Best Western Strand Hotel,  Visby

One of the bigger hotels in the medieval town of Visby, on Sweden's biggest island Gotland, is the Best Western Strand hotel. The hotel is located about 10 minutes ride from the airport and a few minutes walk from the city centre. The hotel is old, charming and quirky and spans several buildings making it a little different to navigate sometimes but it is all part the charm. The room size varies as it is different buildings but they are normally a good size and so are the bathrooms. The layout is normally good but decor is a little dated and could do with an update. However there are normally power sockets around the bed which is great. The gym is located in the basement and is quite small but has both machines and equipment to suit most people. The restaurant and bar is at the lobby and atrium level as has a good selection and reasonable prices. Overall a good budget hotel at a great location.

« Monica H, Front Office Manager at Best Western Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Dear MrPhileasF, thank you so much for your thoroughgoing review. We are so pleased to hear that you enjoyed your stay and we also thank you on your feedback regarding the decor. All your opinions are important to us so that we can work on improvement! We hope to see you soon again.

With views of both the sea and the medieval town from their rooftop and within walking distance of...well....everything this hotel is a great spot to start out from. We arrived late in the evening and were met by the loveliest of receptionists who made us feel very welcome and we hit the sauna and steam room immediately. As it was a few days before christmas and a thursday we almost had the run of the place so didn't hesitate to have a good natter in their plunge pool between sauna-ing (is that a verb? who knows) The rooms a bit dated and remind me a bit of my childhood charter holidays but the common areas can not be beat with limestone archways, lots of glass in black metal framing....all the things I love. If you could get the same feel and updating in the rooms this would be a true world destination hotel. I would highly recommend this place and can not wait to come back in the summer for a cold drink on the roofterrace watching the sun set over the water and the famous magic light hit the old stone town.

« Monica H, Front Office Manager at Best Western Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Dear Yohanna, Thank you so much for your lovely review! We are glad to hear that you were satisfied with your visit and that you appreciate our location. You are more than welcome to visit us again in the summer! Best Regards Monica Hagström Front Office Manager

We had a great experience in this hotel. Very friendly staff, excellent rich buffet breakfast and centrally within the medieval city wall just meters from the sea promenade. Rooms clean and recently updated.

« Monica H, Front Office Manager at Best Western Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Thank you so much for your great review! We are glad to hear that you enjoyed our breakfast and that the staff took good care of you. We look forward to see you soon again! Best Regards Monica Hagström Head Receptionist

A lovely and friendly hotel in the heart of the town. We travelled with two dogs and our room was located near the garden. It was easy to move around with our pugs.There was a nice surprise bag waiting for them in the room too. Rooms were really nice and kind of old fashion style and the whole surrounding was so awesome. We also enjoyed the breakfast a lot.

« Monica H, Front Office Manager at Best Western Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Dear Johannahagg Thank you so much for your fantastic review! It's great to hear that you enjoyed your room and that your pugs got to have a bit of a vacation too. We hope to see you soon again! Best Regards Monica Hagström Front Office Manager

Stayed in a double room 1 x night. Very good location, walking distance to many good cafes, the shore, the walls, etc. Room was average, decent size and was clean. Breakfast was above average. Recommended!

« Monica H, Front Office Manager at Best Western Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Dear Midwestbandit, thank you so much for your wonderful review! We are glad to hear that you enjoyed your stay and that you appreciated our location. We hope to see you soon again! Best Regards Monica Hagström Front Office Manager

Our room was small and a bit dated - and didn't have the nicest of views. But it was clean. The breakfast however was very good. And so was the wellness area. Location is the best :) Very close to the water and the city wall. Everything within walking distance

« Monica H, Front Office Manager at Best Western Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Dear Engholm66, thank you for your review! We are glad to hear that you had a good stay with us, we look forward to seeing you again! Best Regards Monica Hagström Front Office Manager

The hotel is nice and the location is excellent, but the room we got even after paying extra for upgrading was very simple- really not worth 250€! Staff are friendly and service is good. Good choice for breakfast. You pay extra for parking too but get free WiFi. Nice view from the roof bar.

« Monica H, Front Office Manager at Best Western Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Dear Dona_Nils, thank you for your review! We are glad to hear that the staff took good care of you and that you got to enjoy our rooftop bar! We appreciate your feedback on the rooms, we are doing some renovations in the fall and hope that you get a better experience if you come and visit us again in the future!

