I stayed at this hotel July ’06, and I have mixed feeling about the hotel because of the issues involved. The hotel is closely tied to 20th century German history. The underground bunker tunnels, which are open 6 AM to 6 PM are worth a visit (exact coin change is needed before 9 AM to open the turnstile). The current owner, Frau Scharfenberg is definitely the sweetest and kindest hotelier around. She makes up for a lot of the substantial shortcomings which will be listed below.

On the positive side …. the buffet breakfast, while not being necessarily excellent, is definitely above the class of the hotel itself. Hotel has ample parking in its yard (actually one can probably turn an 18 wheeler in the big yard). Frau Scharfenberg is fluent in English, and one of the kindest ladies around. The room I stayed in had a nice view of the mountain, but that is sort of average for this geographic area of the world. The street level bar is very nice and well stocked. It is based on the honor system, and one notes down one’s consumption to be added to the bill at the end. Two beers and a hard liquor ran me under 9 Euros, quite reasonable. The bar/sitting area has a TV, the only TV in the hotel.

On the other hand ….. hotel has a number of problems, or lack of features if you will. The hotel façade is quite attractive, but the interior is quite plain. The corridors are long, white, dark and plain, resembling a dormitory. The room door are quite plain. Most of the building charm lies in its façade rather than the interior. When one comes in, one gets a key to the hotel door itself. It turns out that many tourists seeing the façade, are looking to come inside and check the interior ……. thing that Frau Scharfenberg just can’t manage any longer at her age. The reception, and front door, are locked at 6 PM, so one better check in before 6 PM. The lady does tell one to call if one is going to check in after 6 PM, but she fails to advise prospective clients that the call is mandatory if one wishes to check in. Building has neither a people elevator nor a luggage elevator. The bar TV is the only TV in the hotel. When one enters the one’s room, there is a small hallway. The toilet is on the right, the tub/shower on the left, and the sink is in the room. The toilet and tub/shower have drapes separating them from the hallway. These days, these facilities are generally separated by doors, and all 3 are in a single room, not spread about the room/entrance hallway.

Unfortunately, the lady’s husband passed away last year. He used to be the one responsible for the restaurant. Since then, there is no longer a lunch/dinner restaurant, short of the above average breakfast. Lady is not able to find the help she needs to run the restaurant. The Intercontinental,. “the conti”, is a steep 10 mins. climb up the hill, and some other rustic stuben is a 15 mins drive down the road. The conti has a French restaurant, and an international restaurant with terrace and nice salad buffet, (it has more than just lettuce, including seafood stuff). The conti casual restaurant was closed when I dropped by on Saturday evening. BTW, Salzburg is only a 15 miles drive over, maybe a 15 minutes drive down the main drag, once one gets to it. I did not prep Salzburg as a tourist attraction for this trip, but I drove there once for dinner, while looking to feel the gas tank. Once there, look for the “Zentrum”, which is on the river bank, and there is a tunnel that will lead you in.

The hotel is very reasonably priced. It has the feel of a 2 star hotel, based on a 5 star system. The hotel façade, history, and host gracious hospitality are by far the place best assets, even if they don’t quite make up for the other serious deficiencies.