Strömstad Spa

Super nice spa, restaurants and bar. The arrival, however, was not so good. We were lost between reception and the room due to very bad directions. Our room was in a side building, and stair house etc looked more like a public housing in Brooklyn or something..

The best suite in the hotel with a fantastic roof terrace and a view of the sea. Still a bit disappointed as there wasn't a single glass in the kitchen cupboard. The hotel is well located, a short walk to the center and nice hiking trails in the area. Good service at check-in and check-out, but the experience with the restaurant in the hotel was rather bad. Decent food, but lousy service.

We went there because of the new reopening we heard of and would go shopping nearby after the stay. But the hotel did NOT feel "reopened", rather just opened the doors again. Check-in people are not nice or bad, they are just there to do their work and get the hell out of there. Didn't help extra or give any kind of support when they made a mistake in our booking through their bad website. The rooms were ok, but do not expect super clean or smell-good vibes. The restaurant staff were more helpful and provided everything we needed when seated. The food was ok, but nothing to wow over. It was a plain buffet, with not much to choose from. Some things were too salty too. The bar is another dimension. You may age while you are there! We drop by around 21, not late, and not that many people either. But suddenly the people that wanted drinks from before never left and new people came to order, so it looked like there were many people but it was because no one got their drinks!! We waited for over 30 mins to get to order something and waited another 30 min to get the drink. No joke! Got evidence of the time. They ran around like chickens, none were communicating with each other, no one helped each other, and everyone was doing their own thing. Even almost got mad at each other! Later another guy with a hat came in and helped the bar, but he was sloppy at making drinks!! It was either tasteless, weird combo, too much ice, or too little of the drinks! When you pay over 200kr for 1 drink after waiting for 1 hour, you do not get sloppy. Regardless to say, no tip nor ordered anything new. The checkout is as useless as check-ins, with no help or welcome. No details of what you are paying, so ASK for it if you are wondering!! The receipt is useless too, just the total amount and nothing more. No 'welcome back' phase either. When we wanted to check out we thought maybe we can try out the fish foot bath, cause it takes 15 mins. But as we know, no one is working in this spa. No one was at the spa counter, the three ladies at the reception were busy helping two customers. We didn't want another bar night episode. Do I wanna come again? I recommend only doing the activities and not staying for the night if you have to choose.

This review is based on six different stays at Strömstad Spa the last few years. They have all been business related, sometimes in small groups, sometimes as part of a lager crowd of around hundred people. As a conference venue, this is a great spot. Situated a bit away from the town centre, it is easier to generate group dynamics. A lot of facilities, the spa being the star, it is easy to make different persons in the group happy. The staff is very service-minded towards conference organisers, and the conference facilities are good. The food is an important part of being at a conference or a getaway with colleagues, and although it is not amazing, it has been consistently good every time I have been here. A lot of fresh vegetables, many vegan options but also some treats for meet-eaters like me. The spa is also an important part of the experience. The venue is great, with a lot of different saunas, pools and zones. I have also tried the spa treatments on several occasions, asking for a sports massage after a long run. The therapists vary a bit, some of them have been very professional, with a clear understanding of how running affects the body. But not all of them. The gym is spacious with a lot of different options and many treadmills. The hotel rooms are quite spacious, bright and clean. The beds are great, WiFi is consistently good and the showers are nice. The consistency of the place gives me no second thoughts when it comes to recommend the place. You know that they will deliver a good experience and that they are capable of handling large crowds. To achieve 5/5 however, the place has to blow me away to a much greater degree than Strömstad Spa does.

We had a great time. Tina and Mathilda in the formt desk fixed and prepared everything for our stay before and while we were there to make our lobster fishing and my wife's birthday really nice. And we had the best time in the restaurant with Bruno and Krister (I think Krister was his name - seemed to be the boss from Bruno). Their charming, kind and also funny way combined with a lot of knowledge was a perfect accomplishment for the dinner. The chef of the kitchen made a hell of preparation of the lobster we brought in from the lobster fishing - just amazing. I have eaten often lobsters but that was one of the best preparations ever. So my biggest - thank you for making our days so special!