How to Play Grand Austria Hotel: Let's Waltz!

1. Objective of the Game

In Grand Austria Hotel: Let's Waltz!, players compete to manage the most prestigious hotel in Vienna during the ball season. Your goal is to attract elite guests, fulfill their orders, and send them to glamorous ballrooms to dance the waltz. The game ends after the 7th round, and the player with the most Victory Points (VP) wins.

2. Preparation (Setup)

Follow these steps to set up the game:

• Shared Game Area:
  1. Place the game board centrally.
  2. Add ballroom boards (if using Module 1) and place round markers on them.
  3. Set up the action board with dice (replace 3 white dice with colored ones if using Module 2).
  4. Place food, drinks, and champagne tokens in supply areas.
  5. Shuffle and place guest cards, staff cards, and objective cards.
• Personal Game Area:
  1. Each player takes a hotel board, money track, and markers.
  2. Start with 1 strudel, 1 cake, 1 wine, 1 coffee, and (if using Module 1) 1 champagne in your kitchen.
  3. Draw 6 staff cards and choose starting guests.
  4. If using Module 1, place 10 dancer tokens on your rehearsal room board.

3. Game Flow

The game is played over 7 rounds, each with these phases:

1. Roll Dice: The start player rolls all dice and places them on the action board.
2. Player Turns: In turn order, players select a die to perform an action (see Section 4).
3. Round End:
   • Resolve Emperor scoring (if triggered).
   • Resolve ballroom scoring (if using Module 1).
   • Pass the start player token and advance the round marker.

4. Actions and How to Play

On your turn, choose a die from the action board to perform one of these main actions:

• Take Dishes/Champagne: Gain strudel, cake, or champagne (minimum strudel ≥ cake ≥ champagne).
• Take Drinks/Champagne: Gain wine, coffee, or champagne (minimum wine ≥ coffee ≥ champagne).
• Prepare Rooms: Pay coins to flip rooms to their occupied side.
• Gain Coins: Earn money based on the number of dice in the action space.
• Advance on Emperor Track: Move your marker for bonuses.
• Play Staff Cards: Pay coins to activate staff abilities.

Additional Actions:

• Send a Guest to a Ballroom (Module 1): Pay champagne to move a dancer from your rehearsal room to a ballroom, earning rewards and VP.
• Take a Colored Die (Module 2): Pay 1 krone per remaining die to recruit a celebrity with special abilities.

5. End of Game and Scoring

The game ends after the 7th round. Final scoring includes:

• Rooms: 1–4 VP per occupied room (by floor).
• Leftover Items: 1 VP per leftover dish, drink, champagne, or krone.
• Penalties: Lose 5 VP per guest remaining in your café.
• Ballroom VP (Module 1): Score based on dancer placement.
• Staff Cards: Score VP for cards with the symbol.

The player with the highest VP wins. Tiebreaker: Most leftover items + coins.

6. Tips to Win

• Balance Resources: Prioritize fulfilling guest orders to free up café space and earn VP.
• Use Ballrooms Strategically (Module 1): Send dancers to ballrooms with high-scoring row bonuses.
• Leverage Celebrities (Module 2): Recruit them early for powerful one-round abilities.

For details on specific modules or components, consult the manual.