Radisson Blu Das Triest. Discover Vienna's Stylish Design Hotel

Anthea Gerrie Enjoys Fine Vienna Views And An Homage To Outstanding Vienna Art In The Stylish Radisson Blu Das Triest

The first design hotel in a city now bursting with chic lodgings, the stylish Radisson Blu Das Triest is a former post station transformed, by incorporating the art and design for which Vienna became famous over the 20th century, into stylish digs fit for the 21st. Extensive renovation has achieved evolution by adding a contemporary alternative to the legacy rooms and suites which have drawn celebrities over the decades.

Das Triest is how the Austrians refer to Trieste, the Italian port which was the glory of the Habsburg empire when Vienna was its capital. Horses traveling between the two great cities once pulled into the delightful, cobbled courtyard which is the only remnant on the site of those Imperial days and is now the terrace of the Silver Bar, the hotel’s popular local watering hole.

The fading days of empire are also addressed in the snippets of Klimt’s famous Beethoven frieze for the nearby Secession Building, replicated here and there around a lobby which also offers a playful homage to the Arcimboldos in Vienna’s Kunsthistorischesmuseum – human heads surreally incorporating flora and fauna – and the mid-century modernism to which design-conscious Vienna turned once it was finished with the Biedermeier, art nouveau and art deco periods which left their mark on so many of the city’s buildings and interiors.

But you don’t need to be a design buff to enjoy the rich dark wood panelling of the original rooms, the height of modern elegance when the design hotel opened in 1995, or the paler, blonder minimalism of the new rooms on the other side of the building. These include spacious suites with large balconies, like ours looking towards Vienna’s main cathedral, Stephansdom.

While enjoying the balcony and a light well bringing natural daylight into the spacious bathroom, I would be tempted on a repeat visit by the warm, rich wood and velvety cosiness of those legacy rooms, some of which also enjoy a fine view of Stephansdom.

A new feature of the reopened hotel is its restaurant, Bistrot Bertarelli 1894, paying tribute to the eponymous travel pioneer, and indeed Trieste, with its Italian fusion cuisine. Opening onto a terrace in a lively little piazza, this laid-back restaurant where a bountiful breakfast buffet is served offers all-day alfresco dining and people-watching.

The Silver Bar is a more interior experience – you need to come through the hotel to access both the bar and enchanting courtyard, a great place to enjoy an expertly-mixed nightcap beneath a string of fairy lights. Beyond the art-filled lobby lies a state-of-the-art fitness area, a sauna and the Apothecary, a lounge occasionally closed off for private events which recalls Vienna’s 19th century Biedermeier design in a nod to the original post house.

So far as location goes, the Radisson Blu Das Triest scores with its position in Vienna’s lively, bohemian and esoteric 4th district, a favourite with repeat visitors to the city. The aforementioned Secession Building at Karlsplatz is a major attraction, as is nearby Naschmarkt, notable not only for delicious vittles, both local and exotic, but a beautiful art nouveau station by Vienna starchitect Otto Wagner, whose students created the extravagantly colourful and decorative facades of three apartment buildings on Linke Wienzeille, the street which lines the market on the right.

All of these are within walking distance, as is the linking Gumperdorferstrasse, home to one of Vienna’s finest vintage shops.

Head past Karlplatz and you quickly reach the famous Ring, the Vienna Opera House marking the entrance to the Inner City. From outside the opera trams climb up Wiedner Haupstrasse, the thoroughfare on which the hotel sits, saving sore feet on return from sightseeing. The only possible flaw to a speedy re-entry? A hotel entrance with signage so discreet you could miss it, making this hostelry the sleepover equivalent of a speakeasy. Das Triest, as it’s flagged up to locals by a strip of blue neon, is the newest hidden gem in a neighbourhood which is a well-kept secret in itself.