I found the Hotel Kolbeck
(Photo 1) by trawling through seemingly endless accommodation websites. What were my criteria? Essentially, a place that was clean, comfortable, well-run, with breakfast and preferably free internet, and at about the two star price range. It also needed to be convenient to shops, restaurants and transport to the city. (Those are my usual starting point –
NB: your needs and priorities may be different).
I’m glad to say that the Kolbeck admirably met our criteria. It also had very pleasant staff. The one small negative, which I’d discerned from my web-searches was that, being in an older (1848) building it had no lift: climbing the stairs to our second floor room was not onerous and probably did us both good!
Because of our airline flight we arrived at 0800 – long before any possible check-in. Murat, the gentleman on the counter, kindly took our bags into the luggage room, offered us breakfast (we’d just had some at the airport, so declined), then gave us a map and an excellent briefing on getting about using Vienna’s public transport system.
Our double room (which overlooked the pedestrianised plaza alongside) was fairly plain but newly-refurbished, spotlessly clean, with a good ensuite and reasonably quiet
(Photos 2,3). Breakfast (which we enjoyed outdoors when possible)
(Photo 4) was quite reasonable, and all our other criteria were well-met: restaurants and shops aplenty were nearby, the tram passes the door and the main metro line into the city was about 200 metres distant. I should note that this is more a “working/retail” rather than a “tourist/upmarket” area, but it always felt respectable, safe and comfortable.
Unique Qualities: Free internet (with quite good speeds, but only one computer) is available to residents on a ‘shared’ basis.
The reception area
(Photo 5) has a distinctly old-world charm and a small display of memorabilia about the hotel, which has been run by the same family/family company for over a century, plus a photo of Franz Kolbeck who was founder in 1903.
The ultimate test: would we stay there again? Definitely.
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Theme: Hotel
Comparison: less expensive than average
Prices: US$80-120
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Phone: +43 (1) 604 1773
Address: Laxenburgerstrasse 19, 1100 Wien
Directions: FINDING IT: about 500 metres south of Sudbahnhof on Laxenburgerstrasse and facing Columbusplatz, tram line 0; Keplerplatz 200 metres metro line U1.
Website: http://www.hotel-kolbeck.at/english/hotel.htm
Other Contact: office@hotel-kolbeck.at
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on Jul 27, 2007
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