Hotel Stern by EMPA

We had an enjoyable stay, and the breakfast buffet had a really wide selection. The rooms are cosy and nicely decorated, though the mattresses were worn and much too soft to be comfortable.

The room felt old and worn, and the shower leaked from every side. With temperatures above 32°C, I was put in a room with tiny windows facing the sun, even though I had specifically asked reception about that. There is no AC, which I could accept if the room could stay cool naturally. Instead, I had to open every window to sleep, and then construction and traffic noise started early in the morning. I arrived after 15:00, but the room wasn't ready. Several other guests were waiting too. No one gave me basic information like checkout time. I assumed it was 12:00, but it was actually 11:00. The girl at checkout didn't speak English, got very angry over the extra 20 minutes, and didn't say a proper goodbye or ask how my stay had gone. The staff seemed unhappy and uninterested, apart from the friendly blonde girl who spoke English. I'd read the reviews before booking and didn't expect much, but it was still bad. Wyndham really doesn't seem to care these days. Their properties keep getting worse.

The location is great, and the room had a bed, heat, and a shower. That's about where the positives end. It looks like the place hasn't been redone since at least the 80s. The room layout was nice, but the practical details were poor: random plywood panels and holes, bad lighting, and a hair dryer that didn't work. The shower curtain and rod were so small that the curtain kept touching me while I showered, even though I'm relatively small. There was no kettle, the pipes made strange noises, and the mini bar fridge was tiny. With the Wyndham name attached, I expected more and came away disappointed.

We stayed here two years ago while touring Europe on motorcycles, so we booked it again. The staff were lovely, but the room was really tired and needs updating. Wallpaper was coming loose from the ceiling, plaster was coming off the walls, and the TV didn't work. There was no air conditioning either. We won't stay here again.