Interview with Stephanie Schellerer, Director Sales & Marketing at Hotel Daniel Vienna

Lifestyle - Interview

by Melisa Kaya

At every hotel you go to stay, you can find a nice lobby, a dedicated hotel staff working to help you, nice smelling rooms, clean and stylish bathrooms, a restaurant where you can eat nice foods, and a taxi service. And you can find many features like these that make your stay more memorable. But in which hotel, you can purchase honey that comes from beehives on the loft, or you can see apple trees on the rooftop, you can marvel at a yacht that fixed to the edge of building, or you can eat tomato from hotels' urban garden, you can find a Vespa motorcycle waiting at the door instead of taxi or limousine, or you can buy a special Daniel Soap or shirts at the hotel's little shop, and even if you prefer a historic design building, you can also have an option to stay at the Airstream trailer. Hotel Daniel Vienna is one and only hotel that you can experience all of them. I asked Stephanie Schellerer, Sales & Marketing Director at Hotel Daniel Vienna, in order to learn more details about the Hotel Daniel Vienna.

Stephanie, before start talking about the Hotel Daniel Vienna, could you tell us about your background and your career in Weitzer Hotels?

I started working at the Weitzer Group in April 2017 and since then no two days have ever been the same. Our owner and of course the entire team are very inspiring and looking always into the future and what is coming next. Before I came to the Weitzer Group I had already worked in the Hospitality Industry. I actually always stayed in Austria and didn’t work abroad (kind of usual in the Hospitality Industry), but I love to have the opportunity to live in Austria and work in beautiful cities like Vienna & Graz.

Erwin Wurm Misconceivable - Copyright Hotel Daniel Vienna

Could you tell us about the Hotel Daniel Vienna and overall concept?

The right furniture and lighting, a contemporary cuisine and the right and easy-going staff are ingredients for a surrounding guests feel good in and enjoy themselves. Hotel Daniel is e.g. famous for some exceptional details in regard to furnishings and features which surprise and inspire travelers: Bicycle hire instead of a limousine service, art by Erwin Wurm, bees, apple trees on the roof, hammocks in hotel rooms, Urban Gardening and an Airstream trailer as a hotel room in the front garden. The best example for an overall experience is, of course, the hotel’s restaurant, the Daniel Bakery, that is a bit of everything - hotel lobby, culinary hot spot, shop- altogether a laidback place to visit.

Belvedere - Copyright Hotel Daniel Vienna

Where is Hotel Daniel Vienna located in? What are the advantages of being there?

The hotel is located in Vienna’s third district. Its most famous neighbour is “Schloss Belvedere”. The “Swiss Garden” and the “Botanical Garden” of the University of Vienna are not far away either. The neighbourhood surrounding the Daniel showcases just about everything that one of the most wonderful cities in the world has to offer in terms of art, culture and culinary delights. Not to be sneezed at, either, are the convenient transport links which spread out in all directions. It’s also only barely a 20-minute walk to the centre of the First District.

Hotel Daniel Vienna Outside - Copyright Hotel Daniel Vienna

Could you tell us about the historic building that you are located in and its design details?

The history of the establishment built in the 1960s in the Landstraßer Gürtel is quite unique. At that time it was Austria’s first building to feature a revolutionary curtain wall façade that is listed today as a historical monument. The architect was the renowned architect, Georg Lippert. Throughout his life, his work was characterised by dedicated functionality and objective honesty - a fact, that wonderfully emphasizes the Hotel Daniel’s concept "Smart Luxury".

Urban Gardening - Copyright Hotel Daniel Vienna

What does 'Smart Luxury' mean? How does it make your guests happy?

The idea of offering smart reduction instead of intrusive pomp and fresh ideas instead of awkward hospitality has been realised to perfection at Hotel Daniel Vienna. We offer exceptional levels of comfort where and whenever sensible (sleeping, showering and eating well, for example) as well as bright and breezy details like mentioned above that define room interiors and the hotel’s special features. This vibrant mix creates a feeling of well-being, that our guests appreciate a lot. Also, locals who drop by frequently enjoy the experience of contemporary luxury!

Florian Weitzer, Owner of Hotel Daniel Vienna - Copyright Hotel Daniel Vienna

The Hotel Daniel Vienna has different design concepts for their rooms. Could you tell us about the design details of the hotel?

In our case, the term DESIGN is hidden in all our products and processes. The owner, Florian Weitzer, loves to create by himself and doesn’t implement overall concepts from architects or interior architects. A good design means for him that everything is related to each other in order to create a pulsating atmosphere. The result is a pleasantly aesthetic crossover of classic furniture and modern design in combination with original self-made furnishings. In the Bakery, you’ll find e.g. design pieces from the likes of a Donna Wilson as well as Katakana chairs juxtaposed with unpretentious furniture from the 1970s and sofa tables crafted from simple wooden pallets. Or a Biedermeier couch owned by the Weitzer family that has been refashioned into a Hollywood swing.

Room Door Hanger - Copyright Hotel Daniel Vienna

What type of different rooms do you offer to your guests? What are the features of your rooms? Are they only have style differences or do they have distinctive features?

