Interview with Michaela Duftner, Böglerhof in Alpbach, Tyrol

Looking to the future with confidence

The Böglerhof in Alpbach, Tyrol, is now in the hands of the 3rd generation of the Duftner family. Never in the almost 90-year history of the hotel have they been confronted with such major changes as the last year has brought. Even during the pandemic, the family has not lost sight of its vision of genuine hospitality and its feel for the needs of its guests. On the contrary - in many respects, the traditional hotel has emerged stronger from the past year. Michaela Duftner in an interview about turbulent times, new paths and the home stretch out of the crisis:


Your family-run traditional hotel has been welcoming guests in the middle of the idyllic Alpbach Valley landscape since 1933. There will never have been such a turning point in your history as this pandemic has brought?


My husband's grandfather took over the hotel in 1933. After the war, things always went uphill. This pandemic has put us in a real "state of paralysis" that we have never experienced before. This great uncertainty has changed many things. For example, when I think of traditional moments like Christmas or New Year's Eve, nothing was the same here last year. These festivities are very special days for us, which we celebrate with our guests. We really missed this unique atmosphere. When we received greeting cards or even handicrafts from our guests' children in the post, we were touched. We realized all the more that our house has also become a tradition for many families. Fortunately, this has also strengthened us again.


The Congress Centrum Alpbach is very close to you and has hosted numerous congresses such as the well-known European Forum Alpbach. How has Corona changed this business?


The whole of Alpbach has really missed the special flair that prevailed in our village during the European Forum. Thousands of international visitors from politics, culture and science used to come together in two and a half weeks and enlivened Alpbach with international flair. Due to coronavirus, the business event sector has increasingly focused on digital or hybrid solutions. Pure knowledge exchange can also work digitally, but in my opinion, personal interaction - networking - provides clear added value that we don't want to miss in the future.


Keyword workation: you have been making it possible to work from home while on vacation in the in-house library for years. Will this trend be confirmed?


We have been observing the need for a combination of work and relaxation among our guests for many years, especially among international visitors. We have therefore equipped ourselves accordingly: We need rooms with flawless Wi-Fi that are quiet and allow a certain amount of privacy. Corona has forced many people to work from home. So the idea of working in an unfamiliar place is no longer new. In my opinion, treating yourself to a certain luxury after work will become an even more popular option.



How do you manage to look to the future with confidence again?


People are longing to go on vacation again and will enjoy it all the more. We are looking forward to it and are already waiting expectantly in the wings. We have drawn a lot of strength from the solidarity with our team and, of course, our own family. This crisis has welded us together. We have tried very hard to keep in touch with each other and to encourage each other. The time for our own family, which is otherwise always too scarce, was also a real source of energy for all of us and motivated us to realize new projects in the house.

www.boeglerhof.at

The interview was conducted on 19/03/2021