I had been searching the internet for a while to find a perfect and affordable hotel in the center of Vienna. All of a sudden, I stumbled upon Hotel Beethoven. Location was the biggest criteria, since my mum has trouble walking, so it had to be near the Opera. Hotel Beethoven is only one block away from the Naschmarkt, the vast 16th-century origin market, offering fine food and some restaurant stalls. It is also at walking distance from most of the cities major attractions: the Hofburg Palace, the Graben & Kartner shopping streets, the Belvedere and the museum quarter…. Ideal location – check!
The history and the pictures somehow intrigued me, so I took a chance and booked us a room. If there’s one adjective that can properly describe this place, it’s cosy eclectic. As soon as we walked inside the lobby/reception area, we were greeted by the Dutch ‘ex-history teacher’ Bram and I immediately felt at home. Since we booked with the hotel directly, we received museum tickets and they also offered us tea/coffee/cake time in the afternoon. A very nice perk indeed…
On entering the room, a personal note, a bar of chocolate and a bottle of sparkling wine welcomed us. What more do you need, right? The rooms are spacious and a bit quirky, but the eclectic style grows on you. What I thought was interesting is that each of the six floors has a unique theme pertaining to the history and culture of Vienna. “Each room is dedicated to a distinguished personality of the theme.” Ranging from Viennese coffeehouse literati, secession art to Beethoven, love and desire, and strong women. A ‘strong woman’ room for me please ;). I also learned that each of the rooms is color-coded. As a result, the rooms have their own style and vibe, which makes it quite special. The grandmother of the previous owner was Helene Jungreuthmayr. She was a single mother of 2. In 1953 she remodeled the historistic apartment building, originally built in 1902, When Barbara Ludwig took over, she integrated many pieces from her family in the hotel. Her mother was a pianoplayer, hence the Bösendorfer grand piano. She and her supercute labradoodle Leopold are always somewhere in the hotel. Needless to say that I fell in love with Poldi, the dog :)… A cosy hotel with a strong lady boss and a supercute dog!!!!
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