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Steigenberger Icons hotels

Historic grand hotels earn a separate place through architecture and long ties to their cities.

Steigenberger Icons gathers the group’s historic grand hotels, giving their architecture and local histories a distinct place within the wider family. Launched in 2021 by the company now known as H World International, the collection focuses on buildings whose stories are closely connected to their cities.

8 Steigenberger Icons hotels in 4 countries on the Luxury Hotels Atlas, each placed on the six LHA Tiers.

• Owned by H World Group
• Worldwide: 7 properties across 4 countries as of late 2025, following the August 2025 reopening of the Steigenberger Icon Europäischer Hof Baden-Baden — concentrated in Germany (5), with one each in Belgium and Switzerland.
• On the atlas: 1 High Luxury, 6 Core Luxury, 1 Accessible Luxury

History

Steigenberger created Icons to give its historic grand hotels a distinct identity within the wider group. Houses such as Belvédère in Davos and Frankfurter Hof bring long guest histories into the collection. The emphasis is on the building’s place in its city, with restoration and hosting continuing a tradition that predates the newer brand name.

Timeline

• 1875 — Grand Hotel Belvédère opens in Davos on 17 July, built as a 30-room Belle Époque property at Promenade 89; later acquired by Egon Steigenberger in 1980 for 15 million Swiss francs as the group's 32nd hotel.
• 1876 — Hotel Frankfurter Hof opens at Am Kaiserplatz, Frankfurt, designed by architects Mylius and Bluntschli; widely credited as the first hotel in Germany to install electric lighting.
• 1892 — Hotel Petersberg opens atop the 331-metre Petersberg in the Siebengebirge hills near Königswinter, built by the Nelles brothers of Cologne and reachable via a newly constructed rack railway.
• 1902 — Parkhotel Düsseldorf opens on Königsallee for the city's international industry and arts exhibition; Crown Prince Wilhelm of Prussia and Crown Princess Cecilie visit in 1908.
• 1909 — Handelshof building completed in Leipzig as the city's second purpose-built trade fair complex in the Reichsmessestadt (Imperial Trade Fair City).
• 1913 — Wiltcher's opens on Avenue Louise, Brussels, a Beaux Arts commission by Baron Joseph de Crawhez, managed from the outset by Sydney Charles Wiltcher, an English-immigrant hotelier.
• 1930 — Albert Steigenberger takes over the Hotel Europäischer Hof in Baden-Baden; this moment is the founding act of what would eventually become H World International.
• 1938 — Neville Chamberlain stays on the Petersberg during the Sudetenland crisis, the first recorded official foreign dignitary at the property.
• 1940 — Albert Steigenberger incorporates the Frankfurter Hof into the Albert Steigenberger Hotelgesellschaft KG, laying the corporate framework for the group's future expansion.
• 1949 — The Petersberg Agreement between Chancellor Konrad Adenauer and the Western Allies is signed at the Hotel Petersberg on 22 November; the Allied High Commission for Germany makes the Petersberg its seat from 1949 to 1955.
• 1960 — After Albert Steigenberger's death, his son Egon takes over and modernises the company, launching Steigenberger's international expansion and partnering with Robinson Club on a leisure-resort concept.
• 1969 — Steigenberger Airport Hotel opens at Frankfurt's international airport, Germany's first airport hotel.
• 1976 — Restaurant Français at the Frankfurter Hof is awarded its first Michelin star, cementing the property's culinary credentials.
• 1978 — The German federal government purchases the Petersberg property from the Mülhens family for 18.5 million DM to develop an official state guesthouse; five-year reconstruction follows.
• 1980 — Egon Steigenberger acquires Grandhotel Belvédère in Davos for 15 million Swiss francs; the property becomes the group's 32nd hotel and a flagship WEF hosting venue.
• 1987 — IntercityHotel brand launched, beginning the group's multi-brand strategy.
• 1990 — Petersberg reopens after reconstruction under architect Horst Linde; it resumes function as Germany's official state guesthouse and "German Camp David.".
• 1993 — Wiltcher's is refurbished and relaunched as the Conrad Brussels under Hilton's Conrad brand.
• 2009 — Frankfurter Hof chef Patrick Bittner awarded first Michelin star (retained consistently thereafter, including confirmed retention in the March 2022 Michelin Germany announcement).
• 2011 — Steigenberger Grandhotel Handelshof Leipzig opens in the restored 1909 Handelshof trade-fair building following renovation; Steigenberger takes over management.
• 2012 — Conrad Brussels leaves the Conrad brand; Steigenberger takes over and reinstates the Wiltcher's identity, reopening fully under Steigenberger management in 2015 after a 2.5-year refurbishment.
• 2013 — Group revenue passes the half-billion-euro milestone.
• 2016 — Steigenberger Hotel Group renames itself Deutsche Hospitality; Grandhotel Belvédère listed prominently as a flagship property.
• 2017–2018 — Petersberg undergoes documented renovation works.
• 2020 — H World (Huazhu Group) acquires Deutsche Hospitality in January; Steigenberger Hotels GmbH becomes a wholly owned subsidiary.
• 2021 — Steigenberger Icons brand launched in April by Deutsche Hospitality CEO Marcus Bernhardt; the original six members are: Frankfurter Hof, Grandhotel & Spa Petersberg, Grandhotel Belvédère Davos, Parkhotel Düsseldorf, Grandhotel Handelshof Leipzig, and Wiltcher's Brussels. Huazhu simultaneously announces plans to use the Icons brand as its entry vehicle into the Asian luxury hotel market.
• 2021 — Steigenberger Icons sub-brand Spiridon Sarantopoulos, longtime general manager of the Frankfurter Hof and Petersberg, is named VP Luxury Hotels at Deutsche Hospitality to oversee all six Icons.
• 2024 — Deutsche Hospitality rebrands as H World International in February. H World Group Limited (Huazhu) lists the Steigenberger Icons brand as one of its global flagship tiers alongside HanTing, Ji Hotel, and others.
• 2024 — Grandhotel Belvédère Davos transitions to HR Group management as of 1 July after Steigenberger withdraws from operations. Property owner A. Steigenberger Immobilien GmbH retains ownership; HR Group negotiates a licensing agreement to retain the "Steigenberger Icon Grandhotel Belvédère" brand name. Post-WEF 2025 renovation is planned.
• 2025 — Steigenberger celebrates its 95th anniversary. The Steigenberger Icon Europäischer Hof Baden-Baden reopens on 14 August 2025 after a complete renovation, the brand's founding hotel, closed for over a decade, joining the Icons collection as its seventh member.
• 2025 — Europäischer Hof Baden-Baden awarded MICHELIN Key 2025 within weeks of reopening.

