Fred Hotel Central

Air conditioning, convenient location We showed up a few minutes after 3pm exhausted from travel and looking forward to lying down. To our dismay, our room was not ready at 3pm. Apparently, there was only one staff member cleaning rooms and there had been a bunch of checkouts that day, so not all of the rooms had been cleaned by 3pm. Our room was reprioritized to be cleaned next. I’m sure our cleaner did their best, but the room was not ready until 4:15pm. To rectify the situation, the remote staff suggested reserving free luggage lockers so that we can store our luggage and go into the city. We were able to successfully reserve two of the luggage lockers. However, the keys for those two luggage lockers never showed up on the website. As such, we were unable to lock and unlock the luggage lockers. The remote staff were able to remotely lock and unlock the luggage lockers, but we had no control ourselves. The remote staff suggested manually turning the locks, but the locks cannot be manually turned, suggesting that the remote staff have no actual experience with the luggage lockers. Although the remote staff could remotely lock and unlock the luggage lockers, I did not want to leave control of our luggage in their hands because I no longer had any confidence in the hotel at that point. I did not want to risk our luggage being locked away as a result of us having no control over the lockers. As such, we instead chose to wait over an hour for our room to become ready. The lack of notification that our room would not be ready at 3pm, coupled with uncontrollable luggage lockers made for a bad experience. The remote staff did their best, but for the amount of money spent, I expected a better experience. The rooms themselves were good, though the bed pillows were thin and uncomfortable.

If René Magritte were to paint the Fred Hotel, he might inscribe beneath it: “Ceci n’est pas un hôtel.” Because, dear traveler—this is not a hotel. This is, rather artfully, a room. A very nice room, to be fair, but a room and nothing more. Upon arrival, you may find yourself searching for the front desk, perhaps expecting a warm Swiss welcome. Instead, you’ll be greeted by the existential realization: “No one is here.” The staff, like the concept of service, is purely theoretical. Need a fresh towel or a refill of shower soap? Request away! The answer is as surreal as Magritte’s pipe: “No one is here.” The broken safe? Consider it a metaphor for your expectations—locked away, never to be fixed. Breakfast, bar, restaurant, gym—these are but figments of your imagination. The Fred Hotel offers none of these distractions. Why clutter your experience with the superfluous? Here, you are invited to meditate on the purity of the room itself: a comfortable bed, a nice shower, and the minimalist thrill of no cleaning during your stay. To be fair, the room is suitably appointed. The bed is comfortable, the shower is pleasant, and the décor is modern. But let us not confuse a well-furnished room with a hotel. Just as Magritte’s pipe is not a pipe, the Fred Hotel is not a hotel. It is, at best, a well-appointed room rental—an ode to the absence of hospitality. So, if you seek the illusion of a hotel, the Fred Hotel is a masterpiece. But if you require actual hotel services, remember: “Ceci n’est pas un hôtel.” It’s just a room—nothing more, nothing less.

very convenient, smart, has lots of facilities that we need nothing

Rooms were new and clean. Great location just steps from the main station. Fridge and kettle were great to have in the room. The air conditioning works amazing!!

Location is great. Close to everything. The tram is just in front, it helped us get to the central location easily. I love the shower head too. I wish there’s a staff present so we can ask questions.

WhatsApp team was slow to respond. In a hotel that does not have staff, I would expect a faster response. Parking instructions on the website were confusing.

Seemed to provide the minimum. We are a couple-only 2 bath towels and 2 hand towels for a few days stay. Mini fridge was very warm. Only one chair on a very large patio. I requested another- but received the response it is self check in. Plan on no service when you stay there.

I sent numerous messages through Booking.com and Whatsapp and all messages went unanswered.

Bed was very comfortable lift was convenient. Tram stop directly outside. Quiet area, lovely bathroom. Great to have a small outdoor space. Ac very welcome. Free locking lockers were very useful. Weird that there were no staff on site but we had no issues. Make sure your phone is charged to access all keys!

Comfortable, clean and easy access. Love the baggage lockers. The shower area, the design could definitely be improved, too much water spread everywhere. There is also termites that comes from the window.

Rooms are very neat, clean and quiet location walking distance off the main old town strip and the train and bus stations. It’s pleasant, yet expensive place to relax for a night or two The self check in is a little bit funky for first time user and no staff on premises. It is expensive, not at all good value as the rooms are tiny for the price paid.

The noise from the street and the pillows are too soft

Exceptional

Checking in was initially a problem until we downloaded the app which wasn’t very clear. Perhaps a notice on the door would be helpful. Once I had spoken to reception and downloaded the app it was really smooth and efficient. Your phone becomes your key. Worked great.

Superb

The location was good, not far from the train station. The bed was comfortable. It was clean and modern. Good wifi. Nice tiny balcony, good for checking the weather. Very secure hotel. Nice shower and we liked having a mini refrigerator. There is a tea pot and we liked the coffee they provided. There is a little elevator which helped when taking luggage up. But we liked the steps. The check in was difficult since we did not have wifi. We had to call someone on the intercom. We did not see this person but they let us in. Then we went up the wrong steps and found out it was not the correct hotel. It was the Fred apartments. Finally we went up the correct steps. The number 621 is on the 2nd floor. We did not realize this at first. We thought the room was a little small, but not as bad as some hotels.

The room was okay. It was nice to have a dryer for towels. The bathroom was so small. Shower curtains sticks to your body while showering.

The decor in the room was nice. The hassle of the self check-in. I have done self check- in before in another country and had no trouble with their process though the very idea of traveling any distance and walking into a hotel and having to figure out a hotel’s check-in process is unwelcoming no matter how easy it is. In the case of the process in Japan, at least there was counter staff available when problems arose. Likewise, I have rented Air BNBs before so it wasn’t that everything was remote. On rbis occasion, it was coming into a darkish hotel without the courtesy of a face to make us feel welcome and secure. Granted, we checked in after 11:00 p.m. so that added to the discomfort as there was very little light in the walk-up and virtually none in the lobby and “so-called” reception area.

The hotel is in a great location, just a few minutes walk from the train station and also within walking distance to the Old City Center, one of the main spots for walking and sightseeing, with plenty of restaurants and bars. The self check-in process was straightforward and you even have the option to create your own keycards, which we did, in case you don't want to always rely on your phone for accessing the room. We got the suite on the last floor, so we had a very big terrace which we enjoyed a lot. The room was spacious and we particularily enjoyed the room layout. It was a great stay and we will definitely book again whenever we're in Zurich. On the bed we had two very different pillows, one of them was too big and too hard to sleep on, so I've had to improvise one from the smaller decorative ones, which I have put in a pillow sheet. On the terrace we had only one chair and we were a couple, it would have been nice to have two chairs, but we used a chair from the room, so no big deal. Both of these were not big issues, we were happy with our stay, thus the excellent rating. It's just that I believe it's important to share any kind of feedback, so that the property management can continously improve.

The central location and walkability is a great feature for this hotel. The self check in is so easy and convenient. I was able to create a card to access my room at the hotel, which I found preferable for access. The room was comfy and quiet and cosy. It had everything I needed. I really loved the modern room with Bluetooth speaker throughout the room and USB plugs. I felt very safe and comfortable and even though my room was right by the stairways I did not hear any noise from outside my room.