Austria, as a summer holiday destination, offers its visitors an all-encompassing array of delightful pastimes. Recreation- and sports enthusiasts play amongst mountains and lakes, foodies are spoiled with organic, award-winning cuisine ranging from traditional favourites to innovative new recipes, spa-goers appreciate pampering by top therapists in luxurious wellness areas, and discerning travellers enjoy a level of hospitality and service that?s second to none.
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Vantage point Austria
AUSTRIA?S FINEST Experience Hotels is an exceptional collection of hotels that splendidly show off all the ?bests? that Austria has to offer, warmly welcoming its British guests who are also drawn by a holiday that ensures superb value for money and ease of arrival. And while all of these special hotels share this in common, they are also each uniquely different with respect to design and location; from a romantic lakeside setting, to the imperial impressions of Vienna, to a sprawling golf landscape in the sunniest part of the country, to an alpine gem nearly 2000m above sea level.? Despite sounding a world away from your daily nine-to-five, Austria is, in fact, only a two-hour direct flight from several UK gateways, and your hosts will also be happy to help you arrange a convenient airport transfer to your chosen accommodation.
Biohotel Stanglwirt
With over a century of hospitality experience, the Hauser family makes sure your every holiday need is catered for during your stay amidst the majestic scenery of the Wilder Kaiser resort region. The award-winning Bio-hotel Stanglwirt offers luxurious 5-star amenities and accommodation while committing itself to the highest of eco-friendly and organic standards. While the entire hotel is constructed out of Austrian wood, its rooms and suites have also been appointed with all natural materials for their furnishings, linens and carpeting. The Stanglwirt?s six restaurants serve fresh, organic menus with all meats and cheeses produced on the hotel farm. And, no better place to relax than at the hotel?s impressive spa/waterworld area where, in addition to the very latest in therapeutic and beauty treatments, attractions include a 1200m2 rock sauna area. New are the salt water pool, a sport swimming pool and a new relaxing area. Recreational activities galore as the hotel has its own private Lipizzaner stud farm, 14 tennis courts (6 indoor/8 outdoor), on-property golf training school and 12 (18-hole) golf courses of international standards within a 60-minute drive.
Perfect for: couples, recreation enthusiasts, eco-conscious travellers.
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Golfhotel Bad Tatzmannsdorf
Just an hour away from Austria?s two largest cities, Vienna and Graz, lies this paradise for golfers set upon 120 hectares of gentle rolling hills in southern Burgenland. In addition to its ?green credentials? which include a 27-hole golf course, and a Leadbetter Golf Academy, the Golfhotel Bad Tatzmannsdorf is also one of the top wellness hotels in Austria, where guests have access to 8,000m? ?of thermal spa facilities and can experience a unique Ying-Yang massage by a Chinese monk.
Perfect for: golfers, couples, spa enthusiasts.
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Hotel Edelweiss & Gurgl
A true Austrian alpine experience! Located at 1,930m above sea level, directly at the centre of the popular Tirolean resort of Obergurgl, the Hotel Edelweiss & Gurgl gives its guests a spectacular taste of mountain life and recreation. A doorstep ski lift offers convenient all-season access to a 3000m peak paradise where hiking, mountain biking and of course downhill ski (in winter) are just a few of the activities to help one feel in heart-pumping holiday mode. After a day out, relax on the hotel?s magnificent sun terrace and grab some refreshment at the roofed, but open-air Edelweiss bar. This modern, family-owned hotel, now in its fourth generation, also features a state-of-the-art indoor riding arena, 1,200m? Glacier Spa, and kids club.
Perfect for:? families, couples, nature lovers, sport enthusiasts
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Hotel Fliana
As a ski resort, Ischgl has long been where the action?s at with its fantastic mountain vibe, cool slope side concerts and snow sure pistes. But, this Tirolean holiday hotspot boasts an all-season menu of fun and recreation, living up to its motto of ?Relax, if you can?? Tempting you however, to take a breather, if even just for a short while to enjoy the view, is Ischgl?s new design hotel, Hotel Fliana. Enviously situated directly between two cable cars on a sunny, south-facing slope, the hotel is a 3-minute walk to the town centre and is the ideal starting point for many outdoor activities, whether the more traditional, leisure pursuits or more adrenaline-packed ones such as rafting, high ropes courses, canyoning, and motorbike tours. In time for summer 2013, the hotel debuts a new roof terrace with stunning panorama pool.
