Nice,but not a four star

It was hard to believe this was a four star hotel. It was nice, but just okay. It does have a nice location, close to the old part of Lausanne and close to the train station. The rooms were large for Europe. The shower was tricky. There was just a foot and half of glass, no enclosure, which meant the floor was always very wet after a shower. Service was so-so. There was no help with the luggage when you arrive at the hotel. We were on the 5th floor and we had to take 2 slow elevators to get to the room. Other than the location, I have nothing to rave about on the Hotel Alpha Palmiers.

Solid Hotel in the Heart of Lausanne

The Alpha is a very nice, modern and convenient hotel just below the Centre of Lausanne - midway between the train station and Place St. Francois. For European standards, the rooms are large -- and if you are a single in a room, expect a single bed (we Americans aren't used to that). Some of my European colleagues who had stayed in other hotels in Lausanne also said that the Alpha was much better than their other accomodations. As seen in other reviews, there is a very steep hill from the main rail station to the hotel, so prepare to heft your baggage.

The staff is adequately helpful, definitely polite, and the breakfast is good for both Europeans and Americans, alike. The oriental restaurant in the hotel is also quite good. Don't worry about no shower curtain -- I think they want you to douse the floor with water.

I wouldn't call the hotel a great value - but more or less average compared to the quality of the hotel, staff and accomodations.

A Really Good Hotel

This is a great hotel for exploring Lausanne and surrounding area. It's not far from the train station and the old town. The hotel itself is very modern and stylish. The room we had overlooked the central courtyard, was very large and had a stylish bathroom behind a frosted glass partition - in all it was very Philippe Starck. We paid £80 for 1 night. Breakfast was an additional 22 CHF and was not worth it.

Good Hotel

I rated this hotel a 3 because I found hair under the comforters on both sides of the bed the first night that I was there. Without that incident I would give the hotel a 3.5-4. The rooms are wonderful. Very modern furnishings and design, especially loved the bathrooms. The linens and comforters were the best, super comfortable. I never had dinner in the restaurant but I found the breakfast more than adequate each morning, with both european and more american/british offerings.

The hotel is very centrally located, only a few yards from the main train station, and a short walk to Lausanne's main shopping district. However, please note that there is an extremly steep cobblestone street that one must climb to reach the hotel if you are coming from the train station. My party was not quite prepared for such a steep incline after a long day on a train...beware if you have anyone w/you who may have a large bag and is either elderly or disabled, they may find the hill hard to navigate.

The front desk staff was helpful whenever we approached them for assistance.

Good place to stay

Hotel was very conveinent to the train. Yes it is up a steep hill....but you are in the Alps!

Room is large and modern overall, but the bathroom is a little tight. Taking a shower was odd in that a European style half-wall was set into the tub vs. a shower curtain. The location of the faucet, drain etc was right at the edge of this half-wall. Bottom line is that in order to shower you had to stand on top of the drain and be very careful how you turn your body or water would go spraying over the entire bathroom...including your toiletries and towels etc. The bedding was fabulous! The mattress and pillows were the best!

Location to all the sites and small towns around Lake Geneva is great. Very easy to hop the "Metro" and take a 5 minute ride down to the waterfront at Ouchy! I would stay here again if the price was right, but I would ask for a room with a better bathroom layout (assuming there are other designs than the one in our room.)

Modern Hotel with Large Rooms conveniently located near train

This hotel is stylishly "cool", very Modern, simple and "clean" in its design. My room was very large even though I had a booked a "single" room for one person with a Twin bed. Nice comforter, large bathroom with lots of counter space, non-see through frosted glass walls separating bedroom from bathroom. My room had an overall nice layout. It was very quiet since my room opened on to the courtyard - you can open the windows if you need fresh air.

I noticed that some other trip adviser reviewers have complained about the staff. I found they were professional and helpful regarding any questions I asked, not rude in anyway. They were not overly friendly and outgoing - but this might just be the way hotel staff is in Europe /Switzerland. The hotel is conveniently located near the train station and a few minute walk up hil to the center of town. Note the although Rue Du Petit-Chene is across the street from the train the hill is very steep. I usually travel with not much luggage so it was not a problem for me, but if you don't do well hauling all of your luggage up a hill - get a cab. I would absolutely stay at this hotel again! (I stayed here in Aug 2004 for a two nights).

Decent but not great

We stayed here in early April 2004 for about 100 EUR per night without breakfast. The decor of the hotel is decent and the rooms are reasonably modern. The doors to our closet were removed and to iron one had to go downstairs to a public ironing board! It is an OK hotel if you are making a quick stop in Lausanne, but would probably seek out a different hotel if I were to return.

Stylish Hotel, but horrible Service

I stayed in this Hotel in Lausanne one night in May 2004.

The pros: It is located in the heart of the city, the design is very fashionable, the rooms are spacious and fancy.

The cons: no parking available ( I payed 23 swiss franks for one night in the nearby public parking), the breakfast did cost 20 Euros and was very tiny (though good). Worst of all - the service: The waitresses in the restaurant were very harsh and impolite, not once and not only to us, they started watering the flowers and hoovering the restaurant while we were still having breakfast in the regular opening hours, and in the lobby the remains of last nights party (halffull glasses of beer, full ashtrays etc.) were not cleaned up until we checked out at noon. I have been in 2-star hotels (the alpha prides itself with four) that did not look as nice but were I enjoyed the stay much more as the service was better.

Cool hotel

Stayed for one night at this hotel, and will definitely go back next time in Lausanne. The rooms are very large by europeean standards, and the modern and simple decor is pleasing. Bathroom design is also north american in size and the funky layout (all rooms open onto an interior courtyard) make for a very quiet night's sleep, which is also a bonus in Europe. Staff was cold but interaction minimal, and after all it is Switzerland.