We will be spending one night in Lucerne, arriving from Salzburg and continuing on to Murren. We would like to find a hotel near the train station for under $400/night that has air conditioning. We don't need luxury. Just a clean place to spend the night and wander around close by before leaving in the morning. So far the two I've come up with are Hotel Beau Sejour and Hotel Continental Park. Any thoughts on either of those? Or are there others in that price range that you can recommend?
Thanks so much!
Laurie

Hotel Beau Séjour is about 1 km dfrom the railway station, has land side rooms corresponding more or less to you price ideas and lake side rooms for some 500 USD/night.
Continental par is a few steps frpom the railway station (no lake view) and somewhat cheaper.
Both can be candelled until 1 day before arrival, but only if you book directly on the hotel website.

But frankly, I don't understand why you plan to sleep at Lucerne if you don't want to visit the town.

Thanks for your reply. My (possibly convoluted) reasoning is I'm trying to break up the trip from Salzburg to Murren and I read that the train from Luzerne is extremely scenic. We will have spent five nights in Vienna, two nights in Salzburg, and will be spending four nights in Murren.and one night in Bern before our departure from Zurich. We're fit 70-year-olds, but I'm trying to keep the trip down to two weeks so we don't suffer from burn-out and exhaustion.

Thanks.
Lucerne - Interlaken is more scenic than Salzburg - Munich and Munich- Zurich.
Salzburg - Innsbruck - Zurich would be more scenic than Salzburg - Munich - Zurich, but - unfortunately - there arre no direct trains because of works between Feldkirch and the Swiss border.
That would mean 2 changes between Salzburg and Zurich and the whole journey up to Lucerne would last 8 hrs.
The most scenic itinerary for sure would go via Landeck - Scuol, but that would mean a 9 1/2 hrs train and bus ride from Salzburg up to Lucerne with 5 changes from train to train or bus resp a 11 1/2 hrs journey up to Muerren..
In this latter case, the best stopover would be Scuol, 5 1//2 hrs from Salzburg and 6 hrs from Muerren.

Tons of poosible solutions, but obviously not what you are looking for!

If you're staying in Lucerne--and not interested in luxury--I'd stay somewhere a little cheaper. The Hotel Drei Konige Luzern should save you $200 for only nine more minutes of walking (and also has air conditioning). The Hotel Monopol Luzern should save you $100 and save you two minutes of walking (and also has air conditioning).

The Radisson Bleu is about a 5 minute flat walk from the train station. Might be within your price range

Hi there,
Take a look at Hotel des Balances. It’s just a 5-10-minute walk from the main train station. During the low and mid seasons, it should fit your budget; in high season, prices are much higher.
Excellent location, comfort, and thoughtful service make it a great place to stay in Lucerne. Some rooms even offer a beautiful view of the Kapellbrücke.

Haven't heard of the hotel, but if it has good reviews go for it, the one's I would recommend personally are:
1. Ibis Budget Lucerne hotel: I have personally tried, this near the Switz train station.
2. Barabas Hotel Lucerne: Very clost to the train station, on the luxury side.

Ibis Budget Hotels are rather basic.
That at Lucerne is behind the railway station about 1 km from the platforms.
A double room in Hotel des Balances costs actually (November) 220 USD/night.

Thank you so much for all your recommendations! So many interesting choices (especially staying in a prison, which was tempting for the novelty of it!) After researching each one I've decided on Hotel Continental Park for its convenient location, good reviews, and coming in just under my $400 budget (after adding an extra $25 for a balcony.)
Thanks again,
Laurie