Ystad Saltsjöbad

Like many other guests, we have been her before, years back, and loved it - but were disappointed this time around. It seems to us that this hotel suffers from too much success and has grown arrogant. At every little turn, they charge extra. That is never a good sign and in our experience, everything tends to go downhill from this point. The nice things - some of them - are still here, of course: the location is beautiful, the rooms are fresh, clean, and very pretty and the common areas like restaurants etc are also as a rule lovely, with thought out designs and that Hyannisport feel to it all. BUT - and that is a very big but - the service is not up to scratch. From the booking experience to the checkning in, it was downright terrible at times. They have devised a kind of time slot scheme for their guests that is just awful. They herd and hector their guests around as if we were cattle. Wait here, pay there, the room is not ready kind of thing. We had to pay a considerable amount to check in at three in the afternoon, which is late-ish in any hotel in the world. Notwithstanding paying a lot for spa treatment (mediocre) and access to the pool (seriously overcrowded) and access to our expensive room (paid extra to get in!), nothing worked smoothly. One - and only one! - nice receptionist tried to help us to get to our room but was scolded by a colleague. You wait! Room is not ready. (Turned out the one nice staff member was new at his job, Figures. At least he wanted to help, but of course it did not work.) There's not that many rooms and they are soo tiny! Many of them are empty between 10.00 am and 17.00 pm (because of the extra charge to check in at 15.00 or stay until 11.00, you see). How on earth it can be this impossible to get access to the room I will never know. We had to sit and wait alongside with dozens of other unfortunate guests, all of us surrounded by tons of baggage. It felt like sitting in a train station where every train had broken down. At breakfast, it was so crowded we could hardly eat. There must have been multitudes in there. Checking out, the same: multitudes, stress, constant mix ups. Not very nice staff. And why? Beause of the appalling slot system. All of the guests had to access and vacate at certain time slots. So, of course most of the guests hurried like crazy to get some breakfast before checking out - it was either that or pay extra. In a well run hotel you will get access to your room when it's ready. It will not take hours to clean a tiny room (yes, the rooms at Ystad Saltsjöbad have always been very small). And, most importantly - the staff will be accommodating and not act like annoyed head masters towards the customers. The restaurant is beautiful. The food at dinner and breakfast is very good, mostly. But again, the service is not good. This is the kind of place where the rules are more important than the guests. And, again, the breakfast was so overcrowded because of the rigorous check-out

There are no words to describe how much I love this place. Cozy, charming, excellent services, delicious food and nice beverages. The hotel has an excellent spa area with outside and indoor swimming pools,m and saunas. Moreover, you can swim in the Baltic Sea and walk around the sandy beach.

It was our second time and we were looking forward to coming back. We were dissapointed. Not entirely though. The climate of the rooms, Salt restaurant with excellent food and long walks along the beaches with pine trees. Amazing. And food was tip top. But spa, which is probably the main reason all come here, is no longer a place to relax. No tranquility. No relax. No quiet. It is becoming more like Ibiza where guest walk with their drinks to hot tubs, sauna and pools. The music is too loud and even guests are very loud. Absolutely no classical spa atmosphere. If you do not know what I mean here please try to go to the japanese onsen. Well, I have nothing against it if only those who look for relax get this opportunity for the money they pay. Or alerted before they cash in. Even the upper floor with the open fire in the centre was loud as some guests could not accept that the other were looking for a few moments of quiet. If it is the direction of this nice place, well it is good to know. We will start to look for a new place then.

I recently visited Ystad Saltsjöbad with my mother, using a Christmas gift I had received. Unfortunately, the experience left much to be desired. Booking Issues The booking process was incredibly frustrating. Spa treatments and hotel stays require separate bookings, which made it difficult to coordinate. After finding an available date for both the stay and treatments, I booked the hotel online, but by the time I returned to the spa booking, the treatments were no longer available. This happened repeatedly despite quick responses on my end. After several back-and-forth emails, I finally called and settled for a stay with treatments we didn’t initially want, just to finalize the plans. Last-Minute Cancellations On our way to the hotel, the spa called to cancel one of our treatments, which was deeply disappointing since the treatments were the main reason for our stay. While they managed to reschedule the treatment for the next morning at 9:15, it wasn’t ideal as we were checking out that day. I did appreciate their effort to make amends, but it didn’t fully compensate for the initial disappointment. Noise Levels We stayed in a ground-floor room where the noise was overwhelming. Loud hallway music could be heard in our room, and bass-heavy music from the pool area or another location played all afternoon—even though it’s January and no one was using the pool. This lack of consideration for guest comfort was surprising. Spa Experience The spa itself was beautiful, but the atmosphere was far from relaxing. The area felt more like a party venue, with loud guests in the jacuzzi, steam room, and sauna. When I visit a spa, I expect tranquility and an opportunity to unwind. Ystad Saltsjöbad unfortunately did not deliver on this front, despite its gorgeous facilities. Positives The restaurant was a highlight, offering excellent food and attentive service. The waiter was professional and accommodating, especially with my mother’s special dietary needs. Similarly, the service in the spa lounge was pleasant, and the quiet lounge upstairs provided some much-needed peace. Overall While Ystad Saltsjöbad has potential with its stunning facilities and attentive restaurant staff, the overall experience fell short of expectations due to poor booking coordination, noise levels, and the disruptive atmosphere in the spa. For those seeking a true spa retreat, I would recommend considering other options.