Clarion Hotel® The Pier

Stayed for one night at the Clarion The Pier hotel in Gothenburg in February. The hotel is located quite remote from the city centre and it feels like it's very isolated and deserted. Fairly recently opened about 1,5 or 2 years ago, so the interior and amenities are decent and fresh. Seems to be purposely built to cater mainly for either employees of or to anyone doing business with the Chinese Car Manufacturer "Geely" who has a huge site right next doors. Also seems to have made an attempt to create a Chinese atmosphere with what is claimed to be a premium Chinese restaurant by the name of "Fei". Wall-mounted Phillips brand flat screen TV without working casting from Your own device. Very basic number of nordic TV-channels and TV-channels in general, as usual with Choice/"Strawberry" brand hotels, but there were a selection of multiple Chinese TV-channels. WiFi stable and with good signal. The interior is basic. Small but OK working desk and chair. Not any stationary in room. Bed is rather small for two persons. Dark and gloomy decoration with a single abstract black painting on the otherwise completely empth wall. Basic rather small bathroom with shower not ideal for tall people over 190 cm+ height. Multiple "Rituals..." premium brand wall mounted bottles hand wash, hand & body lotion, and shower gel, conditioner and shampoo from the "Ritual of Jing"-series containing "Sacred" Lotus and Jujuba (sic), perhaps yet another attempt at creating that Chinese atmosphere, nice scent though. Completely under-dimensioned breakfast room, not enough seating, very crowded, somewhat limited selection of hot food. The self-check in terminal was malfunctioning, so had to wait for the receptionist for a manual check in. Not a smile nor a friendly welcome, receptionist were like a robot and there were no acknowledgement of club membership or the usual special welcome nor honouring of my club tier, also no honouring of special requests such as room far from elevator, high floor, etc.. No complimentary water bottle or kettle in the room. There was a basic (unfortunately quite expensive) mini-bar in the room. Very inconvenient and remote to get to via public transport, there is a bus & tram stop 10 minutes walk from the hotel with rather scare traffic at times, then a 15 minute ride to/from the city centre. Would also like to mention that despite that it was in the coldest part of the winter in month of February it was unusually cold inside for a hotel room and got suspicious about maybe the central heating is purposely down a degree or two to save money? In conclusion, yet another very basic Stordalen vanity project, completely soulless and with the very spartan interior and the cold temperature plus the dark decoration and empty sterile walls as well as the hotels very remote location only adds to a feeling of despair. The standard double room is too small and the double bed and shower is rather small and challenging for a couple taller than 190+ cm body height. Not enough value for money, would not stay again and would on the basis of all the above not recommend this hotel. This was my third reservation with a Nordic Choice/Strawberry-hotel in Gothenburg and I'm sorry to say, but I'm far from impressed and kind of disappointed. Far too expensive for such a basic hotel experience. You can get more value for money at a far better location somewhere else.

Very quiet, comfortable, smart hotel with friendly, helpful staff. We had to check out before breakfast (from 6am w/days, 7am w/ends) and reception arranged for us to take 2 x breakfast bags with us. (Cheese roll, yoghurt, pastry, apple & juice). Free coffee is available all day (with takeaway paper cups & lids) and any pastries left from breakfast are complimentary also. Airport transfer bus drops off/picks up at Lindholmen which is flat, easy 10-15 minute walk to hotel. Frequent buses to city centre and shopping areas at end of the road

I am very pleased with everything at this hotel. The service of the staff, the cleanliness, good value for the money and last but not least a fantastic breakfast buffet. Thanks! I will be back for sure.

A very stylish hotel with great service and nice rooms. Good breakfast and a fantastic restaurant. The hotel has a great gym and relaxation area. It’s located in an "up and coming" area just outside the city center of Gothenburg, but there is public transport right nearby that takes you into the city center in 10 minutes. Definitely my new favorite hotel in Gothenburg!

Every space has a function here and the hotel was located near the harbor. An extra plus was the hotel had access to a free ferry service that was called "Alvelvi." This ten minute service allowed you to explore central Gothenburg. Take the "Lundbystrand" route and get off at "Stenpiren." Kudos goes to the front staff for their helpful and informative assistance. Their follow up with my requests were appreciated. The breakfast buffet was varied and fresh. Even though this new, modern and clean hotel was lovely, it was just not the right property for me. As a well-seasoned traveler, you adjust to new surroundings but I did want to address the following issues. It wasn't about the staff I had concerns with. They were great. It was the hotel policies that were put in place. Don't know if this was a Clarion brand issue or a local property decision. Here are my thoughts for consideration. Clearly this property was designed with a younger generation in mind. 1/ Put phones in guest rooms - if I had an emergency during the night and was traveling solo, there presently are no phones. I was told I could contact the front desk by sending an email. They don't use WhatsApp. If the email didn't get a response, I suppose I could take the elevator down to the front desk and report my issue hoping there was assistance. Is that what a guest would also have to do if their smoke detector went off? Personally, not having a phone is a hotel liability waiting to happen. For someone who is a "mature" traveler (and a former international event planner), the hotel's decision made me a little anxious. Luckily, I chilled out after day one. Also, trying to call the hotel on a personal cell phone while at the airport was unsuccessful. The call was during the week before 9 pm. An airport rep even tried to call the hotel twice on my behalf with no luck either. Luckily my arranged airport transfer did happen and off I went. 2/ Put safe deposit boxes in rooms or have some available if guests request them - "Gothenburg is safe here. No worries" is what I was told. I found out there were boxes in the luggage room area on the first floor. That location might work for the Swedish guests who are confident of that arrangement. Guests from other countries might think differently based on their personal safety experiences. This property created a great social atmosphere that guests can get together. There was positive energy in the common areas when I was there. I wish the hotel all the best.