We read the reviews before we left and were looking forward to our stay at the hotel. We arrived at 2030hrs on the Saturday, we went and placed our bags in our room which was very clean with an amazing view. The negatives however for us started as soon as we walked into the hotel, we were hit by a wall of fag smoke which made your eyes sting and made you cough your lungs up. I commented on the smoke and the receptionist said it was only smoking in the bar and main foyer, (I love this attitude towards smoking, after all the smoke know's were it can and cannot go dosent it). Our room was the first room off of the stairs on the top floor, the fag smoke would travel up the stair well filling every inch of the hotel including our room. You would wake in the morning feeling like an elephant slept on your chest and smelling like you slept in an ash tray......

Once we had checked in we came down from our room to have our first meal at the hotel, we were looking forward to the fancy dinning we had read about. it was 2100hrs as we sat down to a pretty impressive meal, the taste was amazing and full of flavour. My partner had a rice dish which was not particulary hot but this did not detract on the taste, I tried the dish while my partner gulped it down. All was well until Sunday at 1830hrs, my partner began complaining of stomach pain (arrived out of know where) and not feeling well. By 2200hrs she was a mess with vomit and S.... pouring out of every opening. Just when I was thinking she was practising to be in a horror film someone flicked a switch and boom I was hit with cramping stomach pains. By 0200hrs on Monday we were both fighting over the toilet and waist paper bin in the bathroom.
I was told after frantic calls home that food posioning kicks in like that and it would probably be something we ate within 24hrs. Bingo, the rice dish, it all made sense. It was the only thing we had both eaten the same in three days and I only tried the dish and was not as ill as my partner.

On the Wednesday afternoon we then received a phone call from reception, asking why we were not eating our meals (with the typical stern German attitude) at first I was taken back and did not want to cause a seen so I played it down and said we had been eating out. They mite as well have said "is our food not good enough for you at the hotel"? I took a minute then thought boxxxxks I'm not having this, I made a quick trip into the bathroom then went down stairs.

I told the receptionist the real reason why we had not been at the meals. Again stern rude attitude "food posioning, from our kitchen, I think not"
" no one else was ill, you have been eating else were"
I could see she was not even going to entertain the idea so I walked away, as I did another member of staff approached the desk and asked in German what was that about, unfortunately for the receptionist I'm not a typical ignorant Brit as she thought i was and can speak a bit of German. She then told the staff member what I had said, he then stud there scoffing, (rubbishing the idea).

That was it, when we started to venture bac into the dinning room to eat we were instantly singled out by rude staff. Rather than being treated with a bit of sympathy, (after all our ski Holiday had been ruined through illness) we were the couple that accussed the Hotel of food posioning, how dare us.
We were very unlucky, the hotel was lovelly however the attitude was terrible.

On arrival we were allocated a delightfully spacious room for 4 (there were only 2 of us) with a balcony. The receptionist informed us of a Christmas fair in the village, anticipating that we needed something to do that afternoon apart from fitting skis! All the reception staff were delightful. There is a Walter Mitty (or should that be Basil Fawlty) character who runs the bar. On ordering a small beer he started kicking a metal locker below the bar.

It would be a good idea if people had to sign for drinks as there was an uncomfortable contretemps towards the end of the holiday when the rather officious young female restaurant manager interrupted a peaceful meal to have an argument about what our table-mates had, or hadn't had to drink the night before.

We ordered a "Pitcher" of wine and got half a bottle of "Big John" at 20 euros which was a bit steep for a half bottle but it was very nice. Beware the language differences - they don't all speak English well and indeed why should they?

Annoyingly (or conveniently?) they ran out of house red after the first 3 days. There was gluggable wine available for 6 euros in the shop opposite.

Some people didn't like the fact that the Austrians still smoke in Public Bars

Enough of the moans - the room was lovely although the loo was centrally placed in the room and would have been better the other side of the bathroom. The food was plentiful if somewhat repetitive, salads were good. Puddings were weird. Coffee was extra. You just need to pace yourself. Breakfast meats were lovely.

