Kempinski Palace Engelberg

goodd

Visited the hotel for an evening spa during a weekend of skiing. The spa was beautiful and I had a bespoke massage with Maria, it was fantastic! She was really friendly and the massage itself was one of the most relaxing I’ve had. Just wanted I needed after a few days on the slopes.

It started at check-in: we arrived very early on Friday to beat the traffic and asked if we could find a place to work. The front office staff offered us something better: an upgrade to a better room for a very small sum and the room is already available. We took it, of course! That set the tone for services on the rest of our stay: it was friendly, efficient and full of solutions to ensure that our stay is pleasant. We tried the Fondue restaurant and the bar. The bar actually provided really good nibbles (delicious pork belly in bun!). We wanted to try the afternoon tea but we were turned away as we didn't reserve in advance. That's actually not true (no reservation required as confirmed by the manager in an Email after). It was a pity to have such miscommunication among the staffs but that was one bad apple. Breakfast was outstanding! The breadth of choices of cold and warm dishes is unusual for Switzerland (yes.. compared to other similar hotels). The warm dishes were especially delicious: cooked upon order, arrived warm and best of all, no food waste. The hotel is conveniently located, near to the village centre, the Monastery and the ski lifts. There's even a shuttle that would bring guests to the ski station that go up to Trübsee and then further to Titlis. To me, what matter is truly the service. Of course we know hotels are there to make profit and they operate through certain constrains but the flexibility, initiatives and solutions provided to ensure that guests get the most pleasant experience count the most. We truly dislike hotels that call themselves 5 star but so rigidly going by the book with no exceptions. Most guests are reasonable people and when treated reasonably, we gladly return the favour. This was the feeling I got from Kempinski Engelberg and we cannot wait to go back.

We highly recommend this hotel. The customer service is amazing, the rooms are super clean and there is a great atmosphere through out the hotel. Our favourite part of the hotel is its kids club. Our son was very excited to go there every morning. Katharina is amazing and so patient with kids. I love the fact that over the weekend, there is movie nights for the kids and you can order them food and all kids eat together. So lovely for them and also for parents to have an easy evening. Definitely we will be coming back in the near future. Many thanks for a great experience.

I love Kempinski hotels and this one is another favorite to add to my list. The hotel has been lovingly restored and stylishly designed for a truly comfortable stay, and the service is impeccable as always. I came to ski but unfortunately the weather didn’t cooperate, so I did a spa day instead and am so glad I had the opportunity to enjoy the hotel to its fullest. The town of Engelberg is a bit sleepy, so if you’re looking for late nights and loud music, go elsewhere. But if you want to spend a few days relaxing in nature surrounded by mountains with excellent service, come here, you won’t regret it!

The children's club is very nice. Mrs Katarina, is a trained teacher who takes care of the kids club. She always fills the time with quality work and play for the children. She is very understanding and supportive. You can just leave your child there and enjoy.

We stayed at the Kempinski Palace for two nights and were not completely happy with our stay. We were charged a surcharge for early check-in. When booking the room, we requested early check-in if possible as we were arriving from an overnight USA flight and knew we would be tired upon arrival. A member of the concierge team contacted us and inquired when we would like to check in, we replied 11:00. We were then informed that the hotel normally charges for early check-in, 50 CHF per hour, but if we would like our room ready at 11:00, a surcharge of 130 CHF will apply. We agreed to the surcharge. We understand that hotels are not always able to provide early check-in, but if you suspect that you may be able to, why charge a surcharge? We have received an early check-in many times and have never been charged a surcharge. We also contacted the hotel prior to our arrival about a transfer from Zurich Airport to the hotel as we are unable to travel by train with luggage. The hotel arranged a transfer for 550 CHF. Our trip to the hotel was quite eventful as the car broke down on Engelbergerstrasse, an icy road, a short distance from the hotel. Our driver was upset as he lost complete power and could not restart the car or even open the trunk. He contacted the hotel. The hotel shuttle came and picked us up. When we checked-in, we honestly expected someone to express concern over our recent transfer issue, no one mentioned it, so we took it upon ourselves to explain the situation. Again, no one expressed any concern. Spoke to a Lady in Red, shortly after a brief rest in our room and again I brought up the transfer issue. I stated that I thought that management should be made aware of the car breaking down. To my surprise, she replied, "Why?" She further explained that things like that happen and the hotel is not responsible as they only partner with the car company. It was not their car. During the exchange she was very matter the fact and expressed no empathy. The following day I met Mr. Korth, the Front Office Manager. He was empathic. Later that evening I learned that he contacted the car company and secured a reduction in our rate for the transfer. He also sent tea and strawberries to our room that evening. We were very pleased with his response. We also spoke to the same Lady in Red about going to Titlis. She told us that it was a short walk there from the hotel along a lovely river. We were familiar with the roads/ sidewalks to Titlis as our car broke down on one of them. There are very icy. We inquired about the hotel shuttle and she agreed that the shuttle could take us. She did not suggest that it could pick us up. We walked home and it was not a pleasant walk. We nearly fell several times. My spouse is his 70's and I am in my 60"s. Really think that she should have been more sensitive to our age and offered the shuttle service to and from Titlis. Adam, the bartender at the bar, was very friendly and provided excellent service. Katerina, a w

Great place, especially with kids. In love with the kids club, special thanks to Katarina! The Cattani restaurant has beautiful and stylish atmosphere and delicious food. In the winter there is also the Chalet which is also very good option for fondue delights 🫕