Ivica Max Krizmanić, General Manager — Esplanade Zagreb Hotel © European Hotel Awards 2026
BOARD’S CHOICE 2026 — A century of hospitality kept alive
The European Hotel Awards have recognised Esplanade Zagreb Hotel with Art of Hospitality Excellence 2026. The distinction celebrates a grand hotel whose significance is not limited to architecture or history, but rests on the continued ability to receive guests with character, ceremony and human attention after a century of operation.
Under General Manager Ivica Max Krizmanić, the Esplanade remains one of Zagreb’s defining hospitality institutions. For the Board, its achievement lies in maintaining the identity of a historic house while ensuring that service, gastronomy and the guest experience remain fully contemporary.
Art of Hospitality Excellence 2026
Esplanade Zagreb Hotel — Zagreb, Croatia
Represented by Ivica Max Krizmanić, General Manager
Why the European Hotel Awards selected Esplanade Zagreb Hotel
Opened in 1925 beside Zagreb’s main railway station, the Esplanade belongs to the golden age of European long-distance travel. Its public rooms, formal proportions and social role were conceived for international travellers arriving in the Croatian capital, and that historical purpose remains legible today.
The Board’s choice focused on the way this legacy continues to function rather than merely being preserved. The hotel still acts as a place of arrival, meeting, dining and celebration for both visitors and the city itself. Its history provides depth, but hospitality is what keeps that history active.
Opened in 1925, Esplanade Zagreb Hotel remains one of the Croatian capital’s defining hospitality institutions © Esplanade Zagreb Hotel
Grand-hotel heritage interpreted through contemporary service
The Esplanade retains the scale and confidence of a classic European grand hotel. Yet the European Hotel Awards considered physical heritage only one part of the distinction. A historic building becomes relevant to present-day guests when service, comfort and operational standards allow them to inhabit it naturally.
Ivica Max Krizmanić’s role is therefore one of balance: protecting the codes and reputation accumulated over generations while allowing the house to evolve. The Board recognised this continuity without nostalgia — a hotel that understands its past but remains organised around the expectations of today’s guest.
The lobby preserves the ceremonial scale of a classic European grand hotel while remaining part of a living guest experience © Esplanade Zagreb Hotel
The art of hospitality expressed through people and gastronomy
The phrase Art of Hospitality deliberately places attention on human interaction. The memory of a grand hotel depends on recognition, anticipation, confidence and the way teams translate formal standards into personal service.
Gastronomy reinforces this role. Restaurants and public spaces allow the Esplanade to remain a social address for Zagreb as well as a hotel for international travellers. The Board saw that relationship between rooms, dining, service and city life as an important expression of the house’s continuing relevance.
Gastronomy helps the Esplanade remain a social address for Zagreb as well as an international hotel © Esplanade Zagreb Hotel
The meaning of Art of Hospitality Excellence 2026
Art of Hospitality Excellence 2026 recognises the difficulty of sustaining an authentic service culture across generations. The Award celebrates Esplanade Zagreb Hotel for keeping architecture, city identity, gastronomy and human hospitality connected within one coherent institution.
The Award was presented within the eighth edition of the European Hotel Awards, held on 28 September 2026 at the Grand Hotel del Mare Resort & Spa in Bordighera, Italy.
Official 2026 laureate film
https://youtu.be/do-Oz6eyuqM
Esplanade Zagreb Hotel — Art of Hospitality Excellence 2026
Esplanade Zagreb Hotel
Mihanovićeva ul. 1
10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Tel. +385 1 4566 666
Internet: www.esplanade.hr
Discover the Main Awards dedicated to excellence across European hospitality and visit the Hall of Fame to explore previous laureates.
Tags: Art of Hospitality Excellence 2026, Awards Insights, Croatia, Esplanade Zagreb Hotel, European Hotel Awards, European Hotel Awards 2026, grand hotel, hospitality excellence, Ivica Max Krizmanić, Zagreb
