Introduction
The Hotel Le Beau Séjour in Lucerne is situated on the road from Lucerne centre to the Verkehrshaus der Schweiz. The photos on the hotel’s website are perhaps a tad misleading because they make it look as though the hotel sits right on the shores of Lake Lucerne, when in fact the hotel is separated from the shore by a fairly busy throughfare.
The Reception and Public Area
The interior of the hotel is interesting. The building must be quite old, but it has good bones, so to speak. It is decorated with a rather dizzyingly mismatched array of furniture. I suspect they may have been trying to replicate the CitizenM vibe, but didn’t quite hit the mark.
The reception also functions as a bar, so things can be a bit slow to process at times.
Whoever decorated this place has a very serious thing about wallpaper. I must say, I like it. Especially when it comes to rather extravagant patterns with bold colours. I particularly like the oddly mismatched chandeliers.
The Room
Inside the room there’s more flamboyant wallpaper. There’s even an ugly cuddly stuffed monkey, similar to the ones they have at the CitizenM.
The room is nicely decorated. What it doesn’t have, though, is storage space. There’s a hook on the wall to hang two jackets and a rail with about four hangers.
There are two windows in the room, with one of them looking over the street and the lake behind it. I must say, though, that the insulation is superb, because it’s very quiet in the room, despite the busy road outside.
The bathroom is very similar to that of the CitizenM hotels.
The bed is comfortable, and I sleep much better than I was expecting to.
Breakfast
Breakfast is served in the dining room on the ground floor. The buffet has a nice set of options and some interesting cheese varieties.
The piece de resistance is the Zopf, which is a pleated loaf of bread made with butter. It’s a Swiss breakfast staple. It’s nice and warm when it’s brought out of the kitchen.
Conclusion
I spend one night at the Beau Séjour, and for that the hotel is perfectly adequate. I’m not sure I would want to go there for a longer stay. First, the configuration of the room is cumbersome to navigate. I kept bumping into furniture where I’m not t expecting it. It’s also inconvenient that there’s hardly and storage space for clothes. Other than that, the hotel is nice enough, but it doesn’t feel very welcoming.
Looks like a cute boutique hotel, though some aspects – the compact rooms, lack of storage, and that really loud wallpaper in the rooms – do seem like they wouldn’t make it enjoyable. I guess one night is enough?
Well, Lucerne is always nice. And the mountain setting with the lake is gorgeous. But I think staying at one of the small towns on the lake is nicer than staying in the city.
Dont actually mind the wallpaper, and the hotel has a slightly eccentric vibe—–hip even.
As you may know William,i’m planning a holiday for June in Switzerland——-Murren seems to be sold out[already!] so Lucerne appeals as somewhere central that i can take day trips from. This particular hotel will be opening another[breakast not available!!!] in the city centre—– i like it,and it offers a good attached restaurant for dinner. But something i have to cope with is the strength of the mighty swiss franc——- charges for rooms at this hotel seem to be at least 120% more than ecquivalent room in a uk hotel—–a bit painful!
Hi Peter
Your best bet would be to stay at one of the smaller places along the lake. A lot less tourists and usually better prices. I would check Weggis or Beckenried.
The strength of the Swiss Frank is a big problem.
Thanks for this William——-i have read somewhere that the Swiss are aware that the exchange rate is a bit of a problem. Will look at your suggestions as a city centre hotel may be a bit noisy. THANKS!