Novotel Nuernberg Messezentrum — Hotel in Nuremberg

A perfect child friendly place to stay in Nuremberg - but quite a bit outside of the old town area.

Personally, our review is biased, as we like Novotel, as a child-friendly service-oriented hotel chain. It offers four star comfort and in the case of this hotel a double bed plus sleeper sofa, offering two young girls another comfy place to sleep. The sleeper sofa would however not make adults happy, so be warned.

Rooms offer adequate space for four to sleep, a water kettle and sufficient electrical outlet to sustain a family of four and their electronic devices. WiFi is free, but requires registration. Our hint, only the Terms of Service need to be accepted, all other fields in the form may stay empty.

Our room rate included breakfast and we felt that both the quality and quantity of food, as well as variety was more than just adequate. We actually really enjoyed breakfast on each of the three days that we were able to enjoy it.

The service staff within the entire hotel are one of the biggest reasons to come. You feel welcome from the moment you step inside the hotel to when you leave.

Children are greeted with a little gift and a game corner. For those needing internet, but traveling without computer, tablet or smartphone, there is an iMac (running Windows) for you to use.

The location of the hotel is probably the only downside to this property. You are right next to the trade fair. Parking is €8 / night and a subway station (U-Bahn) is in easy walking distance. My family and I decided to walk into town, which with small children is at least a 90 minute walk, adults on their own will likely manage in 60 minutes - it is about 5.5 km (3.4 mi). Hint follow the bike path...

I had an incredibly disappointing experience at Novotel Nürnberg. When we arrived, the room wasn’t ready for our children. The staff’s response was rude, and they suggested changing rooms. I asked them to fix it while we had dinner and returned later.

The food took much longer than promised. It took 50 minutes for the adults to get their meals, while the children waited 20 minutes. The quality was terrible, especially for the high prices. The salad we ordered, priced at around 18 euros, was watery with only seven small chicken cubes on top. It was a letdown.

I ordered a 50 cl beer, but they brought a 40 cl one. The server tried to deny the mistake, blaming the labeling. I refused to pay for something I didn’t receive after the frustrating wait. They reluctantly agreed after a lengthy argument.

The slow service made us miss the chance to use the pool, which was a primary reason for choosing the hotel.

When we returned to the reception, the room issue still wasn’t resolved. It was almost midnight, and I had to express my frustration for them to take action within ten minutes, as my five-year-old needed a bed to sleep in.

The next morning, we wanted to swim before leaving, but we were given only two towels for four people. They arrogantly claimed there were no more towels available until the afternoon. To my surprise, I found a container with many towels in the hallway.

Overall, Novotel Nürnberg was a complete disaster. The staff was understaffed, service was terrible, and there were evident organizational and leadership issues. This was my first and last stay at Novotel, and I deeply regret not demanding a refund for this...

Avoid this hotel at all costs – absolute disgrace!

We booked a 4-person room at NOVOTEL for our family of six (2 adults + 4 small kids under 9). This has never been an issue anywhere else in Europe — kids share beds, no problem. The booking was confirmed, paid, and I even informed the hotel while making the reservation through booking.com.

When we arrived around 22:00, exhausted after a long drive, the receptionist refused to give us the key unless we paid for a second room at full price, insisting even our toddlers must be “counted” as adults and thus we shall have another room, suggesting two of the kids to sleep in a separate room which is absurd and unsafe.

When I asked for a refund, since they were refusing the room we had paid for, management flat-out refused and lied, blaming Booking.com. After calling Booking.com, I learned it’s the hotel’s decision whether to refund or not. In other words, NOVOTEL tried to scam us: “buy another room or leave and lose your money.”

We walked out. Thankfully, Mercure hotel right next door welcomed us warmly, gave us a spacious room at the same price, and treated us like actual guests.

The next morning NOVOTEL had the audacity to mark us as no-show and issued a refund of 10eur.

Bottom line: NOVOTEL does not care about families or hospitality. If you are traveling with children, stay far away. This hotel is a scam and a disgrace to the...