regularly

• It won’t take much more than 30 minutes to get around, even if you dawdle

• There was a coat rack on my visit, but no cloakroom as such to store your clothes

• If you visit and like your botany, don’t forget to take a quick peek at the Japanese Garden that adjoins the building on the side nearest the zoo

How to get to the palm house

Just go to the article with directions to Schönbrunn and follow the instructions given under the section, “Hietzing station”.

The palm house sits opposite the desert house and just up from the famous Schönbrunn zoo.

Address: Schlosspark Schönbrunn, 1130 Vienna | Website