Introduction to the Festival Hall: The Festival Hall is the center of the entire palace. It is 40 meters long and nearly 10 meters wide. It is a place for holding large-scale palace activities such as royal balls, state interviews, and large banquets. The hall is decorated with rococo-style crystal glass mirrors, gold-painted ceiling reliefs and statues. The ceiling painting is a masterpiece by the Italian painter Grigorio Gugomi, which shows the reign of Maria Theresa. In the prosperity of the empire, the huge gilded wood-carved chandelier could light 70 candles at the same time in the past. After the Schönbrunn Palace was electrified in 1901, the candles were replaced by electric lights. The small festival hall connected to the hall is mainly used for family celebrations such as birthdays, name day parties, banquets, etc. Standing here, you can overlook the distant high-sloping viewing pavilion of the garden outside.
After the end of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Festival Hall became a venue for concerts and a meeting place for international summits. In 1961, U.S. President Kennedy and former Soviet leader Khrushchev held their historic meeting here.