Hotel Bären

This hotel is quite old, but we adore the old-world charm it possesses. It is about 10 mins walk from the main shopping and restaurant area of St Moritz, and about 5 mins drive from the St Moritz train station. If you're taking the train, contact the hotel beforehand and they can pick you up from the train station free of charge. We booked the most basic room, which was already quite spacious though without a balcony or much view. Though the rooms are dated, they are very clean and comfortable. Our booking came with free breakfast and it has a decent selection of Swiss breakfast stables like eggs (scrambled and soft boiled), cheese, pastries, bread, sausages, cereal, mueseli, yogurt, fruits, etc. If you ask, the hotel also has gluten-free bread and vegan milk (oat or soy) for no additional charge. The service throughout the property is excellent and everyone is friendly and willing to help. We had dinner once at the hotel restaurant and it was delicious and reasonably priced (by Swiss standards). A few points for improvement - (1) the hotel should make it easier for guests to identify and find the driver of the pickup service. The person picking us up was not holding any sign or possessing anything that indicates his affiliation with the hotel (because of that, we saw another couple almost missing the shuttle), (2) the gym doesn't have much equipment (e.g. no treadmill) and whatever it has is quite old, and (3) the scrambled eggs were rubbery and almost inedible after being left in the heated tray for too long. Suggest that the hotel makes smaller batches so they always stay moist. Seems to be a common problem of Swiss breakfasts due to what I would assume to be high labour cost. Overall, we were happy with our stay in this lovely, cozy hotel.

Great Hotel with easy access to railway stations and shopping center

Rather small for the price we paid

Beautiful family owned hotel just off the center of town. The architecture is great and charming at the same time. They even offer you a free bus, train and cable car pass, which gets you to the top of several mountains.

This is a very character driven hotel as you would think you would find in a chalet in Switzerland. We ate our meals here and the food was good as was the service. The hotel was operational for both the 1928 and 1948 Olympics and the Olympic buildings are behind the hotel. The sled run is above the hotel.

Hotel Baren is a very large, 150 year old hotel on the outskirts of St. Moritz, located within a few hundred metres of the Celerina Bob Sled Run. This run is the world’s only natural ice run and the oldest run still in operation. National and international toboggan championships and the “Hornschlitten”, in which 100 suicidal ice hockey players race each other down the bob run, are held here annually. Whilst 150 years old, the hotel has a lot of rustic charm and some modern features (lifts between the 4 floors.) The rooms are reasonably spacious, some have external balconies so you can experience those chilly Alpine winds! Lots of wood, of course, furniture, floors, bedside tables, wardrobes, bed heads, but functional and reasonably aesthetic. Two comfortable 3/4 single beds, so a large double, and little hope of finding your spouse! The bathroom was reasonably spacious, with the bath-shower combination feared by the mature traveller (a non-slip mat would improve guest safety.) Lots of hot water and towels, so more than acceptable. The Greek manager is very friendly, speaks excellent English, and has a wicked sense of humour. We were part of a Cosmos tour group, so had breakfast and two dinners in the hotel restaurant. The breakfast included a range of cold (continental) and hot options, although the latter was restricted to the usual scrambled eggs and sausages. Not the best, not the worse by far, but sufficient to keep you going during the day. The 3-course dinners were soup and ice cream based for the entree and desert, but the soups were excellent. Generally 3 choices for the main course, the lasagne and goulash were excellent. Eur 31 in the off season, I hate to think what they charge in the peak Winter season, but the off season price was very acceptable. Reasonably comfortable restaurant, a bit noisy with a boisterous, excitable tour group. The buses in St. Moritz appear to be free if you get a pass card from the hotel, and the 40 minute trip between the terminals of bus 602 and 603 is an interesting way to spend your free time. You can hop on and off wherever takes your fancy (30 minute stop turnaround timetable) and it stop right outside the Hotel. A walk around the foreshore of the lake is a pleasant activity, but don’t expect lots of coffee stops, we only spotted one. The Coop supermarket is located at the main town square, about 500M down towards the lake, and has an extensive range of food and drink (including alcoholic beverages) products to help keep your tour budget on track! So in summary, assuming you don’t want to have a view of the lake (apparently in Winter it freezes solid and they hold horse and car races, polo matches and ice skating events on its surface) then we can RECOMMEND the Baren Hotel as a suitable place of stay.

Very nice stay - clean comfortable room, very good breakfast, exceptional staff and shuttle to the train station.

The Hotel Bären is a traditional establishment in a good location in St. Moritz (700 m from the funicular railway; a shuttle bus runs approximately every 15 minutes during peak times). It meets the minimum standards of a 3-star hotel. Parts of the building have been renovated over the past few decades, but for the most part, one can still sense the faded splendour of days gone by. The staff are generally friendly, though not always particularly warm. The rooms are clean and functional. Breakfast is very basic, though eggs are subject to a charge depending on how they are prepared. The late opening of the dining room (07:30) is inconvenient, making an early departure for the funicular to the ski area (which starts operating at 07:45) difficult. The quality of the hotel’s own evening restaurant can also be described as basic. The swimming pool is designated as a sports pool and is therefore only 28 degrees Celsius. It is therefore less suitable for warming up after skiing or for use by children. The sauna in the basement is rather small (approx. 5 square metres) given the hotel’s 103 beds, though the size of the steam bath is adequate. The hotel has a spacious gym, though it is equipped with just one rather old treadmill (w/ missing foot straps) and a multi-gym. A particular drawback of the hotel is that there aren’t enough ski boot warmers for all guests. It is also worth noting that a penalty charge of 10 CHF applies if you forget to take your night key with you. Ultimately, you have to weigh up for yourself what you expect from the hotel, taking the room rates into account. To illustrate our observations I’ve added some pics.

The Hotel Bären is a traditional establishment in a good location in St. Moritz (700 metres from the funicular; during the high season, a shuttle bus runs approximately every 15 minutes). It meets the minimum standards of a 3-star hotel. Parts of the building have been renovated in recent decades, but for the most part you can still sense the faded glamour of days gone by. The staff are generally friendly, though not always particularly warm. The rooms are clean and functional. Our room was equipped with a safe, but no key was provided. It is therefore somewhat inconvenient to deposit small valuables in the safe at the reception. Breakfast is very basic, with eggs subject to a charge depending on how they are prepared. The late opening of the dining room (07:30) is inconvenient and makes it difficult to leave early for the cable car to the ski resort (which starts operating at 07:45). The quality of the hotel’s evening restaurant can also be described as basic. The swimming pool is designated as a sports pool and is therefore kept at a temperature of just 28 degrees Celsius. It is therefore less suitable for warming up after skiing or for children. Given that the hotel has 103 beds, the sauna in the basement is rather small (approx. 5 square metres), although the steam room is a reasonable size. The hotel has a spacious gym, though it is equipped with only a single, rather old treadmill (with missing foot straps) and a multi-gym. A particular drawback of the hotel is that there are not enough ski boot warmers for all guests. It should also be noted that a penalty charge of CHF 10 applies if you forget to take your room key with you. Ultimately, you will need to weigh up for yourself what you expect from the hotel, taking the room rates into account. To illustrate our observations, I have included some photos.