Any advice on centrally located hotels near the train station?<BR><BR>How about Zum Goldener Adler-is this close to the train station?

Good morning, Ana XXXXXXXXXXX<BR>The Hotel Zum Goldener Adler, , Gerechtigkeitsgassen, 7 about four blocks east of the Bahnhof, and two blocks west of the Bear Pits.. The METROPOLE, Zeughausgasse, 28 is a block<BR>east of the Bahnhof, did stay there some<BR>years a ago, and enjoyed the Knornhaus<BR>keller, which has changed from a good<BR>Swiss ristorante to a night club??<BR>Richad of LAGrange Park, Il...<BR>

Richard: The old traditional Kornhauskeller is a very very trendy upscale lounge/restaurant/bar now. <BR>PS: You should know that a lot of changes have occured in the Swiss restaurant scene lately. Nice cozy places with genuine Swiss food are changed into trendy meeting points, usually with techno or house music, for mainly a younger (and rather well-off) crowd.

ana: <BR>You can find additional information for the two hotels (both ***) mentioned on the following web pages:<BR><BR>www.goldener-adler-bern.ch<BR>www.hotelmetropole.ch

We stayed at the very beautiful Schweizerfhof, right across from the train station. It is a five star (?) but as we were there on a weekend, we had a very good rate. That was a couple of years ago and they were working on the train station, but I believe now you can actually access the hotel directly from the train station underground -- walking, and then up an escalator on the hotel side.

Patrick: Yes, the Schweizerhof is definitely a 5-star hotel. The only one next to the Bellevue Palace.<BR>I am not sure ana is looking for a place in that price range (CHF 350.-/420.- for a double room.<BR>Anyway, the "Brasserie Jack's" at the Schweizerhof remains one of my favourite places to eat when I am in Berne.

The reason I mentioned the Schweizerhor which is indeed a grand place, is that we stayed two nights for $140 US a night -- as I said, you can often get great bargains -- especially on weekends. <BR>And yes, Brasserie Jack's was great. I seldom eat at my hotel, but Berne became amazingly deserted on that Friday and Saturday night in summer. Someone at the hotel mentioned that all the locals head out of town. Many restaurants in the center of town were either deserted or even closed very early for the weekend.

Ok, I get your point. Berne, like a lot of Swiss cities, become deserted on weekends and one can always ask for special weekend packages.<BR>Anyway, next time you're in Berne, I recommend you the small charming 4-star boutique Hotel "Belle Epoque". You might be the person who likes and appreciates it. <BR>Sort of a "Kindli" in Berne. <BR>http://www.belle-epoque.ch

Ursula and Patrick,<BR><BR>I did not think of checking with the Schweizerhof specifically because it's a 5 star property. However, I did not realize that they may drop their rates that low. I will try.<BR><BR>Thanks.