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Hotel in center city Vienna

My wife and I are planning to spend 5 nights in Vienna, the 15th thru 20th of May. We have reviewed the recommendations in the RS travel guide and we’re thinking of Hotel Pertschy. However, not many people have mentioned it in the other forum entries. Also, a friend recommended the Hotel Kaiserin Elisabeth, and that is not even mentioned in the tour guide. Does anyone have any recent experience with either, or care to make an alternate recommendation for a hotel close to the Hofburg Palace?

Posted by
8091 posts

I've been staying 2 stops outside the Ring for the past 20 years. The underground station is 50' across the street, and you can be in the center city in 5 minutes. It's where Rick Steves always stayed back then, and he is personal friends with the owners. $85 a night, and the rooms are huge. PM me for the name if interested.

Posted by
3961 posts

We stayed 5 nights in Vienna in 2019. We enjoyed the centrally located Hotel Austria. It is about a 10 min. stroll from Hotel Pertschy & Hofburg Palace. Hotel Austria was recommended by many contributors from this forum. We were very pleased with the accommodation.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwjF46nG5If3AhURK30KHRT7AdwQFnoECAcQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hotelaustria-wien.at%2Fen%2F%3F%253F%253F%252F%253F%253F%253F%253F%253F%253F%253F%252F%253F%253F%253F%252F%253Fsitelink%3Dbil%26r%3D864&usg=AOvVaw3w5H0HWcrfYp1-olAidotN

Posted by
4613 posts

We stayed at the Hotel Am Stephanplatz pre-covid. It's right across the street from the Cathedral. It has well-insulated windows so you barely hear the church bells. The breakfast room has large windows fronting the Cathedral, and in the evening, the room serves as a bar with great people-watching on the Square. Breakfast was great, and the service impeccable.
Also. immediately adjacent to a U-bahn stop.
Safe travels!

Posted by
251 posts

Hotel Pertschy. Ugh. Not a favorable experience in my memory. My friend and I took a three week trip last October and I would say it was our least favorable hotel of the trip.

We booked direct with the hotel, splashing out for a suite that was supposed to contain a double-bed and single bed with sofa so we had elbow room. We arrived around 9pm. The room we were given had only a double bed and a chair that had been folded out into a single bed. The fold out chair/bed was a wicked torture device, not a bed by any means. We went back to reception as this wasn’t acceptable. The night clerk was pleasant but unprepared to handle any actual problem. We finally landed in a tiny room with two twins beds. The next morning we took it up with the day staff. They started arguing that booking.com didn’t always accurately show the room configurations. We said we booked direct and showed them their own pictures depicting the room we booked. No apologies or explanation. We were willing to stay in the tiny room but wanted the tinier price of a regular room not the suite we paid for. They moved us into a room with a king bed and couch begrudgingly.

We loved Vienna and wanted to stay an extra day. Talked to the front desk that morning and booked the room another night. All good. We went about our day. Returning to our room that afternoon, we found our stuff all mixed up; shoes in our laundry bag, our clothes in each other’s bags, personal toiletries missing from the bathroom and the really creepy thing was toiletries that weren’t ours scattered around the sink. When we went to the front desk to ask about our missing personal items, they said their had been a communications problem about our extra night. The maid assumed we had left our belongings and was cleaning them out to be thrown away. Are you serious? And did they go through the garbage to find random peoples toiletries to replace ours? No apologies again.

The location was phenomenal. The breakfast was really good. Loved the espresso maker in the lobby but the customer service was horrible and unapologetic. At check out, the manager whom I assume realized at this point we had not been treated well, offered us complimentary bottles of water to go. It was such a lame gesture at that point, we declined. Vienna is wonderful but Hotel Pertschy was not part of it.

Posted by
14481 posts

I would recommend Pension Suzanne...a super nice place, ca. 2 minutes from the State Opera and Cafe Sacher should you be interested in that. It is located in a pedestrian zone (Fußgängerbereich) at the start of Kärntnerstraße, and close to the U-Bahn station Karlsplatz, ca 2-3 mins.

I have not stayed at Suzanne, only checked it out a few times since I am in the vicinity every time in Vienna.

Don't just go by the tour guide.

Posted by
5362 posts

First, it is important to understand that Vienna is a compact city and you can walk around the center in about 10-15 minutes. So, it is not necessary to be right next to the Hofburg. In addition, the public transportation system, which you will want to use, is very easy and cheap. Next, just because it isn't on Rick's list doesn't mean it isn't great.

