Graz

Graz is one of Austria’s most intriguing architectural collisions. Its UNESCO-listed centre brings together medieval streets, Renaissance courtyards and Baroque façades beneath the Schlossberg, while the city has simultaneously developed a remarkably adventurous contemporary identity. The biomorphic Kunsthaus and the Murinsel may be its most conspicuous modern landmarks, but experimental architecture, university culture and a strong local design scene extend throughout the city. Rather than separating old and new, Graz often places them directly beside one another—and somehow makes the tension work.

Food and drink benefit enormously from Graz’s position at the heart of Styria. Farmers’ markets overflow with vegetables, fruit, cheeses and pumpkin seed oil, while the surrounding countryside supplies some of Austria’s most distinctive ingredients. Traditional Styrian inns coexist with ambitious contemporary restaurants, independent bakeries, specialty coffee and natural wine bars. Just beyond the city, southern Styria’s vineyards produce excellent Sauvignon Blanc and other cool-climate wines, with Buschenschank wine taverns turning a drive through the hills into one of the region’s essential culinary experiences.

Graz’s most interesting hotels reflect the city’s willingness to mix architectural periods and ideas. Historic townhouses and grand city buildings coexist with contemporary design hotels and creatively reinvented properties where art, furniture and architecture are treated as integral parts of the stay. At DNA Hotels, we curate the places where architecture, food, wine and Graz’s independent creative culture come together—hotels that capture a city where centuries of Austrian history sit surprisingly comfortably beside some very unconventional ideas about design.