No.1 hotel in the world – Aria Hotel Budapest

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Spabook had the pleasure to experience the services of Aria Hotel Budapest exactly in the week when it has been granted as the No.1 Hotel in the World in the 2017 TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice Hotel Awards.

The award winning hotel is located in the heart of Europe, in a 2 million metropolis called Budapest. This city is the essence of tradition, rich culture, best theaters, strong knowledge, tons of strict rules mixed with endless flexibility. In this environment you can live an ordinary life or reach the top depending on your ambitions.  

This way of thinking makes it possible for everyone to feel the perfection on their own skin. You can experience the services of an excellent hotel & spa even for half a day as well if you wish. The spa & fitness area is open for external guests, too. You can choose whether to relax around the pool and have a massage or to start with a morning yoga and do the spa session afterwards.

We do not have to introduce that a lifestyle dedicated to spa means more than just have a massage or sit in a Jacuzzi. Living a full life means meditating, doing some sport, or both at the same time, and start a day like we did: with yoga. The rooftop yoga is unique in the city. The view from the glass-walled room is spectacular. Doing an asana while you can view the fabulous building of the Saint Stephen’s Basilica or the Buda Castle is more than motivating. The yogi usually presents a well-balanced program which can be completed by every guest with a good feeling of success and pleasant tiredness. The yogi knows exactly what the guests are really in need and he sympathizes with the group so we can say: the yoga lesson is classy and the program is beyond expectations.

After our refreshing exercises we changed the location, from the rooftop to the basement where the spa area is located. We got a very nicely designed textile bag as a gift at the beginning of our visit. A towel and a bottle of water were provided in this bag for our convenience. We really liked this kind gesture! The mineral water has the most beautiful bottle in the whole country. It contains the natural water of Vis Vitalis (means vitality) spring which is located in a small village close to the Benedictine Abbey of Pannonhalma.

The atmosphere is warm and youngish thanks to the red and purple lights. The changing room is small but beautiful and the liquid soap in it is heavenly!

The swimming pool is like an expensive crystal for its deep blue color. We couldn’t wait to deep in it!

First we swam a bit, than we waited to be dry again and go to the Finnish sauna. Sorry for not having taken any photo from the Turkish steam bath but it is physically impossible to take one in the steam. However it was one of the best steam bath we’ve ever tried! There is an upper deck to sit or lay down close to the ceiling where the steam is the thickest. We just loved this solution!

After this first round we laid down on one of the intimate relax double beds. We liked the bed-curtain which helps you to turn your mind off from the outside world. The special material of the beds is very comfortable and it makes the frequent guest change possible. It seems always as if it was brand new and dry.

The Aria Hotel is dedicated to music, so the pool follows this concept, too. The main wall is decorated with a mosaic painting, illustrating a concert. The statue makes the connection between the guests and the mosaic band. Timi, our valuable partner is such a beautiful living statue in this environment!

Our time had come so we left our good place for an even better, in the hands of massage goddesses. Personally, my masseur was so perfect that I just would like to go back for a next treatment. She was not only professional but a nice person, as well, so the time just have flown.

There is a double massage room with glass wall from the bottom to the ceiling facing to the mesmerizing swimming pool. This is a lovely room to enjoy a couple-massage.

The musical design reflects on the unique towels, too. The toiletries are coming from the fabulous Molton Brown.

Now we can understand why Aria Hotel won the first place on Boutique Hotel Awards and it is called as Europe’s Best Wellness Spa.

After a relaxing day in the spa it is a good idea to finish your visit in the bar. This bar is operated by the legendary Gerbeaud Confectionery with more than 150 years of tradition since 1858.

Imagine the Live music in the piano bar before dinner time. The glass roof lets us see the whole building from inside.

This piano is more than an instrument. It is a work of art! 

There are 4 styles of rooms in the different wings of the building dedicated to Classical, Opera, Jazz and Contemporary music. Silent music is played in the elevators, in harmony with the style of the current wing. The facilities are up-to-date, just for example there is a tablet in every room to order a room-service, to book a massage treatment or just to search for a program in the city.

Aria Hotel Budapest is waiting for you to stay or just to spend some relaxing hours there. Depending on free capacity, available also for external guests to visit the spa and start the day with a morning rooftop yoga.

 

We had the chance to ask some questions from Mr. Mario Magalhaes, the general manager of Aria Hotel Budapest.

 

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How is it possible to develop a newly opened hotel in 1 and a half year to be voted as the best in the world?

We have a very unique concept and design which reflects Mr. Kallan’s love and devotion for music. Our four wings in the hotel are dedicated to four different music genres, namely; Opera, Classic, Jazz and Contemporary. Each wing is a humble tribute to a genre presenting itself in a very subtle and charming way, including caricatures of some of the world’s best performers. The ambience and décor of the music garden offers a perfect setting for our daily farm-to-table breakfast and our afternoon wine & cheese reception while listening to live music performances in the peace and quiet in the heart of Budapest. Our guests choose us, because they value personal attention in luxurious surroundings without pretentiousness. The key is to employee happy people, people with the right personality, willing to learn and share their own knowledge with others, a friendly and genuine approach to hospitality focusing on service to please guests and other colleagues.

Could you mention some challenge which have had to be overcome during your way to the top?

One and half years may seem a short time, given what we have achieved. But it came through hard work, with a lot of effort put into recruiting and training the right colleagues for the job. Every hotel opening has its challenges related to the construction or malfunctioning systems, but if the team is made of good, genuine employees, success will be next. We have all put a lot of effort into pleasing our guests, providing service in and outside the hotel to ensure our guests get the best of what Budapest has to offer. I am happy and thankful to my team that we have placed our efforts in the right direction and our guests (TripAdvisor readers) have recognized our commitment and dedication.

Do you and/or the staff have a motto?

It is not really a motto, it is rather an approach to life, people and the hospitality. A belief that although we require team work, each of us must preserve our own individuality, be who we are. I appreciate positive and open personalities, people that know what they want and are not afraid of expressing their feelings in a friendly manner. People who believe and commit to certain things, show ambition and enjoy what they do, this is the only way we can be happy while providing service to others

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We are proud to show you this excellent place in the hope that you will experience soon its services personally as well. The whole concept and the implementation is simply genius!

 

You can check out the room prices here: