We chose this hotel because of the beautiful rooms and stunning views. The room itself was exactly as expected and was the only highlight of our stay!
Unfortunately, everything else was a disappointment.
We were traveling with our dog, and the hotel shuttle refused to take us because of our pet. As a result, we had to walk over 1 km to and from the hotel, including at check-out while carrying all of our luggage. Our room was also located in a different building from the main hotel. This wasn’t an issue for us—we specifically booked it for the peaceful location and the view—but no one offered to help us with our luggage. Instead, we had to carry everything ourselves while the driver was standing outside chatting with the neighbors.
Another major disappointment was that dogs are not allowed in the restaurant. Because of this, we ended up having every single meal at Grüner Baum during our stay. Had we known this in advance, we would have booked a room there instead. The price difference is minimal, but the staff are far more welcoming, professional, and genuinely pet-friendly.
The only person who made a positive impression was a Romanian staff member who personally walked us to our room and gave us great recommendations on places to visit. She was incredibly kind and helpful, and we truly appreciated her hospitality.
Overall, apart from the beautiful room, our experience was extremely disappointing. The service fell far below our expectations, and unfortunately, we cannot recommend this hotel or see ourselves returning.
Response from the property
Dear P.,
While we thank you for taking the time to share your experience, we would also like to clarify a few points from our perspective:
ARRIVAL & DEPARTURE
Upon arrival, you spoke with the Romanian colleague whom you kindly mentioned in your review. As the shuttle operating from the P1 parking area does not transport dogs, she explicitly offered you two alternatives. One person could have taken the shuttle with the luggage while the other walked with the dog, or you could have waited to be collected in our hotel vehicle, in which dogs are welcome. As it was already shortly before 4:00 p.m., the first option was suggested as the quickest solution. You ultimately decided to walk to the hotel together.
At departure, the same two options were again clearly offered. Again, you were invited to travel in our hotel vehicle. Our colleague explained that it would be available approximately 30 minutes later, at 2:00 p.m., as the responsible employee was carrying out maintenance work away from the main building and a transfer for other guests was already scheduled for 02:00 pm. You were explicitly offered the opportunity to join that journey. You decided not to wait and instead walked to the parking area.
LUGGAGE SERVICE
Regarding your luggage, a communication error did occur on our side, and we sincerely apologize for it. Normally, a member of staff transports guests’ luggage using an electric luggage cart while accompanying them to the relevant building. When both you and other guests were checking into our third building at the same time, our colleague mistakenly understood that only one of the arriving parties required assistance. He therefore helped the other guests without realizing that you were also waiting for help with transporting luggage.
Once the oversight became apparent, our receptionist personally accompanied you to the building and showed you the way. During the walk, you saw the colleague speaking with neighbors. However, because of the earlier misunderstanding, he was unfortunately not aware that you had also been waiting for luggage assistance.
TRAVELLING WITH A DOG
We would also like to clarify that the “Hallstatt Shuttle” from the P1 parking area is an externally operated service with its own regulations, including a policy that dogs are not transported. Using our own hotel vehicle, we are happy to assist guests travelling with dogs, and this option is indicated in our message that gets sent out with the reservation, and the option was also offered to you both on arrival and departure, by phone and in person, respectively.
In the indoor area of our restaurant dogs are not allowed, however, dogs are welcome on our restaurant terrace. We recognize that our wording in the automated information message may have been too general and that may have suggested that dogs are not accepted anywhere in the restaurant.
Generally, we are a bit careful with our wording since we cannot guarantee the opening of our terrace every day. But we will revise this information so that it clearly states that the restriction applies only to the indoor dining area.
We sincerely regret that the combination of potential waiting times, the luggage misunderstanding and the unclear restaurant information resulted in such a disappointing overall impression. While the transport alternatives were clearly communicated, the luggage assistance should have been organised correctly, and the restaurant information should have been more precise.
Thank you also for your kind words about our colleague. We will be very pleased to pass your compliments on to her.
Best regards,
Your Heritage.Team
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