522carolannj
Google
This hotel was an excellent value, and could not be better located for skiing/hiking at Stubnerkogel as it is directly across the street from the cable car and train station, next door to the Schwimbad and a large Spar. Being that this is sort of a youth hostel, the accommodations are somewhat Spartan in that they don't provide shampoo and the rooms are more rustically appointed. Our private balcony room was reasonably sized with an adequate bathroom and shower and cable TV. In short, the room was comfortable but not luxurious. ||||We took half board while we were there. This was an excellent value, however, the food itself for dinner was hit or miss. The breakfast assortment was smaller than many, but adequate. There were one or two cheeses, a couple of meats, cucumbers and tomatoes, boiled eggs, cereal, yogurt, and one or two kinds of bread. Dinner was where it got inconsistent. To start, food in Bad Gastein seems expensive, and I supposed that's to be expected in a resort town. The overall package rate was so reasonable at 40ish Euro per night for half board for two that I didn't feel like we had to eat dinner there every night. That said, when I started to explore other places, I just wasn't up for dropping that much money on dinner. Dinner is a three or four course meal depending on what's on the menu. The included dinner is the meal of the day which consists of soup, salad depending on the day, a main dish with a side or two, and dessert. They have an a la cart menu, and I was not clear whether any of the half board went towards a different meal if one decided that they didn't want the meal of the day. Drinks cost extra, but are standard European price. The first night, the soup was barely seasoned, the wiener schnitzel was excellent, and the apple strudel meh. Second night, the food might have been sourced from American Airlines it was so meh. Third night, we ended up staying in even though I wanted to go out after the poor meal the night before, and the entire meal was outstanding. Go figure. ||||We had a car while we were there, and I am very torn about whether we really needed one. It looked like the public transportation was excellent between the towns in the valley, and the train from Salzburg takes about the same amount of time as driving. The ski resorts also have transport. I liked the flexibility of not having to wait for the bus in the cold, but they also have taxi service. ||||In short, this hotel is perfect for the cost conscious and for those who use the room as a base camp for activities and not as a destination.
