Grand Hotel Karel V

"A good hotel in the city center of Utrecht with a Michelin-starred restaurant and a brasserie. Lots of grounds around, a sort of haven of peace in a bustling city. Decent room but a little poorly soundproofed. The breakfast is very good with extras prepared on request but the service is not very efficient, a shame for a 5-star hotel."

"A historic hotel with a presentation of artifacts inside. Certainly imposing and with an enviable location for its proximity to both the station - behind it - and the historic center. We were puzzled in a five-star property by the reception, which looks like a transplant from a modest little hotel; it certainly clashes with the rest. Rooms fairly standard (they gave us a room in the new wing, the view certainly left something to be desired) and breakfast good but not wow, the buffet needs improvement. In summary, excellent property in terms of location, not 5 stars due to a couple of details."

"We did not feel welcome. We paid in advance (not cheap!), but the hotel started out by charging 50Euros in deposit in case we would steal from the room or plunder the minibar without paying. This sends a message that you are not really welcome and you are not to be trusted. We never experienced this in other hotels and we certainly never expected it from this one as it seems high class and - we thought - not likely to have many criminal customers. So despite the hotel objectively being very fine, with good facilities and well located, this way of "welcoming" guests made the stay far less enjoyable than it could have been, as we felt barely accepted as guests. Would not recommend. And might I add, we did not feel like using the minibar at all."