Hotel Aster

People, staff and location

The staff, the best we have had in Hotels this holiday, they more than made us welcome and were so accommodating to our needs, even providing what we did not ask for. The outside terrace area for breakfast, the size of the rooms, the balcony off the room for relaxation.

Some traffic noise - we live in the country at home!

Lovely setting within beautiful town clean and homely with excellent care and service

When we arrived we were received by a bit stiff but, as it turned out, very friendly gentleman who showed us the room and informed us about the hotel and gave some tips. All staff were friendly by the way. We had a very large room and a very decent bathroom with two basins. Good shower, fluffy towels, and a soap dispenser which however we don’t like. A good bed, plenty of space to put your stuff, a safe deposit box, a sitting area, and a nice balcony with a view of the surrounding mountains added to our delight. Breakfast was excellent and could be enjoyed outside next to the swimming pool, surrounded by lush vegetation. There are a few parking places around the hotel; we had no trouble parking as the hotel was not fully booked. The hotel is located in a very quiet residential neighbourhood with quite a lot of large turn-of-the-century villas. Down the street, at a 5 minutes’ walk a recommendable restaurant (Kirchsteiger: good pizzas but also a good choice of other food) can be found, with an outside dining area (Saturdays: restricted menu, Sundays: closed) and a bit farther on a second restaurant of somewhat lesser quality.

The hotel is a 17 minutes walk from the very pleasant city centre, a large part of which is up-hill (or down-hill). There is a bus stop and even a bus station at about 250m from the hotel, though. Those who can manage the exercise, will enjoy the walk. Not many restaurants close to the hotel. Restricted times and rules for swimming pool usage, but some will appreciate that; as well, not many deckchairs for sunbathing. The room price seemed a bit high, but Merano may be an expensive city to stay even in low season.