Post-Hotel Partenkirchen

Garmisch-Partenkirchen

ABOVE: Wood covers every surface of Room 24 at the Post-Hotel Partenkirchen (except for the bathroom, where tile prevails).

February, 2006 update:

The Post-Hotel Partenkirchen has changed ownership since this review was written, and I've received one report from a reader who wrote:

"As a former resident (weekends and vacation from Munich), I have stayed at the Post Hotel Partenkirchen many, many times. Stayed there about two years ago and it had a new owner (It had been in the family for years). It was still good.

 

"Visited Garmisch December 2005 and went to the cafe for coffee and cake. It has been bought again, the kitchen is closed and the hotel is in bad shape. Imagine having Gluhwine heated up in the microwave.  The waitress had to apologize for this."

With luck, the latest owner will restore the hotel and its services to their former glory. If you've recently stayed or dined at the Post-Hotel Partenkirchen, I'd be grateful for your comments by e-mail.

Of the 5,000 or so guest rooms in the German resort of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, 59 of the most atmospheric are in the Post-Hotel Partenkirchen. The four-star hotel traces its roots to 1542, when a local monastery opened a tavern for travelers. It became a postal station in the 1600s, and the grandfather of the hotel's now-deceased senior chef, Otto Stahl, was the last innkeeper in Bavaria to hold the title of "Royal Postmaster."

The Post-Hotel Partenkirchen certainly looks the part of an historic inn: Its façade is adorned with arches, wrought-iron signs, shutters, flowerboxes, and a row of Bavarian flags and banners. Step inside, and you may feel that you're in a hunting lodge. The ground floor is a meandering menage of rooms with heavy archways, beamed ceilings, carved wood, iron chandeliers, grandfather clocks, and framed pictures from the last two centuries.

The upstairs hallways are more pedestrian, having been redecorated in institutional style a few decades ago, but the older guest rooms are a delight. I stayed in room 24, overlooking the Ludwigstrasse, and it was like being inside Great-Aunt Waltraud's cedar chest. Every surface in the bedroom was covered with wood, from the beamed ceiling to the pine walls to the planked floor. The antique bedstead carried the wood theme through with an ornate carved headboard. (The bathroom, in contrast, had modern fixtures of avocado porcelain.)

A separate newer wing, located behind the main building, has rooms with balconies.

Rates aren't unreasonable by German standards, with a double costing €94-150 in 2004. Rates include a buffet breakfast and all taxes except the local Kurtax of €2 per person, which entitles each guest to the Garmisch-Partenkirchen Visitor's Card with free bus transportation and discounts on local admissions. Weekend rates, half-board arrangements, and seasonal packages are also available. Pets are welcome at a charge of €6 per day.

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