Hotel Schloss Leonstain

For just under €700 for two people for two nights, I’m not sure the value was there. Breakfast starts at 7:30am, which is fine, but there’s no Nespresso machine or coffee and tea setup in the room. If you get up early, say 6am, it’s a long wait for your first coffee. We always bring our own small Nespresso maker, fortunately. There’s no minibar either, though the hotel brought us a small fridge within 20 minutes, which was great. The hotel is charming, with very friendly staff and service. Our room was basic, but the bed was very good. At this price, I’d expect two pillows, one firm and one soft. The bathroom has charm, but it’s showing its age, with scratches in the bathtub and some fixtures missing parts. That’s not okay. There’s no separate shower, so you have to climb into the tub.

The beach is across the street, and the food was really, really good, some of the best I’ve had. Breakfast was good and typical for a 4 star hotel. Still, our experience was so-so. We got a deal at about half the usual price, and at full price I don’t think the stay is worth it. The hotel didn’t seem like a 4 star place. Some kind of weasel or marten gets active on the roof at night and makes it impossible to sleep. We spoke to two other guests who also couldn’t sleep because of wild animals on the roof. The bicycle that’s supposed to come with the room seems like a catch, because they never have it. Another guest, on their third visit, said the bicycle had never been there for them either. The excuse is always that it might be delivered, but it never happens. If you can get a deal for €100 a night with breakfast and dinner, it’s worth it. Otherwise, there are much better options in the region. Sorry if this sounds harsh, I don’t mean it that way. It’s just how I felt, and maybe we came at the wrong time.

The restaurant is so good you might not want to eat anywhere else. They have a well-earned “Haube” certificate. The staff were super friendly and went above and beyond to help us. Our stay with two babies was great, and they’re very family friendly. The renovated castle is in great condition, with modern facilities, but you can still feel a bit like nobility. It really is an enchanted dream of a place to stay.

My family held my uncle’s wedding here a few years ago, and Hotel Schloss Leonstain was the worst place for it. We’d agreed the party could go until 5am, but they shut it down at 2am. They also refused to let us bring our own wedding cake and insisted we order one from the hotel’s patisserie. The cake was much smaller than ordered and wasn’t what we’d asked for. Then, as if that weren’t enough, hotel staff charged our guests for breakfast coffee even though we’d already paid for everyone’s breakfast.