aQi – an innovative hotel concept with an unusual name

Under the name aQi Europe’s biggest holiday hotelier, TUI Hotels & Resorts, created the lifestyle hotel brand positioned in the budget leisure segment. The brand name aQi is derived from the Spanish aquí, which means here, hereabouts, hither. The name symbolises the characteristic relation and reference of the hotel to its location. In line with the brand slogan “Life, sheer & smart” the concept focuses on the essential with an eye on contemporary, functional facilities, distinct interior design and the clearly defined quality expectations of the target group. The core brand values are represented in the name: a(active), Q(uality), i(ndividual). The first hotel was opened in December 2008 in the Austrian holiday resort Schladming, Styria.

The hotel brand’s business model is based on the idea of developing budget concepts for the holiday hotel segment that until now have almost exclusively been implemented in the business hotel segment. By focussing on the essential facilities crucial to the guests aQi is able to deliver highly attractive value for money. The concept is standardised yet modern and stylish.

The brand aQi stands for active holidays. The target group is therefore primarily keen sports and nature oriented guests who want to spend an active holiday in a congenial atmosphere. Thanks to the broad range of sports on offer and the individualised active holiday programme promoted in the region the modernistic aQi Hotel Schladming draws above all active sports enthusiasts of all ages. Singles, couples or groups, all are at home in the aQi Hotel.

The hotel in Schladming is open summer and winter, has 107 rooms, a restaurant, a bar and ski/bike cellar. One of the highlights is the Sky Sauna, featuring different saunas and a relax roof terrace with a direct view of the ski runs of the coming 2013 FIS Ski Alpine World Cup. The main target groups are couples and singles who want to have an active holiday. Mountain bikers, hikers, golfers, skiers and snowboarders find the optimum options open to them at this hotel in Schladming.

Smart summer experience: as a member of the association of Mountain Bike Hotels Schladming-Dachstein and thanks to its proven cycle sports competence the aQi Hotel Schladming delivers the quality and performance that meet the individual expectations of all keen bikers, be they off-roaders, racing cyclists or downhillers. “Cruise the mountains on a Harley and enjoy the beautiful panoramas” – for guests at the aQi Hotel Schladming this wish can come true in the summer. “Hire a Harley” is the name of the service the lifestyle hotel offers its adventurous guests. As a special service to the bike fraternity the hotel provides a Bike Info

Corner with maps, up-to-date information and magazines as well as weather forecasts. The hotel also offers route maps, road books, elevation profiles, a lockable bike depot and GPS track downloads. But not only bikers get their kicks at the aQi Hotel -- hikers, golfers or adventure seekers keen on paragliding, rafting, canyoning find what they are looking for too. The activity programme is broad and diverse. Moreover, between May and the end of October holiday guests, even if they stay just one night, get for-free the all-inclusive Schladming-Dachstein Summer Card, which entitles the holder to more than 100 all-inclusive services & 70 bonus benefits.

Winter in aQi, a full experience! Glittering slopes, snow-laden forests. 9 ski mountains and 223 kilometres of ski courses are out there to be discovered! With its own direct access to the Planet Planai base station aQi Hotel boasts the perfect path to a memorable day of skiing, to pristine landscapes, Alpine valleys carpeted in snow, the majestic limestone walls of the glaciated Dachstein Massif. Nature at its best, countless peaks and 300 mountain lakes of the Schladminger Tauern are calling out to be discovered and experienced on cross-country tours.

The distinct architecture, the warm and cosy colour scheme as well as the regional reference mean that the aQi Hotel Schladming stands out from the crowd. The quality of the facilities and the services at aQi make it the ideal base for free-and-easy planning of individual holiday activities. The rooms, varying in size from 23 to 37 square metres, feature contemporary design, shower/ WC, cable T V , radio, safe and free broadband. Guests can opt for breakfast only or half-board. International and regional cuisine is created afresh daily by the kitchen crew. The colourful and multifaceted range of dishes also caters to vegetarians and guests who value a healthy diet. After a full day of exciting and varied activities aQi offers a tasty carb recharge at its pasta counter. Ennstaler cheese soup or Kasnock’n, regional meat dishes, lamb specialities or even pumpkin seed oil Tiramisu are all on the menu. Always fresh. Every day a different power- packing soup and a rich, exquisite salad buffet round off the culinary programme.