Anantara Palais Hansen Vienna

Staying at the Anantara in Vienna really made the long weekend for my wifes birthday. Ideally situated with excellwent amenities and a great bar the oitstanding thing is its staff who are welcoming, professional and superb.

While the Anantara Palais Hansen is undoubtedly a beautiful hotel within, its service at our recent weekend stay was quite disappointing. Other than the 2 doormen who it must be said were kind, helpful and courteous at all times throughout our stay, that’s about where the service stopped for us. The remainder of the staff we encountered came across as disinterested and borderline rude. It began at check in, we were queuing at the reception for 4-5 mins and oddly when it came to our turn, the woman at check in left the desk and walked around my partner and I to the woman behind us to see how she could assist her! When she did get to us, the first thing upon confirming the reservation was announce the price of the 2 night stay to us both, and everyone else. My parter was unaware of the cost as it had been booked as a treat for her. I found this quite distasteful to be frank. I was fully aware of the price, and the bill was not even being settled at this point so I’m unsure as to why this woman saw the need to announce the full price of the stay at the very offset! To add to this, the couple who had been checked in just before us had been given a welcome drink at the reception area. We were handed our keys and not offered anything. Even though the area where these welcome drinks were served from was in plain sight. The room was nice it must be said. Clean and comfortable. Possibly overpriced for what you’re getting however. Upon checking out we were met with the same disinterested tone. The man at reception simply asked for the room number and queried if we had consumed anything from the minibar that he would have to add to the bill. Once settled there was not another word said. No mention as to enquire how we found the stay or if everything had been satisfactory etc.. We have stayed in plenty 5 star establishments over the years and it must be said, exemplary service is the cornerstone for any good establishment. That is where this hotel fails miserably. Overall we both came away with a disappointed empty felling about our stay here. My advice, go elsewhere. There is far better out there for dare I say far better value also.

Beautiful hotel with the best food. Loved the bar and the concierge gentleman were so kind and friendly. Our go-to place for Vienna. Spectacular bedding as well.

First trip to Vienna and the Anantara Hotel, superb hotel and food totally recommend it. Staff super friendly and the hotel had all mod cons but still felt cosy.

We booked the Anantara Palais Hansen Hotel over a year in advance to celebrate my wife’s 50th birthday and our 25th wedding anniversary. We were very excited and looked forward to staying in this renowned property in a junior suite. Upon arrival, we were greeted by the guest services team, who took our luggage and directed us to reception. Unfortunately, the check-in process took quite a long time due to issues with the computer system and the credit card terminal. While waiting, we mentioned that this trip was to celebrate two very special occasions. The staff were polite and said they would make a special note of it. Once check-in was complete, we were given information about the hotel amenities and directed to the lift. Our room did not disappoint—spacious, beautifully presented, and very comfortable. It included a lovely lobby area, a generous bedroom with a lounge space, a large minibar and TV, plenty of wardrobe space, a dressing area with amenities, and a beautiful bathroom with a bath and shower. We asked for additional hangers, which were delivered promptly. We then spoke with the concierge, an older gentleman who was extremely helpful and recommended several attractions for us to explore. When we returned for drinks in the bar later that evening, we found the service very slow and inattentive. Staff tended to gather around the till chatting rather than circulating to check on guests. After eventually ordering and waiting some time, we decided against having a second drink and returned to our room, where we enjoyed a very comfortable night in a quiet, cosy bed. Breakfast Experience At breakfast the next morning, we waited to be seated and were shown to a table without an explanation of how the breakfast worked. We had to ask ourselves, and were told it was a buffet. The buffet selection was outstanding; however, the chefs at the egg station were rather grumpy and more focused on chatting with each other than assisting guests. The waiting staff were also not very attentive, and we had to look for someone whenever we needed drinks. We also only later discovered that there was an additional à-la-carte menu, though no one explained whether these items were included. Service & Maintenance Issues Before heading out for dinner that evening, we reported a flickering light in the shaving mirror and a wardrobe light that stayed on all night. We were told these would be addressed, but they were never fixed during our entire stay. That night we again attempted to have drinks in the lounge, but service was just as slow as the previous evening—and, unlike before, no nuts or nibbles were offered. We weren’t sure if this was intentional or simply overlooked. After waiting too long, we gave up and went to bed. The following day, we visited the spa and enquired about treatments but were told—quite bluntly—that they were fully booked for the remainder of our stay. No alternative suggestions or effort to assist were offered. We did enjoy the splash pool, sauna, and relaxation room. Dining Experience On Sunday evening we called to book a table for dinner and were told the lounge was the only available option and that it was fully booked, though they would try to fit us in as hotel guests. When we arrived, the lounge was completely empty. After ordering a club sandwich and a Caesar salad with chicken, we waited a long time for the food. The salad was very small with only a few pieces of chicken, and the club sandwich was cold, dry, and unpleasant. When we mentioned this to the waitress, she merely apologised and cleared the plates away. We ended up going out for dessert elsewhere. Final Day & Overall Impression On our final morning, breakfast service was excellent—managed by a young man who was attentive and organised, which made a noticeable difference. We checked out after breakfast and left our luggage with the porter until our transport arrived at 3 pm. Overall, while we enjoyed our stay at the Anantara Palais Hansen Hotel and appreciated many aspects of the property, whilst all the staff were polite and friendly we felt that the service did not reflect a five-star hotel charging around €1,000 per night, especially one with a Michelin-starred restaurant. Service at breakfast and in the lounge/bar was consistently below expectations. Housekeeping was generally good, but some areas of our room were not cleaned during our entire stay, several minibar items were missing, and maintenance issues were never resolved. Our biggest disappointment was that, despite mentioning our anniversary and birthday multiple times, nothing at all was done to acknowledge or help us celebrate our two very special occasions. At this level of hotel, we expected more care, consistency, and attention to detail.