The houses to know

1. Steigenberger Icon Parkhotel Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany — The hotel opened for Düsseldorf’s 1902 arts and industry exhibition at Königsallee 1a.
2. Steigenberger Icon Europäischer Hof Baden-Baden, Baden-Baden, Germany — The founding hotel of the Steigenberger brand, restored after a decade-long closure and reopened in August 2025 as the group's 95th-anniversary centrepiece.
3. Steigenberger Icon Grandhotel & Spa Petersberg, Königswinter, Germany — Germany’s official state guesthouse since 1955 stands on a 331-metre hill above the Rhine.
4. Steigenberger Icon Grandhotel Handelshof, Leipzig, Germany — The former trade-fair building opened in 1909 and now houses a hotel in Leipzig’s old town.
5. Steigenberger Icon Frankfurter Hof, Frankfurt, Germany — Germany's foremost grand hotel address, operating continuously since 1876 and host to more than a century of heads of state, Nobel Prize recipients, and cultural figures.
6. Steigenberger Icon Wiltcher's, Brussels, Belgium — The protected Brussels landmark has welcomed guests on Avenue Louise since 1913.
7. Steigenberger Icon Grandhotel Belvédère, Davos, Switzerland — The hub of Davos since 17 July 1875 and for more than 50 years the principal venue for World Economic Forum heads of state and CEOs.
8. Steigenberger Icon Herrenhof, Vienna, Austria — The former Café Herrenhof gives the hotel a Vienna address with a long literary history.

Opening next

• No confirmed new Icons properties have been publicly announced for 2026 or beyond as of June 2026. The brand's declared philosophy of quality over quantity — "only the most exceptional Steigenberger hotels are invited" — suggests controlled, selective additions rather than rapid expansion.
• Steigenberger Icon Grandhotel Belvédère — Davos, Switzerland — renovation dates unconfirmed — HR Group and the property owner announced plans for a major renovation after the 2025 World Economic Forum. A detailed schedule, scope, and final brand affiliation had not been confirmed in the sources reviewed.

Every Steigenberger Icons hotel on the atlas

Germany

• Steigenberger Icon Parkhotel Düsseldorf — Düsseldorf · High Luxury
• Steigenberger Icon Europäischer Hof Baden-Baden — Baden-Baden · Core Luxury
• Steigenberger Icon Frankfurter Hof — Frankfurt · Core Luxury
• Steigenberger Icon Grandhotel & Spa Petersberg — Königswinter · Core Luxury
• Steigenberger Icon Grandhotel Handelshof — Leipzig · Core Luxury

Austria

• Steigenberger Icon Herrenhof — Vienna · Accessible Luxury

Belgium

• Steigenberger Icon Wiltcher's — Brussels · Core Luxury

Switzerland

• Steigenberger Icon Grandhotel Belvédère — Davos · Core Luxury

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