Grand Hotel Union

Jan S | may. 25, 2018

We had a room with castle view & balcony on the 9th floor. Couldn't have asked for better accommodation. Two minutes from the old town main square. Rather than booking online, give them a call instead. You may get a better deal or a better room that way.

Adem Kader | mar. 5, 2018

The grand hotel is deserving of its name with an old charm to it. Has good rooms: they feel somewhat old fashioned but then the hotel is pretty old. I stayed on the "personal" side of it. Maybe the "business" side is better. Staff were kind: smooth reception, and helpful answers to all the practical questions. The pool and spa area was pretty cool. They have a large-ish pool, you can do mini laps. The sauna area was clean quite and very relaxing. It's five minutes to the three bridges and the heart of the city. Very convenient to go out.

Nicholas Steen | ene. 5, 2018

The breakfast they serve is the reason to stay at this hotel above all others. It's seriously good and it's so popular that getting a seat can take a few minutes, at least until they start opening up adjacent rooms. Seriously, it's a lively experience. They have a full spread for breakfast, including sausage and eggs, pastries, fruit juices, coffee and cereal. Almost any breakfast food you can think of actually, and then for good measure a few that aren't your typical breakfast foods. The location is very central to Ljubljana, with the castle a 20-25 minute walk away (although be careful as it is significantly uphill. If you're not in decent shape it's probably a better idea to drive up the hill and park at the castle.) There are a handful of cafes nearby, if you exit the hotel and take a right. Once you get to the river, if you go left before crossing the bridge, that puts you at a place named cacao which is highly recommended. That entire district is exciting, even when I was there in January. Everyone speaks English but they do appreciate it if you learn a few basic phrases beforehand. Google translate is your friend here. The hotel is kept up well, but as is typical of the area, the fit and the finish of everything is a bit worn down. The shower bucks this trend at the expense of having an unusual configuration - the hardware is on the side of the tub facing towards a glass panel that runs about 2/3 the length of the tub with a swivel door. Don't make my mistake and open the door to turn on the shower and you won't get water all over the floor like I did. Also, it's a lot easier to pull the shower head out than to try and contort yourself to stand under the shower head. One of my favourite features was they put light switches for everything right next to your bed so you don't have to get up if you forget to turn off the bathroom light, or you can turn on the lights for yourself without having to fumble through the dark. Really wish more hotels would do this because it made my stay a lot better. Also, there's an Avis / Budget rent a car office in the hotel so if you rent a car at the airport from them you can just leave it in the parking deck (remember to fill up with petrol though) which is extremely convenient if you're going to the bus station nearby. Even if you're going back to the airport parking is complimentary and there's usually a space or two even at peak times even if the parking deck is a bit tight (entrance / exit is only one lane so you have to proceed with caution). Overall this is a really solid contender if you're staying in Ljubljana. I would say the benefits of the location and the conveniences well outweigh any trepidations you might have about the age of the carpet or configuration of the shower.