Relexa Bad Steben

The pool view is really beautiful, especially when it's snowing outside. The glass walls make it feel relaxing, though the water is quite cold, which is good for swimming but not small children. You have to sign up at reception to use the pool, depending on availability, and access is limited to a maximum of one hour. We come to Bad Steben every year and usually stay elsewhere. This time we chose Relexa Hotel because we wanted a pool, but the stay wasn't great for over €260 a night, and we won't return. There were some nice touches. We found little slippers and a child's robe in the bedroom, which were adorable (see pic). On arrival, there were complimentary cookies, three small Milka chocolates, a banana, a tangerine, several apples, and four bottles of sparkling water. At checkout, the receptionists gave us three small chocolates too. Our suite was large and comfortable, though old-fashioned. The rooms aren't soundproof. The guest below us knocked on our door to say he could hear our son walking around. Breakfast was particularly frustrating: the waitress was very rude to several guests, not just us, and we had to ask her repeatedly for things. One morning, we only got coffee halfway through breakfast. Dinner had the opposite atmosphere, all pomp and circumstance. Even with an assigned table that never changes, we had to wait each night for a waitress to lead us there. There's no internet in the restaurant. There is no room service. You can take food from the restaurant to your room, but you have to load everything onto a cart yourself and push it through the restaurant and hotel. In the fancy evening setting, that felt extremely awkward. We also couldn't eat in turns. One night our son was very cranky, so I went to eat while my husband took our toddler to explore the hotel. The waitress said either we could wait for my husband to return so she could bring both meals together, or she'd bring mine right away but had to bring his at the same time too. You also have to pay for water at breakfast, which is the only hotel I've been to that charges for it, and it's a four-star hotel. Room cleaning has to be requested at reception the day before. When a toddler has a diaper accident overnight, you only discover it in the morning. The bathroom also has no ventilation. For this price, we expected a much better stay. In general, I wouldn't recommend the hotel to families with children, especially younger ones.

The grounds are beautiful, and the historic hotel has an amazing location. The staff were very helpful, and dinner was great!

There are lots of spa and massage options, and the food is great. It's a good property with friendly staff.

The room looked out onto a really pleasant view, and the place itself was nice and good quality.