Appartement im Panoramic Hotel Bad Lauterberg

We went in early February 2024, and the weather was miserable: windy and rainy. That probably affected how I saw the place. There were four adults, two children and two cars, one of them an electric vehicle. The surrounding area may be lovely, with forest and walking trails, though you need to drive a bit to see sights. That wasn’t really a problem for us. The hotel is a big, blocky building, not pretty, and looks a little rundown outside. Inside, the entrance is spacious, with reception staffed around the clock. They spoke excellent English. There are two towers of about 15 stories, joined by a large section with restaurants, water facilities, playrooms and other amenities. Our room had a very 70s look and feel. The furniture was old and close to worn out, but the beds were fine, and the pillows and covers were typical low-budget quality, nothing fancy. The kids’ room was small, though the bunk-bed layout was interesting and the children liked it. Each room seemed to have a small kitchen with a stove and oven, kettle, pots and pans. We didn’t use it, but it looked serviceable and low-budget. The bathroom was clean, roomy for a hotel room, and seemed fairly recently renovated. It had a towel warmer and walk-in shower. We had breakfast and dinner included, both served buffet-style. Staff kept the buffet clean and topped it up quickly, so dishes we wanted to try weren’t left empty. The restaurant gets very busy at certain times because the hotel caters to families. There were lots of children running around, and some grabbed from bread baskets and trays with sticky fingers. The food was warm and varied, though desserts leaned heavily toward foamy options like chocolate mousse. Buffet drinks included Coke Zero, Sprite, Fanta, red and white wine, and some kind of beer. It was about what you’d expect from a hotel of this type. The pool felt far too small for the number of children and guests there while we were visiting, and the water could have been a few degrees warmer. It has changing coloured lights, a little waterfall that runs only a few minutes about once an hour, and underwater jets that briefly make a sort of river. There are also four jacuzzi seats, but they didn’t work very well and weren’t heated separately from the cool pool. They ran for three minutes at a time, only once an hour, so weren’t much use. The small baby pool was heated and had a very small slide. The sauna is clothing-free and mixed, with men and women using the same saunas. That’s fairly normal in Germany, but I’m from Denmark and didn’t feel comfortable enough to use it nude, so it was no use to us. There’s a large parking area near the hotel, though it’s worn down, with potholes and some sharp corners. I wouldn’t want to bring a sports car in there. It had three EV chargers, but I’m unsure whether they were 11 or 22 kW. We paid 16€ for a charging slot from 16:00 until 08:00 the next morning. That’s not too expensive, but not cheap either. Some hotels offer charging free, but this one didn’t. We used it for four nights with good results and very few issues. The process was a bit lengthy: take a charger, go to the lobby to rent it, return with a key to unlock it, then reverse the steps in the morning. That could be improved. I gave the hotel three stars because it feels so worn down and too 70s for my taste, though it covered what we needed for a short holiday sightseeing in the area. Thanks for the stay.