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Radisson Hotel Graz Opens With 232 Keys In Austria
With the grand opening of Radisson Hotel Graz, Radisson Hotel Group introduces its upscale Radisson brand to Austria. The newly built hotel features 232 rooms and sits in a strategic location by the central train station and offers delightful spaces in Scandinavian-inspired design, while introducing the exciting Balaustine restaurant concept to the city.
"We're excited to welcome guests in Graz to a comfortable, relaxing stay. Whether exploring this fantastic, multifaceted destination during a leisure trip, visiting us for work, or catching the bold flavors of the Middle Eastern cuisine served at Balaustine restaurant, we'll make sure that every visit to Radisson Hotel Graz is a simply delightful experience," says Matthias Guttengeber, General Manager of Radisson Hotel Graz.
Radisson Hotel Graz enjoys a location that provides easy access to all of Graz. As the capital of Styria, Austria's self-proclaimed "green heart" known for its natural beauty and folkloric traditions, Graz is a charming travel destination known for its blend of historical and modern attractions. Visitors are drawn to its UNESCO-listed Old Town where they can explore Renaissance courtyards, Baroque palaces, and the iconic Schlossberg hill with its clock tower. The city boasts a vibrant arts scene, highlighted by the futuristic Kunsthaus Graz, and offers exciting culinary experiences in its restaurants and cafés. Graz has a lively atmosphere year-round with its student-fueled nightlife and numerous parks, and the city especially comes to life during the numerous events held throughout the year, such as the Aufsteirern festival or the Austrian F1 Grand Prix weekend.
With 232 rooms, Radisson Hotel Graz is the city's largest hotel. The rooms are designed in the signature Radisson style to provide a haven of comfort and relaxation. The tasteful design with clean lines, attractive natural materials such as stone, wood and soft fabrics, and a color palette with natural, muted tones create a calming space. All rooms are equipped with multiple USB ports, TVs with streaming functionality, and complimentary Wi-Fi for seamless connectivity and a perfect "work from anywhere" setup. Accommodation options include rooms facing the quiet inner courtyard or more spacious Premium Rooms with in-room espresso machines and large corner windows looking out onto Europaplatz square.
The gastronomic delights at Radisson Hotel Graz include the Balaustine restaurant located under a glass roof in the inner courtyard of the hotel, which offers a casual-fine dining experience inspired by the Barbary coast and the Levant. The restaurant's menu features a range of dishes that combine fresh, invigorating flavors and bold textures. The adjacent bar offers a co-working space as well as lounge seating, and an extensive selection of cocktails and wines from Styria and beyond. The bar with its Scandinavian-inspired design and tasteful décor is a cozy space that lets guests unwind while at the same time connecting to the city looking out onto the hustle and bustle of the square and streets outside.
Radisson Hotel Graz is also a destination for business gatherings with three meeting spaces flooded with natural light and adaptable for various setups. With the three rooms spanning 150m² and directly connected to the restaurant and bar on the ground floor, the conference space provides the perfect setting for productive meetings, complemented by high-speed Wi-Fi and the latest audio-visual technology.
Radisson Hotel Group's commitment to being a Responsible Business is exemplified in this new hotel in Graz: Electricity comes from 100% renewable sources, and water is heated by the city's district heating system. For e-mobility, the hotel has four EV charging stations in its underground car park, and the separate bike room provides free charging of e-bike batteries. The use of energy within the hotel is highly efficient, including a connection of the property-management system to the heating and cooling systems, ensuring that only occupied rooms are heated or cooled. The hotel is aiming to receive a DGNB Gold certificate.
The Benefits Of Being Your Own Travel Agent
Summer is here. Whether you're planning a cross-country road trip or traveling to Paris for the Olympics, the question remains: Can you get from point A to B (and back again) yourself, or do you need a travel agent? There are pros and cons to both approaches. Do you like researching and planning, or do you prefer to have someone else map everything out and you just show up on the designated date? There's a financial element to consider as well. If money is no object, booking through an agent might be preferable. A trip that you plan yourself, however, will probably come with fewer additional fees. And then there's the spirit of adventure that comes with a self-planned trip.
Last June, my husband and I took an eight-day trip to Europe that we planned ourselves. It started with a family reunion in Paris and ended with dinner in London with longtime friends. In planning the trip, we first determined our primary destinations, then filled in the other days with sights near these areas. The highlight was an all-day tour of the Normandy beaches on the Bayeux Shuttle, a service we found online. Our guide was knowledgeable, answered all our questions and told us stories about World War II's D-Day, which marked the beginning of the end of the war. We also viewed the ongoing repairs to fire-damaged Notre Dame and made a stop at London's Chelsea Football Club to get our Ted Lasso fix. Two things we discovered while abroad: We didn't need to have currency on hand in England, as credit rules even in the Underground, and Uber operates in both Paris and London. (Credit card use abroad can come with fees, though, so be sure to look into that before traveling.)