We offer 116 rooms in the categories:

"Smart", "Hammock", "Panorama" and "Belvedere" on six floors as well as the Airstream Trailer in the front garden.

All rooms are appointed with technical facilities like a super flat TV and "Raindance" Showers. "Smart" is simply smart - also with regard to its relaxed price starting at EUR 98.00 per room.

Room Panorama - Copyright Hotel Daniel Vienna

"Hammock" (EUR 130,00) features a hammock and "Panorama" (EUR 120,00) offers a hammock and plenty of light and panoramic views.

Room Belvedere Suite - Copyright Hotel Daniel Vienna

Top category "Belvedere" presents one suite with fantastic views of Schloss Belvedere and a freestanding bathtub and costs from EUR 200.00.

Airstream Trailer - Copyright Hotel Daniel Vienna

The real head-turners in all rooms are the concrete ceilings, left just as they were found after removing the former false ceilings. The Airstream trailer in the front garden is the fully equipped 116th hotel room that provides guests with top comfort combined with an extraordinary new kind of home-from-home experience.

Bee Keeper Dietmar Niessner - Copyright Hotel Daniel Vienna

What features of The Hotel Daniel Vienna sets it apart from other hotels in Vienna?

Since 2011 our key elements are the distinctive & fresh details that surprise guests! It’s the individuality (no copy & paste) that counts. We try to work out our differences to "international standards" rather than following them. Our work is developed by personal feeling and doesn’t just follow the rules of the industry.

The Bakery - Copyright Hotel Daniel Vienna

Could you tell us about The Daniel Bakery?

The Bakery at the Daniel Vienna isn’t subject to any strict arrangement - rather, it’s a lobby, bar, and restaurant all in one and a place where guests AND locals can enjoy "urban feeling". The ground floor of the 1960s building, with its glazed panorama, has a loft-like feeling about it and provides the spacious conditions for this concept. Over the past years, the Bakery has become a popular culinary hot spot in Vienna, where you can enjoy good international cuisine as well as home-made pastries from early in the morning until late at night; Some come for chilling out at a Sunday brunch, others for a jar of honey made by the city bees living on the hotel roof, some come for a dining with friends or business. The compositions include starters and salads from all over the world, a choice of delicious sandwiches and special Bakery burgers right through to steaks or fish.

The Bakery Breakfast - Copyright Hotel Daniel Vienna

Your another interesting service, DANIEL ON WHEELS. How can your guest use it?

You can discover Vienna in a fresh, flexible way which corresponds well to the hotel’s concept. For EUR 25 per day, you can rent an elegant Vespa scooter in the look of the hotel’s CI or a bike for EUR 10 per day.

Erwin Wurm Misconceivable - Copyright Hotel Daniel Vienna

What is The Boat? What was the story? Could you briefly tell us about the project and Erwin Wurm?

In 2012 a life-size sailing boat by the famous Austrian artist Erwin Wurm was placed on the rooftop of Hotel Daniel Vienna. Florian Weitzer met Erwin Wurm by coincidence. Mr. Weitzer had always been fascinated by his different way of thinking about things and by his cheekiness. Erwin Wurm brings usual everyday sights into question. What could better suit this hotel, which wants to be different? Misconceivable shows lively urbanity from an unusual place and symbolises "opening outwards". "Never stay still, be courageous, think differently and follow your aims with enthusiasm" is the motto.

Daniel Summernight BBQ - Copyright Hotel Daniel Vienna

If you have only one weekend in Vienna as a first-time visitor, in this limited time, what are the best things to do?

Visit the "Spanish Riding School" and "Schloss Schönbrunn" to experience the Austrian Emporer Era, the "Albertina" and the "Upper Belvedere" where you can see Gustav Klimt’s famous painting "The Kiss".You should also bike along the Danube Canal, where you can enjoy some new and hip food concepts. Speaking about food, the "Naschmarkt" with its international food shouldn’t be missed either. If you do it on Sundays, you can visit there a flea market too. During the bathing season, you can go to the "Gänsehäufl" which is situated by the Old Danube. There you can rent a pedal boat or practice stand up paddling and a wide range of other sports activities. Afterward, you can enjoy the best spare rips in town. On colder days you can go for a tour through the bars located in the first district. A must is a visit to the famous "Eden Bar" with live music. And last but not least: You shouldn’t leave without having visited the rustic and typical Viennese "Wiener Heurigen" in Grinzing.

How do you describe Vienna in one sentence?

Although Vienna does retain a lot of its old-world charm it has found its place in the modern world offering contemporary art productions, world-class museums, high-quality culinary delights, famous clothiers,...

or

It’s perfect to learn about Europe’s unique cultural history and at the same time it’s a hip and lively cosmopolitan city - recognized for the ninth time in the row by Mercer as the most liveable city in the world.

Thank you Stephanie for this enjoyable interview.

For more information, please visit website of Hotel Daniel Vienna

This interview was conducted in a Question-and-Answer format. The answers were checked for grammar and punctuation and published without any additional editing. Thursday, August 16, 2018. All photos are the property of their respective owners.