In conversation with Jürgen Fleischhacker, General Manager, The Imperial Riding School, Autograph Collection, Vienna (Exclusive Interview)

How is the hotel positioned?

The Imperial Riding School, part of Marriott’s Autograph Collection, has undergone a full renovation and refurbishment and re-opend its doors in April 2024. It combines equestrian elegance with a modern twist and a rebelling charm. It features 342 guest rooms, 13 meeting rooms with 1.200 sqm meeting and exhibition space and one of the biggest inner-city gardens.

Which are the USPs and comp set?

The Imperial Riding School is rich in history and stories. The military riding school, founded in 1850 by Emperor Franz Josef I, serves as the historical namesake for today’s hotels, with the original ground-floor pillars still standing as a testament to that era. We receive many compliments for our Interior Design and how the history and elegance was transformed in today’s time. Our garden is unique in Vienna and one of it’s kind.  Our competitors would include the Andaz, the SO/ or the Le Meridien Vienna.

What about the guest profile? Which are your key feed markets?

We have a mix of leisure guests, individual corporate travelers as well as conference guests. Majority of our guests arrive from the DACH region (Germany, Austria, Switzerland), the United Kingdom and the US.

To what extent you attract leisure vs corporate travellers? What about MICE? 

Vienna is a cultural destination and is always worth a trip. It is one of those cities that you can visit multiple times and will always discover something new. Our location is close to the major sights in Vienna, hence in a quiet and quirky area, the Belvedere Garden and Stadtpark are just a stone-throw away.

With 1.200 sqm meeting and exhibition space, the MICE segments plays a vital role in our business. All our meeting rooms, the largest one with a capacity of up to 375 people, feature natural daylight.

How are your F&B and wellness offerings structured? 

Our F&B offering includes:

Elstar – an all day dining restaurant with local Austrian and international cuisine

The Farrier – a stylish bar service creative cocktails and bar food in the elegant former riding hall

Cameo – our take away lobby coffee bar, serving sweet and savoury delicacies

Elster – The Garden – our terrace with outside bar and show kitchen, featuring an 2XL Green Egg for great BBQ dishes

Our 450 sqm Wellness area include an indoor-pool with direct access to our garden, a 24 hours gym, two saunas and a steam bath as well as a dedicated Yoga room.

Is there a recipe to achieve and maintain a high service standard? 

It’s all about the personal service and being easy to work with. It’s the staff members that brings the soul and warmth to any hotel.

How do you motivate your team?

I empower my team members and avoid micro-management. “Walk the talk” is essential to me.  Given them time and ability to grow and be there when needed. Listen more , talk less

Luxury hotels in many destinations are still challenged by staffing. What has been your take? 

The current staffing challenges affect all industries and with the demographic change recruiting will become even more challenging. We have a very good mix of experienced and seasoned staff members as well as members new to the hospitality or in their early stages of their career. We employ 16 apprentices and this number will grow over the next years. We aim on focusing on what is important to our guests and our employees and keep bureaucracy away.

What novelties shall we be expecting for the rest of 2025?

We keep a focus on our sustainability efforts. We have installed a 1.650 m2 photovoltaic system in spring and are currently undergoing the Austrian Eco Label certification.

Further we look forward to our Elstar – The Garden opening as of May 2026 with Lillet After-Work drinks, chill-out evenings with DJs and live saxophone player or some nice BBQ evenings.

We will continue our successful  curated Untold Vienna tours, showcasing our great neighbourhood, and plan to have a self audio guided tour for guests.

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