I' m a regular traveler to Bergen. But this was my first stay at this hotel. I it has been a pleasant surprise.

The staff is great. The breakfast is superb. And the price is reasonable.

It is not a new fancy design hotel, the standard is quite ordinary. But what it lack in standard it compensate with service. Well staffed. Every one with a smile. Local produced food. Fresh omelett served at the table. And the hotel director serving coffee.

This is my new preffered choice in Bergen.

Me and my girlfriend planned a romantic weekend and specified that we wanted a double bed and a room with a view. We got the bottom floor with a view of the dirty, jagged walls and two seperate beds put together. My girlfriend complained and got a room with one bed, not much wider than a normal single bed and with the same view.

When I went down to ask if it was not possible to get a proper double bed, the receptionist said that this was the normal size of the beds. When I asked if we could pay to upgrade the room she said no because we had allready removed the bed cover of the other room and they had no one to prepare it for other guests since the hotell was fully booked. Fair enpough, although it would have taken them one minute to clear the room, but when I went online to check, I still could book the superior room I had asked for.

The room was tiny, the bathroom was modern, but sadly no bath tub, the hallway was narrow, the reception area was quite nice, the location is pretty good and the breakfast was great. The complimentary smoothie shots are incredible. I would definately stay here traveling alone on a business trip, but couples should stay away.

This is simply not a hotel that aim to please those looking for a romantic weekend.

I stayed at this hotel twice (once coming from Oslo & once coming back from Alesund) during my recent trip in Norway for a total of 6 nights. Now before I go any further, let me just say that you'll be hard-pressed to find a "cheap" or "moderately" priced hotel in Bergen - the average nightly rate in this and most establishments in the city are inherently (somewhat) prohibitive - just the nature of the beast in this Norwegian hotspot. Just to give you an idea, even with a discount, I still paid about 160 CAD/night. OK, so on with the review...
The hotel is conveniently located at a ten minute walking distance from both the train station and the adjacent bus station (the bus, by the way, is a good cheaper alternative means of getting to destinations like Alesund that are not accessible by train). So if you are riding the rails in Norway like I was, this is a great place to stay if you arrive late from Oslo or need to catch an early morning train for the Norway in a Nutshell tour. The city centre (Fisketorget - the fish market, Bryggen - UNESCO World Heritage site, Tourist Office, etc.) is also at the same distance on foot from the hotel and the main pedestrian drag, Torgallmenningen, is even closer (essentially around the corner).
While you wouldn't necessarily confuse the Rica with a luxury hotel (I would compare it to a good Best Western), the facilities are modern, clean, and inviting. The 24hr reception staff is very helpful and welcoming, and the breakfast (an award-winning one) is absolutely to die for. Huge selection of freshly made smoothies (in shot-like glasses), jams, and pastries, salmon prepared in a variety of ways, hot and cold breakfast items, etc. Honestly, you don't have to eat anything else for the rest of the day! It is a popular hotel with tour groups, so I would recommend that you get down to breakfast as early as possible to avoid crowding.
As for the rooms, they were among some of the smaller ones I've stayed in - they are a little cramped but still pretty comfortable (especially the bed which is covered in a Roros tweed blanket - very warm). So again, if you can reconcile yourself with the fact that this is how much decent accommodation within a Norwegian city costs , I think the Rica is a good choice for your stay in the Bergen.

We spent two nights in the Rica Travel Hotel in Bergen after arriving by train via Norway in a Nutshell. The hotel is located a 10 minute walk from the station across a small park. Although some other hotels seemed better located, the Rica was fine for us.

Our room was pretty big compared to what I would say was the average room size in Europe and well furnished. The view wasn't very good and I would guess most rooms in the hotel have a similar view as it is on the corner of two roads which aren't massively wide. This meant we could see into the offices across from our window (and presumably they could see into our room too).

Breakfast was pretty good, a lot of choice and all well presented.

Overall, our experience of the Rica was pretty much perfect, I would stay there again should I be in Bergen again.