Hotel review: Altstadt Vienna, Vienna, Austria: The hotel that doubles as an art gallery

Hotel Altstadt's understated entrance doesn't hint at what lies within.

CHECK-IN

This veritable art gallery was dreamed up by businessman and art collector Otto E. Wiesenthal after one too many nights spent in featureless hotels. He found a sanctuary for both his vast art collection and his finely honed instinct for hospitality in a 1902-built Ringstrasse-style house used formerly as a showroom for bathroom fixtures, a pension and a refuge for Russian migrants. The hotel easily passes for one of the apartment blocks in the Spittelberg artists' quarter, a hop and a skip from the Ringstrasse; its understated entrance doesn't hint at what lies within.

THE LOOK

A staircase and lift lead from an unremarkable entrance hall to the second floor where a groovy lobby is tucked behind glass doors. The original 24 rooms have evolved to encompass 62 rooms and suites spread across four floors of two adjoining, courtyard-centred buildings. Their beautiful old bones are vivified with contemporary art, and each wing feels like its own apartment block reachable by doorways only guests can access. Every suite is the creation of an Austrian architect, artist, designer or – in one case – actor. The United Nations suite is a standout with its mid-century serenity and private whiskey bar. Austrian Modernism is distilled in the Josef Hoffman suite, which contains a replica of the architect/designer's one-off "sitzmaschine" armchair – made under licence by Austrian manufacturer Wittmann – and a Hoffman-original rug. Guests can take a virtual, (Un)Guided tour of many of the rooms – and the 300-odd artworks adorning them – by scanning the QR codes outside the suites (or visiting the hotel's website).

THE SUITE

I'm assigned the Felix, which is often used for film and photo shoots. It opens up like a revelation at the end of a dark passageway: walls papered in black-and-metallic stripes, dazzling chandelier, book-stacked shelves, leather couch and a desk with coffee machine and bluetooth speaker. The centrepiece is a freestanding bathtub perched on a platform beside a box window fitted with gold damask blinds; a shower and toilet cubicle are tucked off the passageway. Artwork adorns the walls but it's not until bedtime that I notice the photographic print hanging horizontally on the ceiling above my bed: a reclined nude, which I briefly mistake as my own reflection.

FOOD + DRINK

Local and regional products are championed at breakfast – family-baked breads, Tyrolean porridges and mueslis, jam that's been produced in Vienna since 1883. You'll want to linger in the inter-leading dining spaces and cosy nooks, or take your second coffee (made with beans from Viennese roastery CultCaffe) in the candy-striped Red Salon. Come back for homemade cake and tea or a nightcap.

OUT + ABOUT

The hotel is within easy reach of the theatres, museums, galleries and restaurants cramming central Vienna. The recent Ai Wei Wei retrospective at the Albertina Modern – his most comprehensive yet – set the tone for this new museum, located in the renovated Künstlerhaus; 2023 has kicked off with an exhibition of printed graphics by such artists as Agnes Martin, Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein. Check out the Lower Belvedere, which reopened earlier last year, and sip sundowners at the Leopold Museum's rooftop bar, Libelle. For a memorable dinner, book a table at the new Restaurant Schubert, where the chef also makes the tableware.

THE VERDICT

Wiesenthal has accomplished what he set out to do; this welcoming, stimulating space throws up new delights around every corner.

ESSENTIALS

Rooms start from about $241 a night; Kirchengasse 41, 1070, Vienna, Austria. altstadt.at/en

OUR SCORE OUT OF FIVE

★★★★½

HIGHLIGHT

The snazzy rooftop terrace, where you can gaze across rooftops and grab a beverage from the fridge.

LOWLIGHT

The apples in my suite are so glossy I assume they're fake; it's almost check-out time when the truth dawns on me.

Catherine Marshall stayed at Altstadt Vienna as a guest of the Austrian National Tourist Office. See austria.info/en