AUSTRIA - Best of Europe 2014 - page 103

$ Pension Hargita rents 19 generally small, bright, and tidy rooms (mostly twins)
with Hungarian woody-village decor. While the pension is directly on bustling Mariahilfer
Strasse, its windows block noise well. This spick-and-span, well-located place is a great
value (S-€40, Ss-€47, Sb-€57, D-€54, Ds-€60, tiny Db-€65, Db-€68, Ts-€75, Tb-€82, Qb-
€114, reserve with credit card but pay with cash to get these rates, extra bed-€12, breakfast-
€5, completely non-smoking, lots of stairs and no elevator, free Internet access, Wi-Fi,
cornerofMariahilferStrasseatAndreasgasse1,U-3:Zieglergasse,tel.[phone],fax01/
526-0492, www.hargita.at , [e-mail] , Erika and Tibor).
$ Pension Lindenhof rents 19 very basic, very worn but clean rooms. It's a dark and
mysteriously dated time warp filled with plants (and a fun guest-generated postcard wall);
the stark rooms have outrageously high ceilings and teeny bathrooms (S-€30, Sb-€35, D-
€54,Db-€72,T-€81,Tb-€100,Q-€108,Qb-€144,cheaperduringslowtimes,hallshower-€3,
cashonly,elevator,nextdoortoaharmlessstripbaratLindengasse4,U-3:Neubaugasse,tel.
01/523-0498, fax [phone], www.pensionlindenhof.at , [e-mail] ,
run by Gebrael family.
Near the Westbahnhof (West Station)
$$ Motel One, a German chain that seems ready to take on the hotel world, surveyed busi-
ness customers and offers only what they want to pay for. The result is what the chain calls
a “low-budget design hotel”: 440 sleek and modern rooms, built cruise-ship tight with qual-
ity materials but no frills, 24-hour reception but minimal service, and refreshingly straight-
forward pricing (Sb-€72, Db-€87, no triples but you can slip in a child up to age 15 for
free, breakfast-€7.50, free Wi-Fi in lounge and in room if you buy breakfast, air-con, at-
tached to the Westbahnhof at Europaplatz 3, tel. [phone], www.motel-one.com , wein-
[e-mail] ).
$$ Hotel Ibis Wien, a modern high-rise hotel with American charm, is ideal for anyone
tired of quaint old Europe. Its 340 cookie-cutter rooms are bright, comfortable, and modern,
withalltheconveniences(Sb-€69-75,Db-€87-93,Tb-€106,breakfast-€11,air-con,elevator,
free Internet access and Wi-Fi, parking garage-€13/day; exit Westbahnhof to the right
and walk 400 yards, Mariahilfer Gürtel 22-24, U-3: Westbahnhof; tel. [phone], fax 01/
597-9090, www.ibishotel.com , [e-mail] ) .
$ Pension Fünfhaus is big, plain, clean, and bare-bones—almost institutional—with
tile floors. The neighborhood is rundown (with a few ladies loitering late at night), but this
47-room pension offers the best doubles you'll find for the price (S-€34, Sb-€43, D-€49,
Db-€60, Tb-€84-92, 4-person apartment-€104, cash only, closed mid-Nov-Feb, includes
basic breakfast, Sperrgasse 12, U-3: Westbahnhof, tel. [phone] or 01/892-0286, fax
01/892-0460, www.pension5haus.at , [e-mail] , Frau Susi Tersch). Half the
rooms are in the main building and half are in the annex, which has good rooms but is near