What People are saying

What an interesting hotel!

the_escapiston 30/08/2015 09:59

We stayed here for two nights for business. Nods is about half an hour drive from Biel, where our office was. The drive up the mountains was breathtakingly beautiful. I grew up in the city and therefore have not seen views like these. It was like a movie scene!

I did not expect anything from this hotel before we stayed. Also, we weren't the ones who decided to book this. There were no more hotels available in Biel, thus the agency we hired in the company basically had no choice but to give us Hotel du Cheval-blanc.

This hotel felt very traditionally swiss - I mean, look at the facade alone. It's in a residential neighborhood. When we arrived in the evening to check-in, it was very quiet and it felt like the area was abandoned or that everybody was just hiding from us.

It also seems like the family who owns the place are also the hotel staff. When we arrived in the evening (maybe a little before 22:00), they were no where to be found. They left our rooms keys and a note (in German, of course) by the reception table - as you can see in the picture.

On the way to our rooms, the hallways were a little dark. On some parts of it, we saw what seems to be like personal family furniture (dusty baby toys and cribs - seriously, I was beginning to think it was a setting for a horror scene which involves me and my two colleagues as victims).

Our rooms were HUGE. Like you can have a party for 15 people in it. Lighting was poor - little yellow lights - especially in the bathroom, but I guess this gives it an interesting vibe. The windows are a bit small too, partly the reason why there's not enough light in my room.

I did not notice any airconditioning unit, I don't think there was any. Luckily, even if it was almost summer, the temperature wasn't warm. We still kept our windows closed though.

In the evening, going to sleep was difficult for me. There's a church nearby and the church bells ring every 15 minutes - throughout the whole night until morning. This is not something that anyone can do about. For some people, this kind of thing is not bothersome apparently, as they probably would have grown up in a small town too with a church whose bells ring throughout the night. Not for me though. I didn't get sleep the whole night.

The walls were a little thin too. I could hear every movement of the guy next door to me. His coughing, his sneezing, his snoring, his tossing and turning at 03:13 in the morning - followed by the merry ringing of church bells. At this point, I have realized that i should have bought ear plugs.

During the sleepless hours, since the hotel was old, there were plenty of wood creaking to be heard - in the ceiling, on the floor outside of my room, on the floor *inside* my room. I have the most vivid imaginations thus this didn't help in keeping me calm so that I can sleep.

Breakfast the following day was alright. There was typical breakfast food - nothing exciting - EXCEPT FOR THIS LARGE WELL in the middle of the restaurant! How cool is that!? Things like these interest me so much as I do not normally see them! Anyway, the well is boarded up - not properly though, but it was nice to tempt people in throwing something down the well.

All in all, I would say the hotel provided what was promised - a room to sleep in with your own shower and breakfast.

The following night was better as we had whiskey to help us go to sleep.

Not your typical Swiss Hotel

33RDFon 03/09/2014 18:15

If you have a choice use somewhere else. Value for money poor, flies in the summer from local farmyards in the village, check that village is not holding a fete if you wish to sleep, rustic but not charming as a bit of a mess. Food OK and welcome OK. Other than that nothing to recommend.