01. Introduction: “Have you ever been in a Turkish prison?”
02. United Airlines 737-900/ER economy class San Diego to Chicago (ORD)
03. Turkish Airlines 777-300/ER exit row economy class Chicago (ORD) to Istanbul
04. Turkish Airlines A321 exit row economy class Istanbul to Vienna
05. Moxy Hotel, Vienna Airport
06. Figuring out how to use the Vienna CAT train
07. Austrian Business Class Lounge, VIE
08. Austrian Airlines 777-200 business class Vienna to Los Angeles
It appears as if the timing of my announcement that I was giving up hotel reviews a couple months ago was all wrong, and now I’m starting to wonder if it has completely backfired on me. “I’m only going to write about fun and interesting hotels from this point forward” I confidently declared, secretly knowing that my hotel choices have always been (for the most part) stale and the likelihood of having to write consistent hotel reviews ever again was nil.
But the funny thing now is that I’m finding myself seeking out quirky hotels for my trips that I probably would have never considered before, fueled no doubt by my desire to create fun and interesting blog content to compliment my nerdy airline reviews (even though I said that I only wanted to focus on airline reviews – what’s up with that?). Why it never occurred to me to seek out these kinds of properties in the past is beyond me, but it is what it is and that means that I’ve got a doozie here for you today: the Moxy at Vienna Airport.
Fun fact: I had never even heard of the Moxy brand before booking this reservation, and the only reason why I chose this property was because of how fun it looked from the outside. As luck would have it, it was a fantastically good choice in an amazingly good location. Score one for SANspotter!
For those of you out there like me who have absolutely no idea what a “Moxy” hotel is, it’s basically the Marriott equivalent of an Aloft. And for those that don’t even know what an Aloft is, it’s basically the IKEA equivalent of the hotel world. Think “cheap” and “high style”, and you’ve pretty much got it. I’ve reviewed a few Aloft’s already (in Phoenix, Portland, and San Francisco), and it’s a brand that I quite like.
So – I’ll bet you’re wondering: how does Moxy compare? Well, you’re in exactly the right place to be asking such an astute question, so get settled in and cozy because I’ve got a ton of pics to help explain what this place is all about:
Final thoughts
I’ve got a lot to say in regards to what I think of the Moxy brand, but I know that I need to be careful because this was the first Moxy hotel that I’ve ever stayed at, and therefore I have no confidence that every property is exactly the same.
I’d like to think that this is a “franchise” kind of brand much in the way that Aloft is (meaning that you get the exact same experience in every location) especially considering that they seemed to be pushing brand awareness on social media everywhere you look with the hashtag #atthemoxy. There’s nothing wrong with consistency at all, and as a matter of fact I guess what I’m trying to say here is that I hope that it is a consistent experience from property to property.
In terms of what I liked and didn’t like about this experience, let’s start out with the positives:
- Price: This was one of my cheapest hotel hotel stays in many many years. I paid $80US a night for two nights here (thanks to my go-to hotel booking site), which I’m still quite proud of thank you very much.
- Style and design: If you hate the IKEA, you’re not gonna like this place. But I happen to dig it quite a bit (and not because I have an IKEA couch at home).
- Edginess: I’ll admit – it was incredibly fun to stay in a property that was borderline kinky and not afraid to show it. Being safe and overly worried about offending anyone makes for forgettable experiences! *cough*hilton*cough*hyatt*coughcough*
- Proximity to the airport: it’s hard to beat a hotel that is literally just a two minute (underground) walk to and from the main terminal.
The thing I didn’t like:
- The “party” vibe: I already explained to you how much of an old fart I am in my W Austin review 8 weeks ago, so there’s no need to embarrass myself and go down that dark and gloomy road again. Thankfully my room was quiet as a library, so overall the liveliness wasn’t a big deal at all.
The big take away from all this is the fact that I am now seeking out Moxy hotels wherever I go. Unfortunately, I haven’t booked any trips yet where at Moxy hotels happen to be present, but their list of properties is growing fast and it won’t be long until I step foot in one of these places again. And you bet you’re booty that I’m going to do another full review!
