Alp & Wellnes Sport Hotel Panorama

Location and spa truly dreamy, the first impression was excellent, as was the welcome from a young receptionist upon arrival. Too bad about the room, which was absolutely not up to the standard of the hotel and the prices charged. We stayed in three in a Junior Suite Erica for a bachelorette party: small room, clearly dated, really hot as there was no air conditioning (we were forced to keep all the windows open at all times to breathe, but without screens, so a couple of wasps got into the room) and with rather summary cleaning. It felt like we were in a 90s mountain boarding house. However, not suitable if you are very allergic to dust. Then: Okay, the Simmons mattresses, but the double beds consist of two singles pushed together and the bed linen was worn, with pilling and a few little holes. Very small bathroom, with a narrow shower, not very practical. We had high expectations for all the photos seen on social media, the official website and various platforms, so it was quite disappointing to end up on that hilltop on the fourth floor. The experience was positive for the excellent SPA and for the breakfast, probably the best ever for variety and quality (despite the dining room staff often being unpleasant or at least not very affable, primarily the person in charge of cooking eggs to order). Honestly, I would only return at lower prices or if the rooms were renovated. Final tip: recruit the SPA desk staff better, the very young blonde girl we interacted with barely knew how to indicate where the shower was...ah, 50€ for spa entry for outsiders to not find sunbeds or places to lean because it is rightly mostly occupied by guests...needs to be reviewed.

We were allowed to move into our Erika suite at 1:00 PM. Which is actually not a real suite, more of a large room. It was very warm in the room until the evening hours and it lacks air conditioning. After we drove away again around 2:00 PM, we didn't get a parking space at 5:00 PM. Unfortunately, dinner is only available from 7:30 PM; the salad buffet was manageable. The bread served with it was old and dry. In total, we ate for 1:40 minutes; the appetizers were good, but the main course was cold. The pool area is diverse, but they are all small pools, and there is a lack of sun umbrellas and lounge chairs in the outdoor area. The same picture in the indoor area. There are too many guests for the indoor area during bad weather. The location is a dream with a great view. The hotel garage costs an extra 9€ per day. For us, as we often go to sports and wellness hotels, we are of the opinion that the price-performance ratio is not right here. The welcome drink does not live up to the 4 stars. Hardly anyone speaks German, and even getting a drink menu was not easy.

They take groups into the woods for “forest bathing to the sound of the trees” — and then they keep the music on throughout the hotel for 15 hours non-stop. They prepare a saline bath for “harmony and balance of body and spirit” — and they wouldn't turn off the music for anything in the world. Throughout the hotel. Always the same 15 hours non-stop. There is no way to hide from this “background music.” It will reach you in your room from the terrace. It will be in the pool. It will be on the green lawn where you arrived from the city just to finally be able to listen to the silence. From 8:15 in the morning until 11:00 PM. This “background drip” torture works to perfection. You will ask, you will explain, you will try to convince them. You will even decide to leave a day early, leaving the hotel 300 euros for the unused day, simply because you can no longer stand that sound. And at that point, they will promise you at least a little bit of silence for the two days you have left. But the next morning, exactly at 8:16, you will wake up to the music again. Because, as they will explain to you, “it’s all automatic and it’s difficult to reprogram the system.” I had to earn my two days of semi-silence with great effort. And don’t fool yourself into thinking it will be different for you: it won’t be! The speakers are integrated into the building’s structure and, apparently, are the owner’s favorite toy )) We hadn’t even had time to get out of the garage after checking out before the music was already booming everywhere again. Evidently, a day and a half of the silence I had managed to laboriously earn for myself had already been a sacrifice at the limits of human endurance for the hotel owners. So here are some things I really wish I had known before paying more than 2,000 euros for six days — which, in my case, actually became five. 1. The music If you live at home with the television or music constantly on, by all means, come. You probably won't even understand what I am talking about. If, however, for some strange reason, the words “woods,” “mountain,” “SPA,” “relax,” and “silence” have something to do with each other for you, keep in mind that the hotel’s idea of relaxation might be very different from yours. 2. The rooms Before arriving, INSIST on knowing exactly which building/block the room you have been assigned is in. The different versions of the “Erika Junior Suite” differ from each other more or less as much as a boarding house from another era, like those from my grandmother’s time, does from a spacious — even if not particularly modern — room in a normal mid-range four-star hotel. In short: the name is the same. The stay experience, definitely not. 3. Sleeping, breathing, having a bit of darkness If you are not willing to sleep in a stuffy room, this hotel might not be for you. There is no air conditioning. One might think: perfect. We are in the mountains, there is the forest, the night is cool — you open the window and sleep breathing fresh air. No. The hotel's external lighting floodlights point toward the windows, so you will have to lower the shutters. And if the music coming from the terrace prevents you from sleeping or simply resting, you will also have to close the window. Although, to tell the truth, the closed shutters are already more than enough to make the room stuffy. 4. The restaurant The restaurant, on the other hand, is EXTRAORDINARY. Excellent menu, great wine list, splendid service, extremely professional chef and maître d'. In fact: the restaurant deserves a visit on its own, not just a mention under the "half board" heading. And that is precisely what makes everything even more frustrating. Because two wonderful hours between breakfast and dinner still cannot compensate for the other twenty-two hours of a rather peculiar idea of vacation and relaxation. 5. The SPA and other oddities The spa itself is excellent: baths, pools, saunas, bowls with real roses, an “alpine meadow” with the real scent of grass. Then the details begin. On the meadow there are six umbrellas, four of which do not open. According to a spa attendant, they were “stuck because of the wind.” Not exactly a compelling explanation, considering that the other two, for some mysterious reason, do open. Despite the prohibition, children are jumping into the pool screaming. The spa staff just shrugs. There are no spare towels in the spa. In your room, you are given one towel to take with you to the pool, then bring back to your room, and wait for it to be replaced with a clean one the next day. And so far, that is fine. Ecology, water conservation—I absolutely agree. But then why is the towel more or less half the length of the lounge chair? And why is the hotel price the same as facilities where clean towels are available in stacks next to the pool? Conclusion: Think about it! Think about it very carefully before making this choice. I would have been very happy to read a review like this before choosing this place for my vacation. Especially since, at the same price and in the same area, there are fantastic alternatives. In the meantime, we have already found them—and even tried them. P.S. Small details like the SPA bathroom remaining wet all day, strange pipes on the balconies, railings dangerously overgrown with vegetation along the uncomfortable steps leading down to the pool, the absence of slippers for the SPA and even tissues in the room, we can even overlook. And one last thing. I am sorry. I am truly sorry that the work of three generations has become what it has become.