Lifestylehotels

In conversation with Hardy Egger

— The passion for hotels and the hospitality business

“My passion for hotels and the hospitality business is rooted in my family. My grandparents and my aunt ran a guesthouse with guest rooms. That was the place to celebrate, laugh, have discussions and eat well. And at those gatherings there were always stories to be told about an uncle who travelled the whole world to visit hotels and sign them for tour operators”. 

— The fascination for places where you can feel at home, meet other people, exchange experiences, have a good time, recharge your batteries and get inspiration had been there early on. Hardy Egger was trained at the tourism school in Bad Gleichenberg. Then he held an exciting position for an international conference organiser in Vienna. The young Austrian was responsible for the selection of and the contracts with the hotels. During this time he developed a strong interest in the MICE business area. The next step was a change into the travel agency industry, where the Styrian was responsible for Luxury FIT, Concierge Travel and MICE Travel.

— The desire to set up his own business had been a dream for a long time. When the chance arose to take this step with his colleague Thomas Holzleithner, he did not hesitate.

“Right from the start our goal was to build a strong brand for small, chain-independent, individual boutique hotels with particularly creative hospitality concepts. The idea was to present these extraordinary hotels in a convincing way and to show them to an ever growing community of likeminded travellers.”

— The most important process in this regard is the careful selection of the Lifestylehotels.

“A holistic design concept is crucial. It is not only the hardware that counts, for instance the architecture, the interior design, etc., but also the software, the service design. If all these areas are well thought out, they offer an authentic hotel experience. And that can be felt intuitively by the guests”.

— Every Lifestylehotels member has its own story, its own DNA.

“Most of our member hotels are run by their owners. The hotel owners pursue their visions and are constantly busy caring for and developing their ‘baby’. The individual stories of the Lifestylehotels need to be told in order to highlight the special features of a hotel and to put it in the spotlight”.

— Hardy Egger loves it when a hotel can inspires him.

“This can happen in very different ways and depends on the reason for the trip. Therefore I find it important to learn more about a hotel than just the basic information. In this way I can get a good idea of what and who awaits me in the hotel”.

— His passion for creative hoteliers and exciting hotel concepts continues to drive him, as does his fascination with new developments and opportunities in the travel industry.