We are thankful that The Best Western Strand Hotel took us in for the night when we had to transfer from The NOVI Resort Hotel. However, it 341 was not their only room left available, it should have been!!!! The key unlocked the door leading to a corridor with an adjoining room, "drawing room" and bathroom. So, for the first time in my entire life, I had to share a hotel bathroom which was not ensuite!!! Our room was small and cramped though the beds were comfortable and breakfast was included. For the cost of US$300 odd, I could have had a lux accommodation. The hotel is rather dated and drab but the cheerfulness and helpfulness of the Front Desk team made up for the shortfalls. This hotel is in the middle of everything. We had an opportunity to become part of the Visby walk about on the water front, Gotland Museum, Glassmagasinet Ice Cream Parlour, Glassblowing Factory, etc. A brief stay, comfortable bed, welcoming Front Desk and good breaky.

« Monica H, Front Office Manager at Best Western Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Dear Bermiegal, thank you for your review! We are glad to hear that you could come to us when you needed the help. We are sorry to hear that you thought that you had to share the bathroom. The room 341 is in fact a family room with a corridor and two bedrooms (341 and 342), so you had the whole corridor and the rooms for yourselves! We are sorry that the information was not clear enough. I'm also very happy to hear that the staff took good care of you! We hope that we will see you again some time in the future.

Nice and clean, a room with a view, small but refeshing pool, good breakfast, good location, helpful staff. Jag har skrivit tillräckligt, 200 tecken är för mycket! Ni får fler omdömen om ni stryker det kravet.

« Monica H, Front Office Manager at Best Western Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Hej Agneta! Stort tack för det fina omdömet du gett oss, det glädjer oss att höra att ni hade en bra vistelse hos oss! Jag skall ta med mig detta med minimiantal tecken och se om vi kan göra något åt det. Ha en fortsatt trevlig helg och varmt välkommen tillbaka till oss!

This is not a hotel I would recommend. Normally I stay at Wisby hotel but it was booked. The hotel is a little bit further away, it's rather dark inside the bar and restaurant are not nicely decorated and the room looked like something decorated in the 1970's. Overall the staff were very nice, but it felt like the hotel needed a full makeover.

« Monica H, Front Office Manager at Best Western Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Dear Katarina, I'm sorry to hear that the decor and furnishing at our hotel didn't meet with your expectations. In this case I'm happy to let you know that we are making renovations of several of the hotel rooms as we speak and more rooms are going to be renovated in the fall. The restaurant was also renovated and finished two weeks ago, so depending on when you were staying with us you maybe missed out on the makeover. We have chosen to go with a more classic style that could be deciphered as a bit dark, as you wrote. We want to keep the decor true to the historical part of our hotel and try not to make it seem too modern, but still make sure that it's fresh. So I hope that you will give us another try sometime when we've made the changes and see if you feel differently about the atmosphere. Best regards Monica Hagström

We stayed in the Strand Hotel for the second time and it is still charming and has a friendly atmosphere. No frills but very nice. The room was good and bright. The hotel is very close to the sea and we always go down to smell the salty breeze. It is also in the middle of the old interesting inner city of Visby. If you visit go for a walk. And do not forget to go up to the rooftop terrace.

« Monica H, Front Office Manager at Best Western Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Dear Åke, thank you so much for your lovely feedback, it's always very appreciated amongst our staff to know that you have enjoyed your stay at our hotel. Please do visit us soon again!

The room we had was very old, with carpet floor. it was small and old. on the carpet and the curtains were big stains. the bed linen smelled bad and the bed was not very comfortable. The bathroom was very small and it was not possible to take a shower without having the bathroom floor wet, because there is no separation between shower and the rest of the floor. breakfast was ok but I had better ones in cheaper hotels. There is a little "Wellness-Area", a tiny pool, a sauna and a steam room. These facilites are very clean and good to use.

« Lena L, Chef at Best Western Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Hi Katja I am so sorry, i apaologize that we didn't live up to your expectations. If you would have let us know about your dissatisfaction while you stayed with us, we would have been given a chance to offer you to change room. It is very important for us that our guest are happy and enjoying their stay. It is so disapointing for us to find out to late, that we could have given you a better experience. I can only hope that you give us a second chance to give you a better experience. Kind regards Lena Lloyd/Hotel Manager.

Excellent location, and easily walkable from the port. The hotel is large, reasonably priced and includes a good breakfast. Local beers are served in the bar. Sauna and small pool available. A good experience.

« Lena L, Chef at Best Western Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Hello and thank you for staying with us. Thank you so much for your kind review. Welcome back any time. Kind regards Lena Lloyd/Hotel Manger

Helpful staff, and perfect location inside the city walls, and near the sea. And you can rent a parking space! The rooms are all different sizes and have different views, it is in an old series of buildings. So that is a bit luck of the draw there.

