Hotel Kaiser Franz Josef — Hotel in Millstatt am See

We visited Millstatt some years ago and stayed at another hotel. This, however, was not open in February as most of the town was closed. This is apparently not a winter destination but most definitely a summer one.||||So it is quite brave of any hotel to remain open and this one was rewarded with a small trade which probably was sufficient to pay the bills and provide a service.||||We stayed for several days as we were in the area on business but also took the time to relax a bit and take in the local ambiance. We were on a half board deal so this included breakfast and dinner.||||The owners are delightful people and very keen to help and do what they could for you. Not all the staff were quite so helpful and there was a little fracas one morning over breakfast - we are not even sure why but it happened over trying to get a teapot of hot water. We succeeded in the end but there was an atmosphere so we were quite happy to finish our breakfast that day.||||We would have gone to the bar in the evening after dinner to have some drinks. We did the first night but it was a task to find someone to serve us and no one "manned" the bar so we did not bother again - shame.||||The room was comfortable - too warm in fact so I turned the radiator off and even leaving the window slightly open at night [in freezing temperatures] the room seemed to retain its heat. There was a fridge which was useful and a place to work as well. Unfortunately the internet was very poor, although it was free. With only half a dozen rooms occupied, there were substantial blockages and at times it did not work at all. I put this down to high usage so I cannot imagine how it would be in high season with some 40 rooms all accessing it at the same time. In these days of internet usage, I am afraid hotels everywhere need to invest in higher capacity if they are to keep their guests happy.||||The TV was not really a big enough screen for the room and unfortunately it was not square on with the bed - actually a big problem. Also getting ice seemed to be a general problem. Every hotel should have an ice machine, not just for their own use but that of their guests. It is an "essential" these days.||||The food was okay but I feel just what one would normally expect. I did not expect haute cuisine for the price paid and we did not get it but generally speaking it was good. Personally I like soft boiled eggs so the very hard boiled eggs for breakfast were not really much to my liking. May be this is the way they are done here but in southern Austria I was offered a "soft" boiled egg so I thought this would be available. If you were late for breakfast, the eggs were cold!||||There was a sauna there too and this was welcome albeit quite small. Three to four persons at a time was really about the maximum without feeling over crowded.||||But the views from our bedroom were stupendous and some photos are attached. It snowed while we were there and it was like a fairy tale picture outside.||||I know I have made some critical comments in this review but the new manager said that he needed to know how people found it and I hope that these remarks will in fact assist him in his considerable task - what must it be like in the summer with some 40 rooms and a load of guests like me???? I...

Reception unmanned on arrival. I had to ring for reception and service in bar. Pool not heated as per internet. Furniture round pool not as shown on various travel sites and the area was vastly overgrown smothering beautiful plants. I did not have a sheet or pillowcase on my bed. The shower was cubicle was damaged and an electric socket exposed 15 inches from shower opening. No phone in room therefore no room service. Luggage left between reception and bar. Photos showing a third small restaurant is now being used by staff. No Satellite TV (cable wrapped around dish by lodges).|Dead flower arrangements (?) around reception and bar room. Meagre stock on bar shelves and residents switched the lights on themselves. When I left the hotel I let myself out and when questioning about an alarm system, I was told there was none. There were no instructions around the building regarding fire drill/escape. I was not shown or assisted to my room and consequently found the fire escape by looking around my floor. While I was sitting around the pool Austrian people talked to me and one man stated 'The internet states - heated pool - it was not' and he thought the hotel was 'not clean'.|I would however, point out that the main and conservatory dining rooms were well presented. Even there the breakfast was stated as buffet - including:- pastries, sausage, egg and bacon but the only hot choice was scrambled egg, scrambled egg with tiny squares of ham or boiled eggs. There was fruit, 3 cereals, selection of breads and processed meat and cheese.|The staff were pleasant. My bed was only made twice in 7 days. |There was one member of staff who came out and asked the few residents round the pool if they wanted coffee.||All of these issues have been reported to my travel rep. who is reporting them to her superiors who are hopefully taking action to deal with the situation.||Some pictures shown on the internet are taken in 2013 even the one on this site is completely out of date.||||||||||||||||||||||||||N.B. Some of the photos on the internet are dated...

This is a 4* hotel in Millstatt in the Carinthia province At walkable distance (5-10 minutes) from the Millstätter Lake. We stayed here for 3 nights with half board option.||We had to negotiate hard and pay extra to get lake facing room so that we can enjoy lake and mountain view from the room. Our room was equipped with TV, an empty minibar, balcony, a shower with a hairdryer and very basic toiletries.||The room gets pretty warm even on 3rd floor though the outside temperature was only around 22-24 deg C. No AC or ventilators are provided. ||Though the hotel claims that a special diet menu can be arranged in the on-site restaurant, we had difficulties in getting good choice of vegetarian dishes. We were even told that it is not an ‘A la carte’ restaurant. ||The hotel has a small Sauna, a small outdoor swimming pool and terrace. It also provides open parking for guests cars. Other facilities offered at the property include a shared lounge, ski storage and ski pass vendor. ||Hotel staff is friendly. Service is reasonably good and hotel is kept clean.|The hotel property is good and can be made still better with some improvements. It lacks on some basics which are provided as standard in other comparable 4* hotels in Austria:|- Breakfast buffet is not very elaborate. Exactly same items were offered on all the three days of our stay. No dry fruits or nuts provided. Items are not marked leave aside classification which is mandatory. |- Toiletries like body lotion/moisturiser, shower caps, shoe shine, tissues are not provided.|- No welcome drink is offered.||Overall we had a mixed experience, particularly after wonderful stay in other 2 hotels of the same...