We are planning a trip to Scandinavia the end of August, beginning of September and I have seen a lot of Scandic and Thon hotels pop up in my research. I am looking in Copenhagen, Oslo, and Bergen currently. Would love feedback if you have stayed at either of these chains; consistency as far as the ones that are in central locations; and comparison between those Scandic and Thon as well as how they compare to some of the US chains like Marriott and Hilton middle to upper range prices. I have already booked 2 nights at the Marriott Tribute Portfolio Hotel Katajanokka in Helsinki as we are going to be using the ferry to Tallinn as well as Viking Line to Stockholm from the Cruise ship terminal that is closest to that hotel. I am looking at the Hilton Stockholm Slussen for our 3 nights in Stockholm but I wanted to compare to the Scandic and Thon or consider those for other places. We are Hilton/Marriott members so I usually give those a look when we travel to Europe and mix those up with some of the more local hotels that might be more unique to the area. For example, in France we stayed at the Welcome Hotel in Ville Franche sur Mer/ an airbnb in Provence and a Novotel in Avignon close to train station and a Marriott near train station in Paris. I noticed the other recent post about train station areas being "seedy" so I would like to avoid that but that being said, we do like the convenience of location close to a subway station that will quickly get us to the main train stations or wherever else we will be going. Since we are using ferries, trains, subways those are all considerations as well as being close to city center attractions. Thanks for any thoughts.
Posted by
11156 posts
We spent a week in Stockholm at Scandic Hasselbacken and were pleased with it. The breakfast were large and included anything you’d want. Our Swedish friends who live in Stockholm recommended it and we didn’t do any more searching.
We never stay in US chain hotels when traveling in other countries with the exception of airport hotels like Hilton FCO on our way home. You feel like you’ve left Italy when you enter.
Posted by
Snohomish, WA
2021 posts
We stayed in both of those chains on our trip to Copenhagen, Oslo and Bergen. All of those hotels were fine. We had 3 adults and the beds were all real beds vs couches and plenty of space etc.
Posted by
Sweden
6375 posts
I have no idea what the US chains are like, but Scandic is a good mid range hotel chain. Their standard rooms are usually very good value for money.
For Stockholm, Hilton Slussen would not be my choice.
Posted by
OP
227 posts
Thank you for all of the replies. I will look for other options than the Hilton in Stockholm. I had not booked it yet as I wanted to explore more local options.
Posted by
Australia
863 posts
We had a terrible experience at a Scandic hotel in Gothenburg in September 2022 and good experiences at Thon Hotels in Kristiansund and Trondheim.
The Scandic Europa hotel was dirty, our bathroom very unclean, the food in the restaurant appalling, there was an elderly naked woman in the lift. When we complained, they laughed at us and refused to refund our unused nights. We had a three night booking but left after the first night and went to a Radisson Blu across the street.
The Thon Hotels were much nicer. More modern decor, good food and friendly staff. Scandic seemed to be aimed at the mid-range business/conference market, and Thon at tourists.
In Stockholm, we stayed in Hotel Rival in Sodermalm. It was lovely and we had a good time even though I got COVID and spent five days in bed. The hotel had great Swedish meatballs available via room service. And a free coffee and fruit station on our floor.
We also stayed in Radisson hotels in Aalborg, Aarhus, Stavanger and Oslo. All were high standard with good restaurants and facilities. Our only complaint was that to use the gym in Oslo you had to walk up four flights of stairs as the lift didn't go all the way.
Posted by
192 posts
We stayed at a Thon in Oslo near the Main Street which was a short walk to the train station in a family room. My wife and daughter shared the traditional bed and my son and I slept in folding beds attached to the wall. I took the top bunk. Very narrow and not very comfortable. The location was great. The price was reasonable for Oslo. The breakfast was included- I think- and was okay. Overall I think we got what we paid for. Certainly not Marriott or Hilton quality but probably 1/2 the price of those type of hotels in Oslo. We were going to book Scandic hotels in Stockholm and Copenhagen but our cruise was cancelled. They looked a lot nicer on the website than the Thon hotel that we stayed in