« Lena L, Chef at Best Western Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Dear James, Thank you so much for your review and for staying with us! We hope that you will visit us again soon. Kind regards Lena Lloyd/Hotel Manager

Had our room been nicer I would have written a better review. Our room was not the best. It was on the ground floor, our windows opening right to the street. No air conditioning, so we couldn't get any cool air. We asked for a fan, but got a small desk type noisy fan. Small bathroom, shower box was leaking water to flood the bathroom floor. There was no minibar fridge in the room to keep our medicines from the heat. There was no safe in the room for our valuables. The breakfast was standard. Service was average. This can not be a 4 star hotel.

« Lena L, Chef at BEST WESTERN Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Dear Drjsaleh, Thank you for your review. I'm really sorry for your discomfort and your disappointment. I apologize for the issues in the room. Please contact us next time your book, so we can help you with your request and give you a room higher up for your comfort. I hope you will consider to give us second chance and that we will see you at the Hotel again soon. Kind regards Lena Lloyd/Hotel Manager

Me, my girlfriend and our 8 month baby booked a 2 night stay here to have time to explore Visby. The check in scared us a bit, took 20 minutes before we could see any staff at all. But when we finally got to our room at wing 4** there was nothing to really complain about. The room was really clean and quite ok in standard. Only downside was the sofa that was not comfy at all to sit in. Breakfast and staff service when we asked for help with fixing with food for our little boy was excellent! Only reason I'm giving it 3 instead of 4 stars is the sofa and the long check in time.

« Lena L, Chef at BEST WESTERN Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Hi Ronnie, Thank you for youre review. I'm truly sorry that you had to wait that long in the reception, I really sorry about that. I also appologize for the uncomfortable sofa. I'm happy to to read that you, despite the long wait and the sofa, liked the hotel and your room. Thank you for staying with us, welcome back soon! Kind regards Lena Lloyd/Hotel Manager

This rambling hotel is close to everything in medieval Visby- the museum, the defense wall, the marketplace. It has good wifi and free buffet breakfast with lots of good things to choose from. They can do laundry for you in their washer for a reasonable fee. The old buildings that have been turned into hotel rooms are charming, but may not be relaxing for some. Our double bed had 2 duvets that affected getting a good nights rest. The shower was pretty small, the room temperature was warm and couldn't be adjusted on the thermostat. The windows could be opened to cool off the room, but 2 of the 4 hinges were broken. Sometimes there was a long wait at the front desk.

« Lena L, Manager at BEST WESTERN Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Dear Raelene Thank you for your review, i'm happy to hear that you enjoyd our breakfast. I hope that you will visit us again soon Kind regards Lena Lloyd Hotel Manager Strand Hotel

The location of this hotel is perfect and is within walking distance of all the beauty of old town Visby. It's also a quiet location, even during the Swedish Political Week festivities. Visby is a charming, historical place and this hotel offers a good home base. The breakfast buffet is very large and there are tons of choices. Unfortunately, our room was rough. It was clean, but it was up many flights of stairs that we had to haul our suitcases up. It was on the top floor and the rooms actually had exterior doors. The rooms were very warm since it was warm outside. There was no AC and a window that barely opened. Also, the shades for the windows did not block much light which makes it hard to sleep when the sun is up for 18 hours a day. When we asked for a fan, the front desk staff gave us attitude, but eventually found a really small and very loud desk fan to offer us. Front desk staff also do not speak English very well. I will come back to Visby again and want to see more of the island of Gotland, but would not pay such huge prices for a small, uncomfortable room.

« Hanna M, Front Office Manager at BEST WESTERN Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Thank you for staying with us and your valuble opinions! If you come again, I recommend you reserve a room with AC, especially when we are fully booked during the " politician week". I would also like to apologise on the staffs behalf! Feel free to contact me on [email protected] anytime. Welcome back! Sincerely, Hanna May Front desk manager

I stayed at this hotel in Visby on my recent business trip to attend a conference there and it was most spectacular. The hotel is relatively centrally located very close to the ocean front and it has a gym, sauna, steam room and small pool on site which makes it a perfect place to stay whether in winter or summer. They have a real elaborate breakfast buffet but there is no resturant on site. A few cold sandwiches and drinks are on sale in the lobby. The rooms are just average but they are kept pretty neat and clean. I liked the simple decor. A typical small conference hotel but nice to stay at even when on holiday. I do recommend it strongly.

