Two Minds, One Vision
Tom & Maria Heidenreich

Words Ruby DaviesImages Maximilian Mair

When a place calls loudly enough, you answer and leave comfort behind. That’s exactly what Maria and Tom Heidenreich did—no hospitality background, no guarantees, just a narrow Alpine valley in Austria, and a gut instinct to build something that stays with you. 

Tucked into a narrow valley beneath the Hochkönig massif, stieg’nhaus isn’t the kind of place you stumble upon—it’s an intentional choice. Much like the decision Maria and Tom made when they left steady lives in Bavaria to build a hotel in Mühlbach that most people wouldn’t dare attempt without experience. This is how a staircase, a stone wall, and a mountain range built a dream.

What did you do before opening stieg’nhaus? How have your past experiences influenced the way you approach this project? 

Maria: From the outside, life in Bavaria looked secure—stable jobs in IT, a home, people around us. But we both felt a pull to leave it behind and build something of our own. We had no hospitality background. Just a personal wish to create a place with meaning, atmosphere, and genuine care.

Tom: My background in project management, real estate, and construction gave us a real foundation. Even traveling, I was always watching—the flow, the details, the guest experience.

What inspired you to open your own hotel?

Maria: The idea grew slowly. Travel was a big part of it. When we got married, we stayed at a mountain retreat in Saalbach Hinterglemm—one of those places that just stays with you. We felt completely at home there, and looking back, that was probably the first moment the idea began to take shape.

Was there a moment when it all became real?

Maria: This was our third attempt. Two projects before this fell through.

Tom: When this house came into our lives, something felt different immediately. The moment we saw the staircase, we knew. It had a character and a quiet, lasting presence that stayed with us. Even through the build, it didn’t feel completely real—I think it only did once we opened the doors.

You work together as partners. What are each of your strengths, and how do you complement one another?

Maria: We share the same vision. I am probably the lighter and more optimistic one—marketing, communication, and the surrounding creative topics are naturally more my area.

Tom: I am more focused, structured, and analytical. I keep the finances, the bigger picture, and the operational side in mind. We discuss things well, we are often on the same page, and we can also argue well when needed. What matters most is that we can rely on each other.

Does the design of the hotel feel similar to your home? Or are they quite different?

Maria: Quite different, actually. We have an old house in the mountains—about 1,300 meters up—that we’re slowly re-imagining. The vision for it keeps evolving, which is part of what we love about it. It’s our quiet place, stieg’nhaus is something else. More distilled, more intentional, shaped entirely around the guest.

Is there a single detail at stieg’nhaus that feels especially meaningful?

Tom: The staircase, without question. The rounded forms, the brass details—they set the tone for so much of the house. And the stone walls. In the old building, stones were already there at the entrance. We worked with them, plastered them, let them breathe. A quiet Mediterranean nod to Mallorca, or to Istria.

What drew you to Mühlbach specifically?

Tom: Mühlbach drew us in and never let us go. The massive mountain range, the air, the shape of the village, the narrow valley, the steep slopes—everything here feels very close and grounding. I had always dreamed of living in the mountains.

Maria: For us, it felt like a place where we could start again and build something that truly reflected the life we wanted.

As hosts, what kind of atmosphere are you hoping guests feel?

Maria: We stay mostly in the background. Our team is there for guests, and when the moment is right, we’re happy to join over a glass of wine, or a coffee. But this place isn’t about us. It’s about the guest, and getting that atmosphere right—calm, warm, refined, personal.

And nature—what role does it play for you personally?

Tom: We feel very much at home here in Mühlbach—up on the mountain, surrounded by fresh air, open landscapes and the quiet presence of the Hochkönig massif. It grounds us. At the same time, our love for travel and discovering new places runs deep. We enjoy being on the move, gathering different perspectives and bringing those impressions back with us—into our life and into stieg’nhaus.