I looked at booking.com for your dates. I would recommend the following - Boutique Hotel Das Tyrol, Hotel Beethoven and the Kaiserin Elisabeth.

Posted by
7123 posts

We also stayed at Hotel Am Stephanplatz. What a nice hotel and fantastic location! We had a very large room and enjoyed looking out at the gorgeous cathedral designed roof tiles in the evening.

Good memories of Vienna!

Posted by
5362 posts

Ricki - I’ve never stayed at the Guesthouse, but I’ve eaten at the restaurant and been inside the hotel. It is a lovely hotel with one of the most popular brunch/breakfast spots in town. The location is also very good.

Posted by
125 posts

Try Hotel AUSTRIA. great location near St Stephans and trams. Clean , small hotel , nice breakfast.

Posted by
166 posts

Hi there.. I will be staying at Hotel Am Stephanplatz starting next Friday. I will try and remember to report what I think after our visit. :)

Posted by
2596 posts

I loved the Hotel Am Stephansplatz--very large room, nicely appointed with every amenity possible, very clean and quiet. Especially good breakfast, and just steps from the U...I will definitely stay there again.

Posted by
125 posts

Thank you Emily...good to know...we will be there in 13 days and can't wait!!!

Posted by
40 posts

Hotel Levante Parliament. Stayed there 3 times; close to U-Bahn station; easy connections to anywhere in the city.

Posted by
1875 posts

Hotel Levante Parliament. Stayed there 3 times; close to U-Bahn station ...

The U-Bahn line there is closed for refurbishment until fall 2023, but as nearly everywhere in Vienna, other public transport is available, i.e. tram.

The Innere Stadt and MuseumsQuartier are two of the best overall neighborhoods to stay in Vienna. They are also the best areas to stay in Vienna for first time visitors. ❶ Innere Stadt Vienna's 1st District: The heart of historic Vienna, this is where you'll find some of the city's most popular tourist attractions.

Posted by
1875 posts

Because of the excellent public transport in Vienna - everywhere, easy to use, safe - the location of your accommodation is not so important compared to other cities, and there are a lot of sights which are not in walking distance anyway.

Posted by
4137 posts

The closure that wmt1 refers to is the U2 metro line . It terminates now at Schottentor until Autumn of 2023 . The remainder of the run to Karlsplatz is temporarily served by the U2Z tram running on the Ring at street level .

Posted by
827 posts

We have stayed at Pension City. Affordable on a quiet side street, yet close to the center.

Posted by
125 posts

Our fave is Hotel Austria includes a great breakfast. Its central location and fown a very quiet little alley. Check it out.

Posted by
5 posts

I stayed at leonardo hotel vienna. It is in 10min walking distance to Westbahnof and Mariahaf street. Easy access to Metro and trams. If you don't have budget limits, staying closer to Hofburg is not a problem. But staying n suggear by palace in a non-expensive neighbourhood, I sugegst Leonardo hotel

Posted by
62 posts

If you are considering Hotel Austria, be warned. There is only one exit from the upper floors - the main exit down the front stairway - so if there is a fire or other emergency and your room is at the back of the hotel you could be trapped. There are no fire escapes or other exits from the upper floors except the main stairs. Also, your room door will not open from the inside without your key, so if you need to leave quickly, there is the potential for getting trapped inside. Further, if you decide to use their airport pickup service (€45) and then miss your pickup because of flight delays or lost luggage (which is what happened to me) you will be charged for the missed pickup. Even though they do not tell you this when you book. They warn that you must contact them in case you are delayed but that’s it. I was charged €90 for a missed pickup and the actual pickup, even though missing the pickup and not being able to contact the hotel was beyond my control (the data on my Orange holiday SIM card was not working and I never received their email. And I did not receive their text because I was using a European SIM for my vacation, not my regular number the hotel had on my booking reservation ). They use independent drivers for their hotel pickups, and retaining these drivers is their top concern, so they will pay the driver and then charge you if you miss the pickup. My experience at this hotel has been soured by these two factors, and I would not stay with them again nor recommend them.

Posted by
34 posts

We just stayed at Hotel Pertschy in the beginning of October. It is a great location. Very close to the Hofburg Palace and half a block to the Graben, it is a square and is several blocks long, no cars which ends at St Stephens and the Karntner Strasse. The room was large with 2 twin beds and a table and 2 chairs. More than enough room for two of us. It did have two chandeliers but nothing else fancy in the room. I would stay there again. The location was the best for walking around the old city.