Hotel Cerbul

The hotel is literally 50 m from the ski lift, which is handy if skiing is all you care about. The restaurant is open pretty much every day from 8 am, so we could have breakfast without leaving the property. We paid 600 RON per night for two rooms, but some staff were cold and outright rude. We felt as if we were refugees staying for free, and on one occasion the receptionist mocked us. We had gone for a walk, and when we returned they asked in a sarcastic tone if we'd been skiing, even though they knew we weren't skiers and the snow had just thawed. Parking was a problem in season. People who weren't hotel guests parked in the lot, and the hotel didn't seem to care, so we had to look elsewhere. There was also a bar that had recently opened right in front of the hotel, playing loud music most of the day. It started mid-morning and stopped by 10 pm at the latest, but it made a quiet stay impossible. The rooms weren't in great shape, and the housekeeping was barely there. The cleaning lady took out the trash and changed our towels each day, but I saw no vacuuming or wiping. Dust was thick in some spots, the bathtub was filthy, and crumbs under the bed stayed there for all 10 days. The toilet soap was empty when we checked in and wasn't replaced, though I only noticed five days later. The sheets were changed once, three days into the stay. I could sleep decently despite the flat, uncomfortable pillows, but sitting up against the bed was painful: the top edge of the panel above the pillow dug into my neck or head if I leaned back to watch TV. The restaurant was best avoided. The decor was old, the air stuffy, and the tablecloths and cutlery dirty. Our lunch was disastrous and was the first and last one there. The pork chops were tough and rubbery. We stuck to breakfast after that, figuring eggs, dairy, cold cuts, bread and vegetables would be hard to mess up. Still, every day they got something wrong: an item was missing or replaced without asking, portions differed from what we'd ordered, or special instructions were ignored. We'd booked the rooms for New Year's Eve already, so the 1050 RON package, or 350 per person, seemed ridiculous for coming down to eat seasonal leftovers. It included music from a playback speaker, with a pretty bland selection, plus soup, trout, fruit, drinks, sweets and snacks. We didn't go. On the day of the party the receptionist stopped us to ask if we were coming. When we calmly tried to explain the price seemed too high, they cut us off rudely with, "Yeah, bye." For comparison, we'd seen a package elsewhere for 500 RON per person that included live music sung by famous artists, an a la carte menu and a much nicer location.

We stayed for 7 nights and had a great time. The hotel is right by the ski chair, just 20 m from the Cerbul Hotel, and though it doesn't have a spa of its own, you can cross the yard to the Roman Hotel and use theirs. The staff were very nice, the food was good and cheap, and the rooms were very clean. Heating worked perfectly, and the bathrooms were nice with everything in working order. We totally recommend it!

The lobby and restaurant could use an update since only part of the hotel has been renovated. Still, the furniture in the room was new, the room was clean, the staff welcoming, and there was even a hair dryer in the bathroom. It's very close to the chairlift and good value for the money. If we return, we'll definitely book here again!

The food was absolutely awful. The carbonara tasted sour and old, and honestly felt like prison food. It seemed as if they were trying to poison me, and I'm surprised the pasta didn't kill me. The restaurant should be shut down. They charged extra for bread we hadn't even asked for, and the omelette was thinner than paper. I'd never recommend this place again.