Friday 13 February 2015

Vienna's hotel with an additional value

"This project is a symbol of tolerance and everything I love about Vienna."
Michael Häupl, Mayor of Vienna

"Who lives here legally should also be able to work here legally. Refugees living here have a stable job and a future."
Michael Landau, President of Caritas Austria

Tomorrow, a new hotel will open in Vienna. And it is not just another hotel but a very special one. Since tourists and refugees often have some things in common, such as language, culture, mobility and open-mindedness, in this hotel, tourists will be welcomed by special employees: tourism experts and refugees (Czaja, 2015) from 16 countries.
The hotel is a five-year-project run by Caritas, a Catholic non-government, not-for-profit organisation that was founded by Lorenz Worthmann in 1897 which is today operating in more than 200 countries (via). Hotel magdas is financed by crowdfunding and the Caritas Social Business Unit. The social business hotel was rebuilt by AllesWirdGut architects. In five years, the building will be demolished and a new one will be constructed for senior citizens in need of care (Czaja, 2015). Hotel magdas is located close to the "Wiener Prater", the oldest amusement park in the world (via).



- Czaja, W. (2015) Wiener Prater: Flüchtlinge und Touristen unter einem Dach. Der Standard, 12. Februar 2015, S. 10
- photograph of Vienna in the 1960s via

7 comments:

  1. That's an excellent concept.

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  2. What a wonderful concept for everyone involved!

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  3. Love the idea!

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  4. One good idea is all it takes, lovely.

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  5. Impressive concept, indeed. I do hope they will find a way to continue the project when the five years are over.
    Many thanks for commenting, Karen, Kenneth, Erin, Derek, Abbie, and Tim!

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