History
This hotel was built in 1907 as a guesthouse for Kaiser Franz Josef and has a long and lively history behind it. Set out with us on a journey through time and explore Parkhotel Schönbrunn!
In 1787, a waiter by the name of Dick opened a snack bar opposite the “Schönbrunner Kaiserstöckl” and ‘Maria Hietzing’ church at the edge of the palace park which existed for 30 years. Its customers included numerous sightseers from the surrounding area.
In 1817, the snack bar was purchased by “Reiter von Hietzing” and transformed into an inn.
In 1823, Ferdinand Dommayer took over the inn business and, working with architect Josef Leistler, transformed it into a casino with a dance floor.
It was in this newly established entertainment venue that Johann Strauss senior and his contemporary Joseph Lanner premiered several of their works.
On 15 October 1844, Johann Strauss junior made his first debut at this very same place.
The humorous journalist Franz Wiest wrote the following prophetic words after the first concert: “Good night Lanner, good evening Strauss senior, good morning Strauss junior”.
The inn with its dance hall became one of the leading entertainment venues in town and was renowned for its lively ball nights.
Following the death of Ferdinand Dommayer, it became ever more difficult for his son to successfully manage the business which, by the standards of the day, was very large. He sold the casino to Paul Hopfer, a renowned restaurateur in Vienna, rescuing it from demolition. However, the casino could not be saved. On 3 February 1907, the final event was held and the casino closed its doors forever.
From 1907 to 1908, the current Parkhotel Schönbrunn was developed based on the plans of architect Arnold Heymann: a ballroom on the ground floor, a Viennese coffee house, various dining rooms and 70 guestrooms available to guarantee guests’ well-being.
Given the tight finances of the architect, Kaiser Franz Joseph I. provided the funds for the construction of the hotel, based on two conditions: the hotel had to be built in the manner he specified and must be available as a ‘guesthouse for the Kaiser’ when required.
The valuable historic paintings and portraits of the Kaiser’s family, which can still be found in the hotel today date from this era.
The emergence of the1st Republic in 1918 led to the imperial and royal hotel falling into the possession of Hopfner & Hübner.
A fire broke out in the hotel in 1923. A year later, the entire hotel (much in need of renovation) was handed over into the ownership of the Hübner family.
During the Second World War, the hotel served as a military hospital and from 1945 as officer quarters for the British occupying forces.
On 20 March 1948, a bomb exploded close to the hotel. A great many people were injured and there was some damage to the hotel.
On 4 June 1954, Parkhotel Schönbrunn was re-opened again following various stages of renovation and redevelopment and has now become a permanent part of the Vienna hotel scene. During a big fire in 1963, which saw 140 firemen battling the blaze, the roof and first floor of the hotel were destroyed. The damage totalled 10 million Schillings.
Following this, the hotel underwent various stages of modernisation, renovation and expansion work. In 1985, following completion of this construction work, Parkhotel Schönbrunn became the largest hotel complex of the day in Vienna.
Parkhotel Schönbrunn has been run by Austria Trend Hotels & Resorts since 5 January 1999.
Since April 2010, the hotel has been undergoing comprehensive general renovation work. Both the Hübner family and Austria Trend Hotels & Resorts are taking great care to ensure that the details remaining from the imperial times are retained.
