Thermal Center at Yverdon-les-Bains — Attraction in Yverdon-les-Bains

Old and tired pool/thermal center in desperate need of renovation.

Went there for first time recently and was surprised as the reviews are above average (4/5) at time of writing. I don't consider this a 4 star pool. 3 star is a thermal/pool center that meets expectations. 4 exceeds. Unfortunately this one was below expectations of what I would expect from such a center, especially for a higher end hotel.

It felt like I was visiting a pool last renovated in the 80s/90s. I expected more other than just hot/warm water pools. Dark aged wood decor with a cream coloured roof full of stains. Lack of kids facilities or safe play zones. Maybe a pool where kids are allowed to at least jump in (not dive). Happy kids, happy parents, happy business. In my opinion, kid friendly (warm!) pools are a huge opportunity for any entrepreneurs or businesses in Switzerland...just because there are so few in Vaud..or so many that are done badly. That has always surprised me, the lack of (good) choice in this space.

There was only one indoor pool (which I could find) and that was too small to be a main one. Ideally, in my world, a good spa/pool "center" should have a variety of indoor pools tailored for different ages, more than one at least...one for infants, one for bigger kids, one for adults or all three.

Is it just me or did anyone else need a third arm to close the changing room doors...what a weird system....you need to close both doors either side of you and keep them closed, whilst pulling down a latch on the seat. I managed in the end but with kids and bags and no yoga experience, it was uncomfortable and awkward, at best.

Can I suggest a few more strategically located "maps" to help direct people to the various facilities...using the names wasn't obvious and maps do so much more.

I cant speak for the spa services but I did visit the upstairs "Spa" area where they had a jacuzzi and japanese bath...but everything looked and felt very basic and below par, which is a shame especially if you are there to feel "special" and benefit from the additional 11 chf amenities.

Decent outside pool area with lots of space. Outside water temp could have been a bit warmer, maybe more so in winetr? I know the other pool was at a higher temp.

Decent parking area outside pool.

Respect to the owner/company for engaging with online reviewers and maintaining professionalism and being courteous, from what I could...

A terrible customer service. My friends were getting married nearby, so the couple organized my partner’s and my stay here at this hotel, and we were excited to enjoy spa and all. But when we got to the check-in counter, a young man (black hair, pale skin, skinny, looked like he was on a drug or something) was already annoyed for some reasons, and told me that there was no reservation or room for us. He told me that my friends must have made a mistake. I had our confirmation number and email and everything. He sighed, he stared at me as if he’s looking at a thief, went for smoking when another nicer service man was trying to help, and he had such an attitude! There was no slight attempt from him to try to figure things out for us who just flew from a different country. The other service man told us that this young man has been working for almost 12h, and that is why he’s angry. Um...I don’t think that should be an excuse to a horrible service we received. He was being a baby, not professional.The rooms at this hotel were already full, so it didn’t matter whether it was my friend’s mistake or hotel’s mistake, so we decided to stay at La Prairie, 7min walk from this hotel. Even if it was my friend’s mistake, I would have thought that it is a common service of a hotel to send us a taxi or something even if it’s very close, but rather they just stared at us, hoping we would be gone immediately. On the way to the other hotel, we were informed that the hotel messed up information completely, so it was their fault, but no attempt from them to even try to fix things. Even if this hotel’s spa and other things are great, I would never ever want to stay at a hotel like this that hires people who are useless, unhelpful, mean, crazy, easily irritable, angry, etc. Not to mention that the hotel didn’t even look nice either. But maybe the bedrooms are nice? If I could rate...

This is hotel located on a large plot of land and composed of an 19 th century impressive older building with reception area and restaurants, which was complemented with a new semi circle extension in which the bedrooms are located. The outside gives a mixed feeling: an impressive entry to the entrance building, while garden and parking lots are looking messy and not maintained.

The reception staff is very friendly and welcoming and provided all info that we wished for. A special thanks to Johnny for his great service and welcome.

The rooms are of a normal size and are well equipped with a good bathroom. Minibar is stocked quite limited.

From the room you have access to the hotel pool, but more importantly any hotel guests have free access through there own entry to the thermal pools and spa. This is a great benefit of staying at this hotel.

Breakfast is served in the historical building in a large room. The breakfast offers the usual fare although there was no mention of eggs or omelets etc. When asked we were provided with them. The rooms was quite full with guests and the staff had to work hard to arrange and clear the tables and refill the buffet.

The hotel is between a 3 and 4 star hotel category, and would need some upgrading in the areas commented upon above.

Nevertheless, the hotel is fairly priced and overall we enjoyed our stay at this hotel, the access to the thermal pools and the excellent service...