Hotel Imperial

Description:

• This hotel is definitely the grandest in Vienna. Luminaries from around the world use it as their headquarters -- especially music stars who prefer the location, just 2 blocks from the Vienna State Opera and 1 block from the Musikverein. Richard Wagner stayed here with his family for a few months in 1875 (some scholars claim that he worked out key sections of both Tannhäuser and Lohengrin during that period). The hotel was built in 1869 as the private residence of the Duke of Württemberg. The Italian architect Zanotti designed the facade, which resembles a massive government building with a heroic frieze carved into the pediment below the roofline. It was converted into a private hotel in 1873. The Nazis commandeered it for their headquarters during World War II, and the Russians requisitioned it in 1945. Massive expenditures have returned it to its former glory, with special care paid to its fourth and fifth floors, which hold the most desirable rooms. Accommodations vary greatly in size, as befits a hotel of this era. Those on the mezzanine and first floors are lavishly baroque; as you go higher, appointments diminish, as do bathroom sizes.

  What, No Palace Fit for a Queen? -- The 1969 visit of England's Queen Elizabeth II to Vienna was one of the Hotel Imperial's high points. She was not initially pleased at the idea of lodging in a hotel. Wasn't there a spare palace in this former imperial city? Sure. But none of them offered the luxurious splendor of the Imperial. As it turned out, Queen Elizabeth enjoyed her stay very much. According to the hotel manager, the Queen left with warm words of gratitude and a little present for every single employee.

• © Frommer's 2012

Awards:

Frommer's

•  Very Highly Recommended 2010