The author and her husband meticulously planned stops at various points of interest throughout their eight-day trip that started in Paris and ended in London.(Courtesy Harriet L. Blake) We made reservations for basically everything before we left — train rides, hotels, restaurants, museums and the London production of the Back to the Future musical. By consulting various travel sites, including that of travel writer Rick Steves, plus talking to friends who had taken similar trips, we ensured we were well-prepared.
Several other couples we spoke to also recently planned their own trips and extol the benefits of discovering new worlds on their own.
Crisscrossing the Lone Star State (and beyond)Bonnie and Dan Carlson of Fort Worth just finished visiting all 254 counties in Texas. Along the way, they tried to catch a minor league baseball game wherever they went, cheering on the Amarillo Sod Poodles, Corpus Christi Hooks and, of course, the Frisco Rough Riders.
Planning your own trip can have unexpected benefits, says Dan, 79. While on a trip to Yellowstone, the couple discovered the Playmill Theatre, where Les Miserables happened to be playing. "It was live theater and very reasonable," says Dan. "And at intermission, the actors served popcorn and snacks to the patrons. Turns out many of them were students at nearby University of Idaho."
News Roundups
Bonnie notes that Dan has always been the more outspoken of the two of them, but she finds herself coming out of her shell on trips. "I'm more shy, but now ... I'm learning to be more like Dan!" says Bonnie, 77.
Chatting with people they meet during their trips often sets the couple in new directions. "We learn of spots [to visit] by talking to the servers at our restaurants or to the other hotel guests," Dan says.
Tours organized by travel groups can keep you too busy, notes Bonnie. "After walking all day, we sometimes just want to relax and stay nearby," she says. Dan agrees, "We don't necessarily want to do a planned outing at night."
These days, they primarily travel by car. In 2021, they attended the 50th reunion of Dan's graduating class from the New York State Police Academy. The couple drove from D-FW to upstate New York, making stops along the way to visit family in the Hudson Valley as well as to see Niagara Falls.
"Flying has become too much of a hassle, going through security, then having to rent a car any- way," says Dan. "And with car trips, we can plan ahead on where we want to stay on the way to our destination."
The Carlsons use Hilton points for their hotel stays. They also like Tripadvisor for restaurant recommendations and major sights to see. "It is so good to see different places and meet other people in the world," says Bonnie. "And it's good to travel while we can still appreciate it, [while] we are still mobile and our minds are not too forgetful!"
Traveling through historyMark and Janette Parachini of Irving love traveling and — at the ages of 68 and 67, respectively — have no plans to slow down. "We love to research," says Mark. "And we are big history lovers, especially World War II."
As they prepare to visit noteworthy sites, Mark says they use a variety of websites, including AAA and Tripadvisor. "We don't just look for the cheapest places," he explains. "We look for restaurants and hotels that have at least four stars and read the reviews carefully."
Janette plans their itineraries and brings hard copies on the trip: printouts of Google Maps and printed confirmations of every museum ticket and restaurant reservation. "We enlarge the maps so we can see if there are interesting spots to see along the way," she says.
Mark and Janette Parachini, pictured here at Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany, have no plans to stop traveling anytime soon.(Courtesy Mark and Janette Parachini) They also get some help identifying great stops from Janette's colleagues. She works for American Airlines, and many of her co-workers have been to the places Janette and Mark want to see.
Like the Carlsons, the Parachinis enjoy driving on their trips. That even goes for international destinations; they say that getting an international license is easy through AAA. Janette says she would avoid this in countries such as England, which requires driving on the opposite side of the road.
One of their trips took them to Auschwitz in Poland as well as the Eagle's Nest (a mountaintop building once used by the Nazi Party) in Germany. Mark and Janette mapped out their routes from home. They landed in Munich, then drove about 2 1/2 hours to the town of Fussen, just north of the Austrian border.
They then took backroads (using Google Maps they had printed at home as well as their GPS) to the little town of Bra just outside Bastogne, Belgium. Here, they came across a magnificent chateau where an 80-year-old woman greeted them and told stories of the Battle of the Bulge, which took place when she was a child.
With their outgoing personalities, Mark and Janette don't shy away from interactions with locals on their trips. They've also hired a Belgian historian and private tour guide named Henri to assist them on several occasions.
The couple discovered Henri while researching the aforementioned trip. Henri speaks English well and charges roughly $400/day for his services. Mark drives, while Henri sits in the front seat and narrates everything they see. The Parachinis highly recommend finding a personal guide, especially for historical sites. (They suggest checking out toursbylocals.Com.)
As do the Carlsons, Mark and Janette accumulate and use loyalty points to make their travels more affordable. For the Parachinis, it's Marriott hotels and Hertz car rentals when possible. If you're planning an international trip, they recommend Google Translate, also noting that GPS devices can often be switched to the language of your choice.