« Hanna M, Front Office Manager at BEST WESTERN Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Hello, Thank you for your kind words! We now have a lobby menue, serving hot food in the reception from 11 am to 10 pm. You must try it next time you come visit! kind regards, Hanna May Shiftleader

We arrived, via a ferry, with our car. We were concerned about parking, but were able to park in a hotel lot across the street. There is a charge of 180 kronor a day. The hotel is charming. We got a 4th floor corner room that had wonderful views of the city. The room was comfortable, except for the fact that the door to the bathroom was a sliding door that was noisy. It was loud enough to wake up another person in the room. The decor could use a bit updating. Looks quite old. Breakfast was standard Swedish fare, but served in a large dining room. Wi Fi worked so that we were able to use the internet. Since we were out with a relative touring Gotland, we did not spend that much time in the room except to sleep.

« Hanna M, Front Office Manager at BEST WESTERN Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Hello, Thank you for staying with us! I hope you only paied 80kr per night for parking, since that is the actual price. I will make a note of your opinion regarding decor, bathroom doors and breakfast. Hopefully we will see you here again! Kind regards, Hanna May Shiftleader

I have stayed at the Best Western Strand Hotel on several occasions and will do so in the future. This is in relation to work I do at Uppsala University - Campus Gotland. While the university makes the reservations, in my opinion, this hotel is an excellent place to stay. The views are very good, walks to the historic city center, ruins, university, beach and more are all only a few minutes with each packed with history. The rooms are relatively basic, the restaurant is good, the breakfast buffet is typical of Scandinavian hotels and works well for me. The staff is friendly. All-in-all, the hotel meets all the needs that I have with one important exception: in-room internet service is very, very slow. That said, the majority of people coming to Visby are probably coming for tourism purposes and in that regard the internet service may not be a particularly important issue. I think it is fair to say that you will feel "welcome and comfortable" in this hotel.

« Hanna M, Front Office Manager at BEST WESTERN Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Thank you so much for your kind words! We hope you come visit us soon again. kind regards, Hanna May Shiftleader

Stayed 2 nights with my family during october. Good location, peaceful. Spacious room, interior ok but a but worn down. Suprisingly unclean bathroom was a minus. Breakfast great. Spa with saunas a nice extra feature even though the pool was so cold i only used the saunas. Friendly staff. Could stay again but there are lot of other nice hostels in visby as well.

« Hanna M, Front Office Manager at BEST WESTERN Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Hello, Thank you for your opinions. I apologise for the unclean bathroom, that is of course not acceptable! Our cleaningstaff are very thourough, and we very rarely recive criticism regarding the cleaning. Hopefully you will give us another chans to do better! Welcome back and have a nice day, Kind regards, Hanna May Shiftleader

Location is great, inside the walls in the city, and with free parking. Staff is very friendly and services are ok, fast wifi and correct breakfast. The room was not big, but enough. It also has a small pool.

« Hanna M, Front Office Manager at BEST WESTERN Strand Hotel, responded to this review »
Thank you for your kind words! Welcome back! Kind regards, Hanna May Shiftleader

This is a nice hotel. A great place inside the walls of the city. It is very old, and has that kind of charm with all the little crooks and hallways to get you to your part of the lodge. Our room was pleasant on first entrance, and then we saw the 'dirty feet' imprint on the shower floor... what the heck? Everything else looked clean. The bed was comfortable, the pool was adequate. The breakfast was fantastic... A very nice breakfast with plenty of places to sit and eat!

An average hotel, the entrace is very nice but the rooms are what you'd find in any average hotel in any town in sweden. It is in a good location inside the town of Visby though. The hotel has a lot of nooks and corridors with sofas and generally nice social areas.

The hotel itself is very nice. The lobby is newer with a large tree in the middle. We got a family room which is huge. It's the size of a small apartment. The decor looks old, like your grandparents furniture, but comfortable enough. The staff was great and the room was clean. Now the bad parts. The ventilation was not good. The room was like a furnace with the temperatures outside around 20. For a 4 start hotel, air conditioning is a must. Second, there is no chain on the door. This enabled my two year old to leave the room while I was in the bathroom. Finally, a small fridge would be nice. It was difficult to have cold drinks in the room without ice.

That's a nice place to stay, close to every nice spot in the city, clean and with a great staff. However, it's worth mentioning that it is a pricey place. É um ótimo local, próximo aos principais locais da cidade, limpo e com um ótimo atendimento. Todavia, vale citar que é um hotel caro

What a dissapointment. Great income but thats it. Room are wery old ald not clean, no electricity in the bathroom, bad smell in the room. Only good thing was nice and high quality breakfast. Over 200e/night- newer again.