New luxury and boutique hotel options are available
ANN RUPPENSTEIN
Following the cancelled Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna this past August, Austria’s capital city turned a negative into a positive for disappointed fans known as Swifties.
In the wake of a foiled planned terrorist attack, Elke Bachner, International B2B Relations, USA, Canada, Great Britain for the Vienna Tourist Board, says local businesses banded together to help make the most out of a bad situation.
“Swift fans got gifts from Swarovski, museums were open for free for Swift fans, restaurants were giving away free meals to fans with concert tickets,” she says. “We came together… The cancellation was a very sad thing, but Vienna turned it around, changing a negative into a positive. It was very special to see.”
In Toronto for an event to connect with agents and tourism professionals, Bachner says the city will see a Mandarin Oriental debut in March. There’s also been a lot of exciting new hotel openings.
A new option for clients is The Amauris Vienna, a luxury boutique hotel in the centre of the city, near the Opera and Karlsplatz. The Relais & Châteaux property features a 19th-century facade and offers 62 rooms, suites and villas.
Complete with a Cuban-inspired rooftop bar and pool offering picturesque city views and a basement cocktail bar, The Hoxton Vienna is another new option for clients. The hotel offers 196 rooms with a look that’s “a far less classical side of what is often considered a traditional European city.”
With only 52 rooms, O11 Boutique Hotel is a four star offering that’s steps from the Vienna State Opera and the historic Burggarten. Music is literally the foundation of the hotel as Heidi – a club — is located in the basement. For clients looking to indulge, the spacious presidential suite is fitted with a music sound system, including a DJ booth.
Finally, Anantara Palais Hansen Vienna Hotel launched earlier this year with 152 classically decorated rooms, including a 270-square metre presidential suite, said to be the largest in the Austrian capital. The property was previously a Kempinski.
Notably, she says Canada is an important international market and “we’re up and above with our numbers for Canadian travellers to Vienna.”
Vienna is easy to get to with daily non-stop flights from Toronto in the summer and five weekly flights in the winter. From Montreal, Star Alliance partner Austrian Airlines also connects travellers three-times-a-week in the winter with up to daily flights in the summer.
Upon arrival, clients can be downtown within a 16 minute train ride. From the city, she says it’s also easy to take a tram to reach nearby vineyards. “This is a beautiful experience.”
Vienna is also gearing up to celebrate the 200th anniversary of Johann Strauss in 2025. For agents who want to arrange an exclusive encounter for high-end clients, she says it’s even possible to meet with his great, great grandson, also a musician.
