Business Hotel First

The place looks nice, but I wouldn't recommend it if you need quiet. Even though I paid for a top tier room and specifically asked for silence, I couldn't get any. The hotel sits right by a busy motorway and the rooms aren't well soundproofed. Even footsteps seem to shake the whole floor, with noise carrying through the building and the ceiling and floor vibrating like someone is constantly stomping around.

We had a great stay. The restaurant downstairs served really good food, though we waited an hour for a table on the weekend, so book ahead. The food and service made up for the wait. The hotel was clean and modern, and the staff were polite and professional.

Getting around from this hotel was inconvenient. It’s quite remote, and walking to nearby attractions wasn’t practical, so we would have needed to spend a lot on taxis or Uber. Renting a car would probably have worked out better. Zurich and the scenery around it are beautiful, but I’d look elsewhere for a special hotel stay. I also don’t understand what led to the good ratings. The building looked like a commercial property among other businesses, with no notable views. We arrived before check-in and found only a note with instructions, as there was no receptionist. We never spoke with anyone at the front desk during our stay. The room was adequate, but the price was high for what we got. As a frequent traveler and airline pilot, I didn’t feel the value matched the cost or the loyalty points I used. My wife asked whether breakfast was included and a staff member said it was complimentary, possibly because of a language barrier. We left early because we weren’t happy with the stay, then were charged $60 Swiss francs, approximately $66 US dollars, for a subpar breakfast.

The bedspread was dirty and had strands of hair on it. The room heater didn’t work, and there was nobody at reception to answer calls or help us check out.