This hotel is very good for a quiet family holiday. The village of Kaprun is lovely and quiet, and has stunning views in all directions.
The hotel is family run , and all are happy to help , we only a little german but our attempts were acknowledged and we improved by the end of two weeks.
The food was very good and lots of it , children could either have choice from their menu or smaller portions from our menu. Lots of variety and good size portions . You will not go hungry here !!!
The room was of good size with seperate sleeping areas for us and children , both with balconies.
The advantage of the zell am see card was massive , as a family of 4 we saved at least 500 euros .
Lots to see and do , we need to go back to complete all of the day trips.

Even had free ice cream and drinks from the owner whilst we were waiting for our coach to the airport.

Thanks very much for a fabulous holiday.

This was our second hiking trip to the Alps and naturally, after a great time at this hotel, we had no hesitation in booking again.

Main Advantages:
Kaprun card (free access to cables cars, buses, and entrance to attractions)
Great location
Great staff
Family run
Excellent food and very flexible chefs
Clean and tidy
Traditional building

Rooms:
There is a great disparity between the size, quality, views and convenience of the rooms. Simply put, you get what you pay for! We spent the first night in a room that was 1 star above a tent, it was down to a number of valid reasons, the first being that we arrived last that evening; the second being we got a very cheap deal through our travel agent which usually means that you can expect what we got.
I must stress that it was clean, tidy, and featured a bath which my wife required. It did not have a balcony and was medium size rather than large.

WE RECEIVED A PHONE CALL ON THE FIRST EVENING FROM THE OWNER. due to a cancellation (my cousin) For a mere 75EUR, he was able to upgrade us to better room. (with a bath, shower, large balcony, and living room with fridge, TV, finished to a high standard.
We naturally snapped his hand off.

When we first entered the Apartment Room, I couldn't believe we still in the same hotel. It was very well finished with oak flooring, good lighting, and quality fixtures and fittings, the living room was lovely, with sofa, dinner table and chairs. The bedroom and bathroom were excellent with lots of space and quality furnishings. The Grohe shower was great and very powerful, and the bath was of good size for my wife.
If you want a great room, book the apartment.

Food:
Being a vegetarian, it was imperative that the hotel we chose catered for me whilst still catering for my animal murdering wife. The food was excellent for both of us, on the odd occasion we were not enamored with the choices on offer, the chef was more than happy to make something else for us.

Value:
The value was our main criteria for this holiday. This hotel is one of the cheapest that feature the Kaprun Card inclusive in the price. The card allowed us free access on most if not all of the cable cars, buses in Kaprun, and Zel Am See, It also gave us free access to many attractions and at worst, reduced rates to others. This card saved us more than 300Eur each during our stay. The Kaprun Card cannot be purchased elsewhere, your hotel must be part of the promotion for you to receive it. Please note, it is only for the summer and does NOT include the winter skiing season.

General:
The hotel is not new, and looks tired in places, some rooms need modernizing as they look dated now. It is NOT a 5 star hotel so don't expect it. If you are looking for a modern hotel with bells and whistles, look elsewhere and dig deep as it will cost you.
If you want a clean, tidy and friendly hotel and don't care if the bathroom has not been refurbished since 1973 (because it still works) then this is the place for you.

I am not going to dwell on the negatives but I will point them out below.
No fitness Centre
No Pool
Disparity between each room
Tired in places
Parking can sometimes be a problem
All rooms don't feature a balcony

In conclusion,
If money is no object, there are hundreds of hotels in Kaprun of which at least half will be better than this one. If money is a consideration, then I really can't be negative about this hotel. YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR and this hotel tries to cater for as many different budgets as possible. The food is great and after a hard days hiking, this is always something we looked forward to. I have read other reports suggesting the food is not good, I think people have mistaken good for British. The food is not everyone's taste all the time, but, the staff and chef will do everything to accommodate for even the fussiest of guest.

I will definitely go again to make it a hat trick of visits. The hotel is family run and all the staff try there very best to accommodate you, this in itself makes it a place that is deserves my money.