ARCOTEL Allegra

Class: First

Style: Modern design

Rooms: 151

Tourism in Croatia is booming, and demand for quality lodging is far outstripping supply, following what we hope you’ll forgive us for calling a sort of Field of Dreams effect in reverse: “if you come, they will build it.” So the arrival of Zagreb’s first design hotel, a member of the Austrian Arcotel chain, is big news, and comes not a moment too soon.

Anyone who’s half-expecting a dated, provincial take on the design hotel is in for a pleasant surprise — the Allegra’s look is idiosyncratic, yes, but compelling as well, with perfectly elegant minimalist public spaces, and rooms that are livened considerably by boldly patterned (and slightly outré) linens and carpets. The furniture is pared-down and practical, perfectly functional for business traveling and visually sleek enough to appeal to the hip-hotels crowd.

The obligatory lobby bar is, as it should be, patronized by a blend of jet-setters and style-conscious Zagreb locals, and there’s plenty more happening outside — the hotel is just one part of a complex that includes restaurants, cafés, a multiplex cinema and a shopping center, which in turn is just steps from the center of the city, and a short walk from Zagreb’s main train terminal.