Grand Hotel Wien

Michelin recently bestowed the Grand's Le Ciel restaurant with its first star, which signifies a fresh beginning for a storied grande dame, once the only luxury hotel in Vienna (when it opened, the public were delightedly thunderstruck at its private bathrooms, telegraph office, and steam elevators—all rarities then). You don’t want to miss Le Ciel’s desserts, with dishes like deep-fried elderflowers with strawberries and rum, but there are plenty of other reasons to stay at the Grand Hotel Wien. Our favorites? Sumptuous pattern-on-pattern guest rooms (yes, that wallpaper is actual silk) and a steam bath in the spa where the ceiling is studded with “stars”—and glasses of water come straight from the Alps.

An ornate 205-room landmark, built in 1870 but still luring the Austrian cognoscenti today.

Minimalists should book elsewhere—this place is full-throttle maximalist.

You didn’t come all the way to Vienna to stay in a soulless new-build.

Sure, the original architects of the hotel could never have guessed that their seventh floor would house one of the best sushi restaurants in Vienna, but it does. What better place to grab a quick bento-box to-go and eat it—shoes off, sake poured—under the bed canopy in your suite?

Le Ciel by Toni Mörwald - international cuisine awarded one Michelin-star and three Gault Millau token Unkai - the most authentic Japanese cuisine in Vienna, awarded two Gault Millau token Grand Brasserie - a traditional Viennese Brasserie with great view down the Vienna Ringstrasse Unkai Bar & Sushi - for Sushi lovers and with patio in the summer "Yalla - fresh & spicy" - authentic Arabic cuisine on the ground floor of the Ringstrassen Galerien, Vienna´s most renowned shopping mall adjacent to the Grand Hotel Wien The Kavalierbar - The perfect place to let an eventful day come to an end with a classy cocktail Rosengarten Café - The hotel lobby serves small snacks, tea, coffee and cold beverages