Hotel des Alpes

I stayed at Hotel des Alpes in Kandersteg as part of a Via Alpina trekking trip, and I would strongly advise others to avoid it — especially hikers or international travellers expecting a minimum level of service or safety. When I arrived, there was no one at reception, no welcome, no explanation — just a wall of instructions in German only. I had no idea how to check in properly or what to do with the key. Our names, room numbers, and keys were left on a sheet of paper, which felt like a clear violation of privacy. Worse was the morning I tried to leave. The main door was locked, and I had received no instructions on how to exit the building. I tried everything — ringing the bell, knocking on doors — before I finally had to top up my phone and call the hotel. The person who answered was rude, unhelpful, and could not explain anything in proper English. She just kept repeating “I’m not there” and refused to help or send anyone. When I asked clearly for help or said I’d call the police, she hung up on me. I eventually found a key in a panel by the door — something she could’ve explained in seconds. This situation was stressful, unsafe, and unacceptable. I lost over 30 minutes, missed breakfast, and started my hike late and frustrated. A few other major issues: No staff presence at all — even in the morning. You're completely on your own. Breakfast starts at 8 a.m., far too late if you’re hiking — which most people in Kandersteg are. Curtains are too short and badly fitted, so expect to wake up with the sun. The pillow was one of the most uncomfortable I’ve ever encountered — basically unusable. Locked front door without clear exit instructions raises serious fire safety concerns. I have stayed in many mountain hotels, hostels, and huts across Europe and the world — this is the only place where I’ve ever felt truly unsafe and unwelcome. The complete lack of staff, communication, and accountability is shocking. Avoid this hotel if you want a peaceful, supported hiking trip — or even just a safe and respectful stay.

A group of friends tried to have a drink in the bar area. We were told in no uncertain terms and in a very rude manner that we were not welcome. We immediately turned around and left and found a much friendly place further down the road. I would not recommend this place if you are a tourist.

This is so truly a family hotel that at first I thought the stairwell was a closet because when I opened the door to go up I saw the family's coats, hats and other clutter. The decor downstairs is very much "family home" and not high end. BUT our room was perfect: uncluttered, comfortable, clean, quiet, spacious enough and had every amenity we might need. Also, the breakfast buffet was pretty good. All this at a very reasonable price and in a year when energy and food cost increases have made running a hotel more difficult. The views all around were beautiful. It's a little further from the station than I would have liked but quite walkable.

There are lots of good reviews for this place, but I notice a few that mention 'displeasure of English speaking people' and 'anti-Brit' and that was, disappointingly, absolutely our experience despite our having booked dinner for 42 people! As a group we were staying 10 minutes walk away at the international scout centre in Kandersteg - 34 Explorer scouts and 8 adults (and any poor reception is unlikely to be because of the abundance of young people - the centre has been intrinsic to the village for 100 years and must contribute massively to the local economy) When we first called from the UK to discuss the booking the owner claimed to not be the best English speaker but his wife picked up the conversation and everything was easily sorted. When we popped into confirm/change some details on arrival in the town the same guy was again reluctant to speak English but once he relented was easily able to do so and, whilst direct, was easy enough to deal with. On the evening of the booking, with the young people shopping in town, the 8 adult leaders planned to go early to the restaurant and enjoy a drink in the bar before the young people descended for their promised burgers (all orders pre-booked for everyone's convenience) The bar was busy with locals and the owner immediately greeted us with a sharp 'in the back' gesticulating for us to go to the restaurant at the rear. We checked out the empty space then made our way back to the bar but on trying to sit down were literally shooed out again angrily with 'English in the back'. The owner was increasingly rude and aggressive, repeating this again and again to our amazement, literally waving his arms in his determination that we don't sit and order beer in his bar, where there were plenty of seats available. Instead we chose to leave (and enjoyed a warm welcome and a cold beer at Hotel Edelweiss just across the road - would highly recommend and have included a picture - you might want to go there instead!) Had we been able to book dinner for 42 elsewhere at short notice we wouldn't have returned. When we did return to meet the young people for dinner, the two female members of staff (we believe his wife and another really hardworking, smily female waitress) couldn't have been more helpful and were clearly embarrassed at the owner's earlier behaviour and relieved to not have lost their 42 covers! The owner was now nowhere to be seen but we were upset/amazed that someone who relies on hospitality for business could be so rude and overtly anti-British. Later in the week one of our young people left his bag on a coach. When we called the driver to intercept it, he happened to drop it off at this same hotel for us to collect. When the young man (with no knowledge of our earlier experience) popped in to collect it, the owner demanded 10 CHF to return the bag. Our lad was alarmed/surprised and explained he had no cash, but was told that he needed to leave 'a tip' to get his own bag back. He grabbed it and ran