The City Hotel Bad Ischl
A house with a long history since 1821
Dear friends and guests of the Golden Ship,
since 1821 we are at this idyllic and at the same time dynamic place at the Traun,
surrounded by the lovely to rocky surroundings of Bad Ischl,
the favorite pub of many interesting people.
And the history continues to write itself as the city hotel smiling.
Smiling?
Yes, because today we are allowed to work in this place, in this town, which has seen, experienced and also survived many things.
Those who knew a lot about it were our first regular guests: they were the rough but hearty Traunreiter.
They shaped the life of Bad Ischl from the 16th to the 19th century and their way of life still has an effect today.
But let us let the Traunreiter tell the story themselves.
We invite you as a guest to experience Bad Ischl and its surroundings in a completely new way.
With the eye, mind and above all: the heart of a real Traunreiter.
How it all began
The history of the GOLDENES SCHIFF goes back to the 17th century. Since the year 1821, the then inn has borne its present name "Zum Goldenen Schiff".
During this time the "Goldenes Schiff" served as an overnight accommodation for the salt boatmen and the "Traunreiter".
The salt boatmen transported the salt extracted in Hallstatt and Bad Ischl on the Traun to the salt works in Ebensee.
The ships were pulled back by horses of the so-called Roßbauern, hence the name Traunreiter. At that time, the "Goldenes Schiff" was owned by one of the salt transporters.
According to the documents, the "Goldene Schiff" was at that time the home of the Traunreiter, and later also of the chair carriers, who carried the high lords to the mountains in the region for good pay.
Since the salt was called "the white gold" at that time as well as today and was transported on barges on the Traun, the name "Goldenes Schiff" was created.
In 1932 Benedikt Fröch, the grandfather of the current owner, bought the then inn, which had a few guest rooms.
20th Century
In 1966 the younger of two daughters, Christine Fröch, married Josef Gruber and together they took over the middle-class guesthouse in the same year.
In 1970 the couple Josef and Christine Gruber added 3 floors and 17 rooms (27 rooms in total) to the existing building and were the first hotel in Bad Ischl to equip all rooms with bath/shower and WC.
In 1975/76 the next hotel expansion followed by 27 rooms, in total there were then 54 rooms/80 beds available.
Between 1968 and 1974 the 4 children of the Gruber family were born.
In 1987, Josef Gruber unfortunately died far too early in a car accident on an icy road at the age of 46.
For the widow Christine Gruber, who was the same age as Josef Gruber, and their 4 children, who were between 13 and 18 years old at the time, this was a turning moment.
In the same year, the neighboring property with the Villa Wurnig on it was acquired. Despite the unexpected passing of Josef Gruber, investments continued to be made in the hotel.
Management in 3rd. generation
Edwin Gruber grew up more or less in the hotel business, graduated from the Realgymnasium in Bad Ischl in 1986 and then completed the 2-year tourism college in Bad Hofgastein and Klessheim, Salzburg.
From 1995 to 1998 he continued his education at the university course for tourism at the University of Innsbruck.
From 2013 to 2015, Edwin Gruber completed a 2-year course to become a certified hotelier, which is offered by the ÖHV (Austrian Hoteliers' Association) on a professional basis.
From 2014 to 2018, Edwin Gruber was chairman of the Bad Ischl Tourism Association and was also vice-chairman of Salzkammergut Tourism from 2016 to 2018. With the end of the 4-year period, Edwin Gruber ended in 2018 his 20 years of voluntary work in various bodies of the Bad Ischl Tourist Board.
Edwin Gruber is married to Elisabeth Gruber-Krobath, a Carinthian who herself comes from the tourism industry, and has 4 children (Hannah, Viktoria, Raphaela & Romeo).
Renovation measures
Between 2006 and 2019, several renovations were carried out in the house.
During the 2020/21 lockdown, the largest construction site in the 200-year proud history of the "Schiff" was implemented.
More space was created with a new lobby, fast accessibility was enabled by an additional elevator, new hotel rooms were built on the upper floors, a newly designed breakfast room and not to forget a new wellness area was built on no less than 200m².
All rooms were equipped with AirCondition and an air filtration system was installed. Of course, in the course of the renovation measures, the topic of sustainability was also written large.
