Boutique & Design Hotel Volkshaus Basel — Hotel in Basel

I am really baffled at the extremely high rating so many people give this hotel. While the staff was incredibly kind and helpful, the hotel itself is FAR less comfortable and decidedly less practical than anywhere else I’ve stayed in a long, LONG time. (From small Fancy Botique hotels to the good old Hampton Inn.) It is in a decent location as far as being close to a bunch of things, BUT it’s on a REALLY noisy street with church bells, tram noise and loud traffic right outside. Some of this is to be expected in a city setting, but the exact location of the hotel is particularly bad. The breakfast was very good - no complaints there.

Why I REALLY disliked it:

For people who eschew light, this might be a great pick, but for those of us who actually want to be able to see anything in the hallway (we were laughing and juggling phones to use as light sources at the drinks station in the hall) or in one’s room, it leaves a lot to be desired. They have good reading lights on the bed, but the rest of the room - including the bathroom - is shrouded in mystery and darkness lit by only very, very dim accent lights. Other reviews cite the cleanliness of the rooms. I ‘think’ my room seemed cleaned but the overall pervasive gloom made it difficult to really tell.

This miserly use of light definitely isn’t in an effort to conserve energy as they’ve gone WAY overboard with the heating. THAT works incredibly well - SO well that the only way to keep the room below Stifling is to keep the windows wide open. You can’t set the temp below 70 and even with windows open - in winter - I couldn’t get it below 71. So you can decide to sleep with the windows and curtains open which is EXTREMELY NOISY - especially on the street side (vs courtyard), or you can sweat.

There is also essentially ZERO storage. This is a really big room - especially by European standards, but there is only a tiny - about a foot long - bar sticking out of the wall (can literally hang 2 winter coats and that’s pushing it), 2 TINY drawers (I mean about 10 x 14 inches), and a couple shelves for storage. Definitely nowhere near enough room for even 1 person’s clothes. So enjoy just using your suitcase and the bed. I believe there is a difference between Fashionably Minimalist and Stupidly Impractical and this definitely falls in the latter category.

As for the bedding - the fitted ‘sheet’ isn’t a percal-type sheet - it feels like a synthetic mattress cover and the texture is so gross that I just used the duvet as a ‘burrito’. (Aside: I thought there was a housekeeping snafu and I just somehow didn’t get a fitted sheet, but my friend’s bed - in another room - was the same so apparently this is just what they’ve decided to go with.) And only 2 rather sad pillows so if 2 people want to prop or read in bed, it’s going to be very uncomfortable.

My traveling companion and I are both up for novel experiences and are easy-going, so for us both to really, REALLY dislike this hotel is saying something. I wonder if there’s an Emperor’s New Clothes effect with other reviewers - this is supposed to be a high-end design-forward place and maybe people are afraid of seeming unsophisticated if they don’t like it? I truly don’t know, but I would NOT...

We are a family of 3 (2 adults +

The location of this hotel is perfect, right by the river and within walking distance of the old town. We stayed for 2 nights in the signature design room on the top floor. Aside from the weak wifi in our room, we were quite happy with our accommodation and felt that it offered great value for money. Each floor has a pantry where guests could get tea, coffee and fresh fruit anytime. Although there are not many staff members, they respond promptly to any requests. The lobby closes at 11:00pm, but guests can enter and exit through the night entrance next to the bar. The staff we encountered were helpful and friendly. We even received a travel pass for local transportation to use during our stay in the city center. Breakfast was of good quality, and we enjoyed the breakfast service.||One odd experience we had was on the night of our arrival when we decided to dine at the hotel restaurant. We did not have a reservation and arrived at 8:00pm, only to be told that the restaurant was full. When we asked the manager if we could return later, he initially said no. It was not until we mentioned that we were hotel guests that he seated us immediately. During our meal, we noticed other guests arriving without reservation and waiting for tables, which left us confused about why we were initially denied entry. I believe this issue should be brought to the attention of...