Aurland Holidays from AU$2,617

They did the bare minimum to take an old and ugly property and make it look decent for pictures. Also they show case the breakfast area which is pretty to be sure but I don’t think the employees know what they are doing. None of the food was properly stored with catering dishes which keep hot foods hot cold food cold to avoid food poisoning. The food was brought out in the pots they were cooked in and small portions of the yogurt, meat and fruit were left out on small bowls or plates at room temperature. By the time we got there it had been sitting out for hours. For those that have never taken a food safety course, it’s not safe to eat at that point.

This was my third stay, as always most enjoyable.

We had a one night stay here on our way through Norway. Check in was easy - staff was pleasant enough. Room was small but had a comfortable bed (though slightly on the harder side for me), bathroom was a good size and shower had good pressure and nice shampoo and body soaps to use. Chromecast was difficult - couldn’t get it to work on mine or my husbands phones and staff just offered the excuse that it’s touchy with iPhones (my husband has an android so that was not our issue). Breakfast was ok - not the best we’ve had in Norway but still had a decent spread of options. The area was ideal, but coming out of season not too much open for restaurants to eat at (which is not the fault of the hotel).

The property is conveniently located right next to the train station and gondola, but that's probably the only thing it's got going for it. The general condition and overall service of the hotel is not up to much. The staff seem to make excuses for this by saying that the hotel is very old. Well, that maybe true, but that doesn't account for the lack of general maintenance. We only stayed for 1 night, but during our stay we encountered several problems. First of all one of our beds wasn't made after we checked in, so we had to return to reception, much to the annoyance of the staff member on the desk. There didn't appear to be any working telephone in the room, so we weren't able to call down for assistance. The downstairs bar and lounge does look very elegant giving the feel of regal sophistication. But don't be fooled. On the day we left I attempted to order an Irish coffee at the bar and got told a flat "no" because they "don't know how to do that"... I said I could make one myself if they just gave me a cup of coffee and some whiskey, but I immediately regretted that decision due to the fact that even though they charged bar prices for the coffee, they just used an automated machine to make it. When I attempted to pay for the drinks this turned into another drama as I was told that the till had been locked by a member of staff from the previous day so I had to wait around for about half an hour before that could get sorted. Pay a bit more to stay at the Scandic next door.

Staff was very friendly and helpful.