Preamble ; Trip preparations

Was about to post then realised the previous 2 posts were mine , so here is a review instead .

Thanks to other reviewers including DavidO and the convincing one by bhrubin , shortlisting where to stay was made easier . Plus , not having been able to stay in any of the suggested hotels in December and having to carry the Imperial tortes back to another hotel nearby made me decide if I were to return , best be based at centrally located Imperial to have all the tortes I wanted . Was also sufficiently impressed with the public areas noted during Advent , perhaps the CHRISTmas decorations added right balance of “ atmosphere “ to the elegant and ornate interior . 

Then it dawned on me earlier this year , that our Danube cruise ( arranged by friends) not only ended in Budapest which gave me a good reason to swing by Vienna for the missed tortes but the timing also coincided with Lent in time to catch the Easter markets !

With all the Marriott acquisitions / changes figured that Imperial is part of one of the brands ! However , we did not use points for our stay .

Arrival and check in

We arrived refreshed from our exceptional stay at FS Gresham Palace in one of their BMW 7 L , anticipating a similar standard of service here ..

At check in at the front desk , we requested a late checkout but were initially given a non commital reply - this was until we said we required their airport transfer and late departure was then confirmed instantly .. We arranged a MPV since potentially we would have even more luggage with the tortes and such .

We were shown to our suite and told with some aplomb that we had been upgraded .

Room

We were ‘ upgraded ‘ to a blue Elisabeth Suite without a view . It was on the “ preferred “ Mezzanine floor with high ceilings as that was where guests in 1800s & early 1900s would have been in .

Entry with 2 doors leading to a small walk in closet and a narrow WC . 

Then we moved .

We preferred the top floor junior suite with a view we had reserved with a full ensuite .. a spacious L - shaped open plan layout with 2 balconies .

Views from the balconies 

Sunrise

Later in the day

Note the moon high in the sky

And more cranes ..

From other balcony

Dusk

It , very importantly , had good AC ! The AC would automatically cut off when either of the balcony doors was ajar . We sometimes left them open for the cool crisp ventilation and it worked well . Temperatures early morning were about 5 - 7 C & would drop again in the evenings ! But the fresh air was well , refreshing :)

Bathroom

The en-suite bathroom of the Elisabeth Suite did not have a WC !

But did have a bidet !

Instead the only toilet which we thought was for guests was off the entry , past the small walk-in wardrobe 

Somewhat similar arrangement to bhrubin ‘ s Imperial Suite !

The junior suite , thankfully , had a reasonably sized proper en-suite 

Lobby area

As mentioned by DavidO and  bhrubin along with their photos , the public areas reflect the grandeur of the imperial Hapsburg period .

Here are 2 more from our April stay

From the reception looking towards the cafe and counter where the Imperial tortes are displayed 

Towards the lounge and up to the mezzanine floor

Concierge and Service

A rather marked contrast coming from the FS Gresham Palace .. inconsistent and disappointing after  bhrubin ‘ s rave review .

The trainees , including a butler cum room service and another at the front desk , were the most enthusiastic and warmest of the staff . Others seemed more perfunctory .

Service seems to have slipped since bhrubin ‘ s stay in ‘ 17 . 

Various areas need to be worked on .

Some incorrect information was proffered while in other instances provided accurately .

At other times , requests were acknowledged but not followed through , somehow the ball ( s ) must have dropped .

This included SSR confirmation by the airline not being communicated to the MPV driver , etcetera .

Actually , service recovery is in progress so we shall see .

Housekeeping was about flawless though and they were always happy to assist whether it was for more laundry bags , towels , etcetera 

Trying to sample the Imperial Torte at the cake display without getting a sugar high was a bit tricky too as the staff could not tell me which dark type the tiny sample pieces were .

Returned a few times and it was still the same one ( I tasted them ) so I eventually asked the manager ? who happened to be there the last time to let me try N° 3 . Had realised by then that I was enjoying N° 2 all along . He actually indicated for me to buy a ‘ miniature ‘ and I had to explain that I was deciding how many large ones to purchase and which versions .. had to try pack as check in luggage and we were checking out soon that afternoon !

Reluctantly he produced some samples thereafter ..

