Graz - An Island in the Desert?

The Ibis Graz is situated just fifty metres from the Hauptbahnhof - the main train station so it is ideally situated for travellers arriving late or departing early. We were staying at the hotel with my parents the night before flying back to England from Graz airport which is a ten minute train ride or twenty minute bus journey from the Haputbahnhof. Our rooms were on the station side of the hotel and there was no noise disturbance from the station at all. A busy road runs past the other side of the hotel which I suspect might be rather more of an inconvenience. The Old Town is situated some fifteen minutes away on foot or five minutes by tram which run into the early hours.

The Ibis website would have you believe that this is a rather special building in architectural terms and while it is not an eyesore, neither is it what you might call attractive: modern looking with dark glass is what it is.

You walk straight into the reception area/lobby where there are a handful of bistro tables and a bar counter. I informed the rather handsome receptionist in (even if I say so myself) impressive German that we had booked two rooms and he responded in perfect English - much to my annoyance. If I have spent eight years learning German I expect to demonstrate my skills in a German speaking country and not be addressed in English!

We requested and were allocated non smoking rooms which meant that we would be on the first floor and we were directed to the glass lift by the door. Smoking rooms are on the second floor.

First impressions of the rooms were good: bright, airy and much larger than expected. The décor was neutral and the furniture was well considered with enough hanging space for a couple of nights, suitable chairs for using at a desk, adequate task lighting and a very comfortable king-size bed. An extra quilt was stowed in the wardrobe although there were no extra pillows and I certainly would have liked an extra one.

The en suite bathroom was spotlessly clean and there were wall mounted containers of bodywash/shampoo beside the washbasin and inside the shower. There was non-stop hot water with excellent water pressure and it was easy to adjust the water temperature to suit. There was a hair drier in the bathroom and an excellent magnifying mirror over the washbasin. There were two full length mirrors in the bedroom area.

As it was a very hot day and the sun was beaming fiercely into the room we were pleased to note that the curtains actually did meet in the middle (without leaving gaps at the edges!) and that there was also a roller shutter that could be operated from a button situated on the wall beside the bed. However, it was clear that the shutter could also be operated from outside the room too because it twice descended at times when we would have preferred it to have been raised. All rooms have air-conditioning though this is not controlled individually but responds to the general temperature of the room: however small changes can be made by guests although we would have preferred to have cooled the room down much more (27 degrees at nine pm!).

There was a television with many, many domestic and international channels. I must admit I rarely switch on the television in hotels but I wanted to check the football results so I did avail myself of this facility. Frustratingly the channels could only be altered by entering the channel number on the remote control and it wasn't possible to change them with a +/- button which was tedious if you couldn't remember the channel number.

We decided not to take breakfast at the hotel but found plenty of cafes and bakeries in the area for a cheap and quick breakfast. What I can tell you is that the buffet is available between 6.30 and 10 am but if you require breakfast before or after these times, there is a limited continental breakfast available between 4.00 - 6.30 am and 10.00 am and 12.00 noon.

The lobby is used as a café and bar throughout the day and there are some vending machines in this area when the bar is not open. Unfortunately smoking is still permitted in public areas in Austria and the lobby of the Ibis is no exception which I think is somewhat disappointing given that you have choice but to go through this area when entering or leaving the hotel. We found it very smoky and as a result the lift and the first floor corridors were also quite smoky at times when the lobby café was full of customers. Newspapers and free wi-fi internet access are available in the lobby.

As far as our own requirements go we found no problems with this hotel. The room was clean and comfortable and the limited contact we had with the staff was positive. However, I would suggest that the special rate we paid was about the right mark for what we got and that the full price is a shade too much. Given its location I would think that most guests are business people whose companies are footing the bill.

Check in/check out - noon; there is a free and secure luggage room should you wish to leave your luggage before or after check out.

Secure underground parking is available to residents for a daily charge

There is a small number of wheelchair accessible rooms

Hotel Strasser is usefully situated just minutes from the main train station and only a short walk or a tram ride.to the historic centre of Graz. The hotel is right on the street and Eggenberger Gurtel is a fairly busy road. However, as soon as we went into the building we realised that the traffic noise was minimal.

Our initial impression was mixed. It was certainly clean and warm and very comfortable although the décor is more than a little excessive with a lounge area and open bar beside the reception desk crammed full of leather chesterfields of various sizes. The walls were painted different colours but always bright - usually a burnt orange or a dusty green - and nearly all available wallspace was covered with all manner of paintings - bold and colourful abstracts, garish still life works and even some hideous animal scenes featuring frolicking bears or beasts from the African plains.

Checking in was simple and the friendly receptionist stoically endured my attempts to converse in German. Although check in was not officially until 2.00pm and we arrived around noon, we were able to take possession of our room. We were given a keycard each and directed to the second floor. The stairs to the floors are sort of "outside" the main building - that is they are on the corner of building and a glass door separates the stairs from the corridors on each floor which should mean that you aren't disturbed by the noise from people going to other floors though in fact the sound of the glass door slamming as people come and go on the floor is just as bad.

The bathroom was on the left as you entered the room and a giant double bed dominated the sleeping area. In fact there was so little space that one could only just pass in front of the bed to get to the other side and in doing so had to take care not to bang one's head on the giant television that was sitting on an arm jutting out from the wall.
Continuing from the public areas the room was painted a garish orange with some kind of eighties paint effect. In here there were only three paintings –phew! There was just enough hanging space for a couple of days of clothes and a small set of drawers each side of the bed; in an attempt to perhaps provide a working space there was a small table and one dining-style chair though there was no task lighting and the main light was not particularly bright.

The bathroom was spotless and a cupboard under the washbasin held extra towels. The shower was described as having massage jets which were turned out to be so powerful it was like being stabbed with needles! However, the water was always hot and the pressure was good. Shampoo and shower gel were provided in dispensers attached to the wall inside the shower unit.

Breakfast was included in the price of the room and was served in a large room behind the bar area. It was a standard continental buffet although to me it did seem a bit sparse. When we went down we were the only people there and the trays of sliced meats and cheese were almost empty though there was sufficient for us. The bread baskets were also quite low. There were two kinds of cereal and a selection of butter, honey and jams. Both kinds of fruit juice were flavourless though looked to contain suspect colouring and although there was a fine selection of teas, the coffee was pretty poor and from a vending type machine. Overall breakfast was adequate but filling up the bread, meat and cheese might have made it look less pitiful. During the time we spent eating breakfast no member of staff came into the breakfast room to see if we had everything we needed.

In the evening we had a drink in the bar before going up to the room; again the service was friendly but the atmosphere was deathly, the seats weren't that comfortable and the lights were far too dim. The prices were a little more than in town but not as expensive as many hotel bars.

After a good night's sleep in a very comfortable bed we were ready to cram in some more sightseeing and the receptionist happily pointed out somewhere we could safely leave our bags until we came back to catch our train because check out time was 11.00am.

If you like luxury then Hotel Strasser is not the hotel for you; it is described as a two star hotel but I have been in plenty of three starred hotels that were no better than this. Hotel Strasser is a basic, clean and comfortable city hotel in a great location for travellers. In a city where accommodation can be expensive this usefully placed hotel offers good value for money.

Price Jan 2008 - double room and breakfast 70 Euro per night