The couple tries to avoid peak travel times — the middle of the summer, for instance.
When it comes to booking flights, Janette advises watching for "web specials," online sales offered periodically by airlines; she recently found a great deal to visit Germany during Oktoberfest.
Janette also just returned from a self-planned trip to Belgium and Denmark with a girlfriend. "We always look for highlights to see in any city and combine it with our interests," she shares.
Planning an international trip is a lot of work but definitely worth it, emphasizes Janette. "You learn about the cultures of other countries and their history. The United States is so young in comparison. Many of these other countries are ahead of us by hundreds of years."
And the benefits of travel linger even after you return home. As Rick Steves says, "Travel is an excellent way to stay young in spirit."
Harriet L. Blake is a former editor with The Dallas Morning News and a Grapevine-based freelance writer.
Travel tips for seniors from American travel writer Rick Steves:1. Aim for the "shoulder season," aka the period between peak time and the offseason. In Europe, it's April and October. You'll save money, plus avoid crowds and the summer heat.
2. Look into insurance. Find out if (and how) your existing medical insurance works overseas. Then there's travel insurance. Seniors pay more but may be more likely to use it.
3. Pack light. Bring fewer clothes and do laundry.
4. Bring a notebook or use your phone's notes app to keep track of important info (e.G., hotel room number or metro stop).
5. Bring spares if you wear glasses or use hearing aids with batteries.
6. Travel with prescription medications in original containers and get the names of generic equivalents in case you need a refill while overseas.
7. Book airline tickets early to get aisle seats or roomier economy plus. Hydrate during flights and take short walks in the aisle to minimize chances of blood clots.
8. Consider accommodation needs. Is your hotel accessible and near the places you want to visit? For a longer stay, you might save money by renting a house or apartment.
9. Visit museums late in the day for more manageable crowds.
10. Ask about senior discounts when buying tickets and making reservations.
Choice Hotels Gins Up Luxury Market With Radisson And Radisson Blu Relaunch
Rendering of Radisson BLU "getting ready" photo of the closet area for the new redesign
Choice Hotels InternationalAnyone who's criss-crossed a map on the cheap knows that if you've seen one budget motel, you've seen them all. How did the same phenomenon set in among luxury hotels?
It only makes sense that the more a traveler pays for their hotel stay, they would — and should — expect a more special experience. Yet the opposite trend seems to be setting in. Several popular independent and boutique hotel brands have consolidated under a small handful of corporate umbrellas over the last decade. Chains that once stood apart have fallen into the trap of homogenization.
In an era when job-hopping corporate executives have more in common with their peers at other businesses than they do with the employees of the brands they oversee, it makes sense that a degree of sameness would set in within industries, ultimately trickling down to the customer. Perhaps nowhere is this more evident than the travel industry. Big-box hotels are suddenly a dime a dozen, if not actually that cheap. At the same time, even "design hotels" that attempt to cater to travelers with a specific aesthetic preference are often so tightly curated, it's easy to forget what city you're in upon entering the lobby.
This was the pain point behind Radisson and Radisson Blu's "relaunch" in June. Choice Hotels International announced its plans for the future of its two upscale brands at NYU's Hospitality Conference, aiming to distinguish these properties from the clutter through a revamped food and beverage program, elevated design, and a more refined overall experience.
Those buzzwords lie behind many well-intentioned brand overhauls that ultimately lead back to a familiar place. Yet Indy Adenaw, Choice Hotels International's Senior Vice President and General Manager, Upscale, gets it: He's seen the trend toward homogenization and doesn't want another luxury hotel brand falling into the trap.
"As we thought about the upscale guest demographic for the Radisson brand, in doing our own internal and external research and through property tours and discussions with our current owners and operators, we heard that some upscale hotels today feel impersonal and standardized," Adenaw said.
If today's luxury hotels are designed to feel unapproachable, what does an "approachable" luxury hotel look like? "Approachable design focuses on providing a welcoming atmosphere that feels both distinguished and accessible," Adenaw said, "combining the best of traditional hospitality with the intuitive understanding of each guest's modern needs."
King room rendering for the Radisson Hotels' Luxury Redesign
Choice Hotels InternationalAdenaw shared a few details of what that will look like for the Radisson line:
Future rendering of the luxury vanity in a Radisson Blu hotel room
Choice Hotels InternationalAnd for Radisson Blu:
These ideas might sound straightforward, but executing them is not cheap. Adenaw said the Radisson Blu Mall of America will be transformed into a Radisson Blu "showpiece" property, with an expected investment of more than $15 million into the renovation. Globally, the new visual identities (such as signage and collateral, as well as new guest room prototypes) will be available to hotel operators in Q4 of 2024.
Adenaw said the dining menus will be less standardized among properties, with an emphasis on locally sourced ingredients — an encouraging sign that each visit to a Radisson or Radisson Blu property won't look or taste quite like any other place in the world.
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