Michelin Star Ratings for Hotels and Elevators

Most hotel websites have an "amenities" list and an elevator, if it exists, would be on the list. Google the hotels you are interested in. Be advised that many small hotels have matching small elevators, and I do mean small. Room for one person and a suitcase only. Best to inquire of each hotel if the elevator can accomodate a wheelchair. Will you also need a bathroom with wheelchair access?

I am not sure about the Michelin star thing, and Michelin are not the only agency categorising by stars. Star ratings are more often done by national tourist organisations, so the rules vary by country.
But, even if it has a lift (elevator), it could have one or two steps up to the entrance. I recommend you to check each hotel individually to see how wheelchair-friendly they are.

Some hotels in old buildings physically cannot have a lift (elevator) installed because of the preservation rules, I am sure some of them have 3 stars or more.
And what about a hotel on one floor, does that need a lift (elevator) to get 3 stars?

Yes, I've been in 3 & 4 star hotels with the elevator installed in the stairwell, but opened on the landings between floors, so it still had 6 to 7 steps to get to the floor. Confirm with the hotel before you book.

One of my Spanish hotels this summer had an elevator, but you had to walk up to the 2nd floor (European first floor) to reach it. A second hotel--a nice conversion of part of a railroad station--was elevator-equipped but required you to go up and down a few steps to reach some of the rooms on the second floor.

That sort of thing is uncommon but not rare, so you must read the website carefully and pay attention to the reviews as part of your initial evaluation. In my experience, reviewers will usually mention unavoidable steps if there are quite a few of them, but they may not think to do so if it's just two or three up from the sidewalk. Therefore, the only way to be sure is to contact the hotel directly.

Personally I am not aware of Michelin star rating for hotels. Most hotels are rated or classified by the local tourist board and the star levels represents the various amenities that the hotel has. Such as a 24 hr front desk, restaurant on site, elevators, etc. And, unfortunately, it varies somewhat from country to country. You need to check carefully with each hotel. I have seen elevators that would not take a full size wheelchair. Even with elevators I have been in hotels with a couple of steps almost everywhere. Sometimes there is only one elevator and it sometimes needs repair.

We are just back from a month in France with another couple and she (because of knee problems) really needed an elevator. So we made sure every hotel had an elevator but at one hotel when she was on the third floor (really the fourth floor) the elevator was under repair the whole time we were there. Caused a major problem.

All very good points. I guess nothing is that easy. Thanks.

I've no idea about how the ratings are figured but I personally wouldn't make that assumption if it's very important. In any case, even if an accommodation lists an elevator in their amenities, I would contact them to make sure it will accommodate a wheelchair. We've encountered a few so small/narrow that I'm not sure one would fit either inside or through the door. Room size will be important as well so you can navigate around furniture: European hotel rooms can be small. Some have had a step up to the bathroom or elsewhere within the room.

I'll also recommend checking multiple reviews on any property for a bigger picture. We've stayed at some three-star hotels (depending on source used) that did not have lifts but were otherwise very enjoyable.

I don't recall the Michelin Green Guides specifically rating hotels, and it appears that the star system they use on Viamichelin.com is based on aggregate user ratings. So, unlike their carefully guaged professional reviews for restaurants, I don't think you can use the hotel ratings to imply the presence or absence of a specific service, like an elevator.

If you really want to know if a hotel has wheelchair accessible elevators, I would simply ask the establishment directly. Note also that even if a hotel does have an elevator, it might be too small to accommodate a wheelchair. And many of the old style hotels that Mr. Steves gushes over may have irregular floor plans, meaning that even with an elevator, there still may be additional stairs to navigate.

If mobility is an issue, you can usually count on business class hotels to be fully wheelchair accessible.

Michelin used to give the equivalent of star ratings; I would guess they still do. Their rating hotels in a country would not depend on whether or not there were also ratings from a national tourism organization. Do you have a Michelin Guide? What does it say about elevators? What does their website say?

In Germany, hotel ratings come from DEHOGA (German Hotel and Restaurant Association). Their classification system is a complex list of 260 hotel amenities (size of rooms, size of beds, hours of room service, if they give you shampoo, heated towel racks, etc) each with a number of points awarded if they are present in the hotel. To have a number of stars, the hotel must have a minimum number of total points. In addition, some amenities are mandatory for hotels with a certain number of stars. For instance, to have 5 stars, a hotel must have room service available 24 hours a day. It can meet the number of points for 5 stars, but if it doesn't have 24 hour room service, it would have a lesser number of stars depending on how many hours of room service was available.

According to DEHOGA, hotels in Germany with three stars or less do not have to have an elevator. Hotels with 4 and 5 stars only have to have an elevator if they have more than 3 floors (including the ground floor). There are also points for levels of handicapped accessibility, but none of those amenities are mandatory for stars.

DEHOGA has no minimum elevator size requirements for in their rating system.

It's been my experience that Germans do not put a lot of importance on hotel stars. It seems to be mostly the high end properties that bother to get star ratings. There are a plethora of hotels in Germany without a rating, and yet most of them could have multiple stars. Part of the reason might be that to have more than one star, a hotel has to take credit and/or debit cards. For the most part, the Germans eschew plastic. It seems that only the more expensive places take them. So why bother with stars if you can only have one.

As I understand the star ratings, the number of stars refers to an aggregate of amenities, so 3 stars does not guarantee an elevator; they may have a fitness center, conference room, pool, etc., to raise the number of stars, but not necessarily have an elevator.

Don't take "lift" access for granted: the elevator may be inside a building that has a staircase before you can get to the front door.

I know of a very nice hotel in Mainz that does not have any star rating but does have an elevator, and, if I remember correctly, it was big enough for a wheelchair.