After reading the reviews of this hotel I decided to go with an open mind, if you dont expect the Ritz then you should be satisfied. The main thing to me is that the hotel is clean, warm and has a comfortable bed... and it was all 3.
We stayed in a studio, and it was a very good size, massive double bed (very comfy), couple of armchairs, dining table, dressing table and small kitchenette area. However the bathroom was the size of a telephone box, struggled to shut the door, but really how much time do you spend in the bathroom?! Also its worth noting that there are apparently no baths in this hotel, which would've been nice after a long days skiing! The room was lovely and warm and when there was hot water you managed to get a nice shower. (we learnt the water tends to run out between 6 and 7pm then get hot again about 9!, but is hot every morning) The room was serviced every day, clean towels, emptied bins and made the bed.
We booked bed and breakfast but somehow managed to get half board...however the food was pretty poor. Breakfast is terrible, everyone was moaning, but I'm sure it is just tradition and not just the hotel as everyone we spoke to seemed to have the same issue. There were some dodgy looking sausages and fried things (didnt ever find out what they were!) , one day was some ropey looking scrambled egg, warmish boiled eggs, pretty stale bread, cheese, ham, cumcumber and tomatoes amongst a few other things...nothing to really prepare you for a day on the slopes so you may want to consider getting breakfast in one of the local bars! The evening meal wasn't great but edible if you're starving and cant be bothered to go out. There was always soup, chips, kebab things and we had a cottage pie kind of thing, and a chicken stew (which was nice) and it is tradition for the food to be served warm not hot but they are happy to warm it up in the microwave if you ask. The main thing was the dining area was clean!
The swimming pool is the size of a bath, and both the pool and jacuzzi were pretty chilly! There is also a sauna and a steam room.
The location was great, not 500m from gondola as stated in the brochure, about a 10 minute walk, but they have a shuttle bus which runs frequently. It is nice and quiet, just enough distance from the bars to be quiet at night but close enough to access them all within a few minutes.
Yes there are lots of stray dogs but they do not bother you, yes the pavements are all unfinished and all over the place but as long as you watch where you're going its fine.
All in all i would recommend this hotel...as long as you dont go expecting 5 star luxury, we were pleasantly surprised and perfectly happy. We had a couple of minor problems, lightbulb blew and shower was flooding but as soon as we told reception they sorted it.
There is a supermarket on the corner, handy to stock up on drinks and nibbles, and we found all the people to be very friendly.

We are just back from a weeks holiday in the Grand Montana and would say that the rooms are large and always warm with modern decor however this does not disguise the rather worrying diagonal cracks in the walls, lack of hot water and truly awful food. I have stayed half board in many 3 and 4 star hotels all over the world including Bulgaria last year and I can honestly say that I have never experienced food as bad as this before. If you are planning to go to the Grand Montana I would recommend taking the self catering option and eating out as the traditional restaurants in town are excellent.

Positive:
- The room spaces were satisfactory. We've booked a four-person apartment which had one double-bed room and one single-bed room. The living room was big enough to rest in the evening and dry our gear (clothes, gloves etc.) beside the heater. The apartment had two bathrooms, one in the main corridor and the other connected to the double-bed room.
- Lunch (7 euros per person) and dinner (8 euros per person) at the hotel's restaurant were good value for money. Please be aware that drinks are not included in the price.
- The hotel offered a shuttle-bus (for 8 people) to the ski resort for free.
Negative:
- The hotel's management should pay more attention to the cleanliness aspect. It is outrageous that we found dirty blankets when we first entered the apartment. Moreover, the apartment's bathrooms had a bad smell and the cleaners didn't replace the shower's shampoo, every day, as expected.
- The hotel's facilities are an issue to be discussed. The swimming pool is too small (5m length x 2m width, with a 1,3m depth). The jacuzzi is not separated to the pool therefore, it is obvious, that its temperature is the same. The steam bath was out of order and the sauna's thermometer was not working (dangerous for inexperienced people).
- The hote's breakfast was quite poor. We expected more from a four-star hotel which only served sausages, ham, cheese, cereals, cake and jam to cover your bread. At least they could offer fresh orange juice, in order to avoid drinking coffee (filter) of bad quality.
- According to the hote's internet page the distance to the ski resort is 500 metres. Unfortunately, this statement is rather misleading. Unless you get the hotel's free shuttle-bus (according to the timetables) you have to take a 10-15 minute walk so as to reach the ski resort.

Personally I feel that Grand Montana is not a hotel to be recommended and not a place for your future visit in Bansko. You can easily find better quality with the same price (27 euros per person) or better price based on what Grand Montana offers you.

Kind regards,
Nikos

Pros:
The hotel was modern and clean. Staff at reception were professional and spoke some English. Our room was large, warm and well furnished, with usable kitchenette included. The hotel had free wi-fi which sometimes worked. Ski storage facilities were adequate. The location in Bansko was not a problem, everything within walking distance. Useful regular bus service to and from gondola.

Cons:
Our shower leaked and flooded the bathroom. Sometimes the hot water would cut off. The toilet flush would regularly get stuck. Lack of toilet paper provided by the cleaning staff. Room electricity on a key-based system so we couldn't leave anything on to charge during the day. Hotel pool was tiny, cold, and usually full of noisy kids. Hot tub was barely lukewarm. Steam room not working. Hotel restaurant food was abysmal. They even served the same buffet food two days in a row, getting colder each day - quite disgusting. The staff in the restaurant were unfriendly and generally useless. Constant MTV and rap music playing in the restaurant. Hotel wi-fi was unreliable and internet terminals loaded with viruses. The hotel seemed in general to have been half-built to half-finished plans, resulting in vast, echoing hallways, dangerous steps, areas of warm and freezing air, water flooding all the floors around the pool area. I could have slipped on the wet floors at least a dozen times.

Conclusion: just about acceptable accommodation for a ski holiday, but plan to eat out and don't bother with the pool or restaurant. I'm sure there are at least 6 other hotels in Bansko which do the same thing better.