Perfect for: action & adventure seekers, families, couples, motorbikers.
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Hotel Hollmann Beletage
The capital?s premier boutique hotel with just 25 well-appointed rooms, quietly located at the heart of Vienna?s historic old town, just a two-minute walk from the famed Stephansdom Cathedral imposingly set alongside the city?s main pedestrian shopping street. Hotel Hollmann Beletage features its own cinema, rooftop terrace, mini-spa, and cosy guest sitting room with piano and library. And, as a complement to any cultural Viennese break, stroll to the nearby Hollman Salon and enjoy a very special multi-course meal set in one of Vienna?s most beautiful baroque courtyards. With many well-known creative personalities among its guest list, the Hollmann Beletage is truly a star find in Vienna.
Perfect for: culture lovers, couples, foodies, short city stay breaks.
Romantikhotel Im Weissen R?ssl
Romance calls at this beloved spa hotel on the shores of Lake Wolfgang in Austria?s own Lake District. Within easy day trip reach of the beautiful city of Salzburg, this family-run retreat, now in its fifth generation, has, in its over 100-year tradition of hospitality, even inspired an operetta by its same name. With 105 rooms and suites set over nine interconnected historic townhouses, a real hotel highlight is its amazing 1,500m? spa world with large selection of treatments, a heated pool within the lake kept at 30?C all year round, sauna with a lake view, and the world?s first outdoor, heated, floating whirlpool! The immediate area is ripe with walking and cycling trails leading into the mountains and around the lake, and your hosts can also assist in booking a cultural or historic excursion to the salt mines of Hallstatt, the Dachstein ice caves or the imperial town of Bad Ischl.
Perfect for: couples, families, water sport enthusiasts, day trippers, events/conferences.
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Gartenhotel Theresia
Welcome to a new Austria ? the Gartenhotel Theresia ?in the resort of Saalbach Hinterglemm is cool and contemporary, yet uncompromising in preserving Austria?s strong traditions in hospitality and sustainable living. With an ideal location on the south side of the Glemm valley, right beside a ski lift, and just an 8-minute walk from the town centre, owners Mr and Mrs Brettermeier have created eye-catching interior spaces that remain warm and welcoming. A jewel of the hotel is its collection of modern art with some 40 exhibited works including Andy Warhol, Hermann Nitsch and Corneille. The hotel has 53 elegant rooms and suites, and facilities include a spa, sauna world, in- and outdoor pools, gym, library, four restaurants, and onsite ski school. Families are also well-catered for with options of a kids club, children?s meals, in- and outdoor play areas and free hire of baby equipment. Lots of outdoor recreational possibilities as well, including 400km of hiking trails that criss-cross the immediate area, mountain biking, climbing and mountaineering, fishing, watersports, and a 36-hole golf course that?s just 20-minutes away (discount for guests).
Perfect for: couples, families, recreation seekers, skiers.
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Trattlerhof
With tranquil views of Carinthia?s Nockberge mountains, the Trattlerhof has a long and storied history dating back at least several centuries, with its name officially first mentioned in a document dated 1642. Located in the all-season resort of Bad Kleinkirchheim, famed for its thermal spa facilities, the hotel itself is rich in tradition both inside and out. Beautiful flower displays adorn the balconies of this alpine-style building and its 55 rooms are cosily decorated in authentic Austrian decor. Hotel facilities also include a swimming pool, sauna world, steam bath, well-being treatment rooms, restaurant, and bar. Lots to do outside the hotel with the town centre only 5-10 minutes on foot, ski lifts just a few hundred metres from the hotel, and a host of other options such as walking, biking, golf and nature watching.
Perfect for: couples, recreation seekers, and a restorative wellness holiday
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For more information, or if interested in a press trip, please contact Martina Jamnig at the Austrian National Tourist Office ([email protected], Tel: 020-7440-3840, newsroom-uk.austria.info)