Not a pleasant experience , a dampener really such that fewer cakes were bought .

Did I really choose this hotel and want to go through all this for others to enjoy this special Torte ?

See photos of Torte N° 1 in earlier posts .

Having issues posting , photos - to be continued 

Odds and ends ; the Imperial Torte :)

This section was reorganised to end on a sweet note ;)

In house concerts 

What I assume is also unique for guests staying is her daily complimentary ? performances whether it be opera or ? , in one of their function rooms .

On one evening , it was La Bohème

Butler Service 

All suites were supposed to be accorded complimentary butler service , a special feature for Vienna..

But we were misinformed that it was chargeable !

IT / Wifi 

While the wifi worked generally , the IT system was probably unstable .

On the last day , the staff could not check the system  , we could not get back to our suite without assistance from the FO team , etcetera .

The Guest Relations Manager was very apologetic and assured us of a better future stay . This was before additional hiccups ..

Airport transfer 

Then there was the journey to the airport .. the MPV was alright - however 

the assurances for future stay , well became a bigger “ if “ .

The driver was rude - uncooperative but we did get to the airport , relieved that it is a short ride . What a difference to the one we had from FS Gresham Palace - helpful and made sure we were comfortable and safe .

Imperial Torte ( s ) - this part for FTers who love cakes / desserts 

Like some others on this thread , I prefer the Imperial Torte to the Sacher Torte .

Made the decision to stay here because of this torte !

It possibly would have been wiser to stay elsewhere like the Sacher where the Imperial Torte was likely unavailable ( since it was rather risky for end of trip calories / sugar count staying where the Torte was easily accessible ) 

Now besides the original milk chocolate coated , there are 2 other dark chocolate coated variations . There is a counter dedicated to these delectable treats .

Then I found out that at times there were samples available to try usually 2 out of the 3 versions .

N° 1   DAS ORIGINAL 

N° 2   SCHWARZE ORANGE and 

N° 3   FEINE HIMBEERE

Since N° 1  was what I bought in December , it was the other 2 which were of interest to me .

Unfortunately , unlike the original , N° 2  and N° 3 only come in smaller sizes from “ queen “ downwards .

Anyway , hope you get to enjoy your preferred version when you go , just like I , still , am . 

My friends too have enjoyed them so the trouble was not in vain .

Location

Within walking distance , normally , to just about where we wanted to go this visit or a short long ride away by taxi . This is typed with a pinch of salt as last December , a cab ride in this area just about took longer than walking because of the road system !

Had another delicious dinner at Meissl & Schadn , thanks to livefromtuscany who introduced me to arguably the best Wiener schnitzel in town last December .

Schwarzenberger Cafe with Viennese fare and the pianist violinist duo who sang / played broadway , oldies , .. in their repertoire - Thursdays through Sundays just in case others are interested . Just note that the waiters can be rather gruff but do warm up if you remain pleasant ( unlike our driver to the airport ) ..

Both just diagonally across from the Imperial :)

Brunch at Cafe Mozart was a bit further but with the excesses from the trip a stroll back to Imperial was necessary . Should one have another schnitzel ?? The variety of desserts / puddings / tortes here , makes deciding difficult - excruciating for some ?

Sorry to side track 

Revisited Schönbrunn Palace & the Easter markets . Achieved what I did not some 30 years ago too , better late than never ! :) - back then it was a record breaking heat wave ( would not have visited in summer but for the conference timing ) .

With a taxi stand just outside Imperial , one is all set if going further within the city and not requiring a guide . You can see where the taxi stand is , near the right turn sign , in the photo below .

We thought bhrubin forgot to mention the police escorts during his arrival ;)

Taken on way back from Grand Ferdinand , Meissl & Schadn dinner 

Overall

The jury is still out .

Now after looking at bhrubin ‘ s TR on his poor April Calistoga Ranch stay , service recovery seems to have reached a better conclusion than ours ( as I post ) , sincere ? , immediate and consolatory .. though the process was unacceptable too .

How much more gracious should I be .. will complete the review when I am not jet lagging  ..

Feel free to PM me . Have emails to about all their senior staff now if you need to reach them :)