This is the second of three reports on my recent trip to Europe. From that trip, I've previously reviewed
seven hotels in Paris, and a review on three hotels in Budapest will be forthcoming. Because I was part of a large group of Brownell travel advisors visiting Vienna, there were quite a few people on each inspection, making it more difficult to get photos of the various rooms we saw.
Executive Summary. These are my opinions and pretty much represent the consensus of my colleagues.
Sacher is our top choice in the "traditional" category. Located in an historic building just off the Ring and adjacent to the Opera, the Sacher is privately owned and has undergone a very successful room renovation. I would describe the new rooms as updated traditional.
Park Hyatt is our top choice in the "contemporary" category. The hotel has a central location near St. Stephens.
Imperial would be the choice for visitors who want a taste of traditional Viennese opulence.
Bristol - I liked the Bristol Suite
very much but found its regular guestrooms to be a bit lackluster ... but just for now: extensive refurbishments may be in the plans.
Ritz-Carlton. While the historical building is impressive, the contemporary guestrooms did not appeal to me, but RC is often a good option in Vienna if you're looking for value.
Hotel Sacher Wien is a privately owned hotel; the same family also owns the Hotel Sacher in Salzburg. I visited the Sacher during my previous stay in Vienna. Room renovations which were underway at that time have now been completed, and the results are quite wonderful.
I love the fact that guestrooms have real personality. This is not a cookie-cutter corporate hotel. The first photo shows a regular guest room. The wallpaper and carpeting give the room a residential feel...
... and the bedroom of this Suite is imperial in its design with high ceilings and crystal chandelier.
Park Hyatt Vienna
The guestroom we were shown at the Park Hyatt was impressive. Interiors are contemporary with interesting use of color and material. Bathrooms had dual vanities, and the rainshower was in the same glass-enclosed area as the separate soaking tub, a design often used by Park Hyatt. Our Brownell group was treated to an incredible lunch at The Bank Brasserie, a restaurant you should definitely consider while in Vienna.
In addition to creating a gorgeous contemporary room product, Park Hyatt has preserved some of the architectural grandeur of its historical building — see the meeting space below, intricately restored (and then meticulously recreated after an electrical fire).
Hotel Imperial
I've stayed at Hotel Imperial during both of my visits to Vienna. During our first stay, we stayed in an Imperial Junior Suite, a spacious open floorplan accommodation which we liked quite a lot. For this stay, I was assigned a Maisonette Suite, a duplex accommodation on the hotel's top floor that I didn't love so much. Having to climb a spiral staircase just to use the desk is inconvenient, especially when you're the only guest in the room. On the plus side, the suite did have a great view of the dome of Karls Kirche out the back of the hotel. Other than the split-level aspects of the accommodation, my room had a comfortable bed, dual vanities in the bathroom, separate step-in shower and soaking tub, and WC.
We did see the Imperial Suite, the place to stay if you want to feel like an Emperor or Empress. Located on the hotel's high-ceilinged mezzanine level, staying here would be like living in a fairy tale. See this impressive canopied bed!
As I wrote above in the executive summary, Hotel Imperial offers an extraordinary sense of the grandeur of imperial Vienna during the time of the Hapsburg Empire, evidenced by this photo of the grand staircase leading up to the mezzanine.
Hotel Bristol
The Bristol is located on the Ring adjacent to the Opera House. In fact, guests staying in rooms facing the opera can watch the live simulcast of evening opera performances being broadcast on the large screen facing the square. A number of our group stayed here.
The Bristol was purchased in 2013 by the Sacher family, reportedly to prevent it from coming under Four Seasons management. Plans are in the making to do a thorough renovation once some [unspecified] issues are resolved. If Bristol eventually matches the classical elegance of the Sacher, that would be good news indeed.
In the meantime, I really liked the hotel's current Bristol Suite product, seen in the photographs below. A true suite with doors that close between the compact bedroom and really nice living room, I would describe the styling as "contemporary elegant." I found the Bristol Suite a quite pleasing and spacious room.
The living room has a large seating area with a flat-panel TV facing the sofas.
Ritz-Carlton Vienna
This hotel is the result of joining together four historic Viennese buildings on the Ring into one contemporary hotel. One gets a sense of history when in the hallways walking to your room. You may change elevations walking from one wing to another, but you'll come across great staircases and surprises like this beautiful hallway outside the pictured guestrooms. Notice the intricately carved double doors, the fireplace, and its mantle.
On the other hand, the guestrooms are quite contemporary, even minimalist, as evidenced by this photo of this [occupied] room. The hotel was otherwise fully booked, but we saw two rooms occupied by members of our group. I found the design a bit plain. It could be significantly improved by some splashes of color, perhaps in the headboard, carpeting, or on the bed. (If I recall correctly, I offered the same suggestion during my last site inspection of the hotel).
The Ritz has a very good restaurant, Dstrikt Steakhouse, and its rooftop bar offers a stunning, panoramic view over all of Vienna, a feature unmatched by the other four hotels in this report.