Where is it?
There are two Radisson hotels at Zürich Kloten Airport. The Radisson Blu Zürich Airport and the Radisson Hotel Zürich Airport. It is easy to mix these up. This is a review of the latter.
There is one difference in particular between the two. The Radisson Blu Hotel is located next to the terminal building, within easy walking distance from the arrivals hall and departure hall. The Radisson Hotel is located in Rümlang, on the opposite side of the airport about 5 km away, which requires taking a shuttle bus.
Some people may consider having to take a shuttle bus a disadvantage compared to staying at a hotel close to the terminals, but on the other hand the Radisson Hotel is significantly cheaper. The Radisson Blu Hotel next to the terminals can be quite pricey.
A benefit of choosing the Radisson Hotel is also that there are a number of shops, restaurants and facilities in Rümlang, most of them just across the street from the hotel. The hotel may be somewhat far from the terminal building but it is definitely not in the middle of nowhere.
If you want to get to the hotel from downtown Zürich (or somewhere else in Switzerland) there is a train station in Rümlang, which is not far from the hotel (about 850 metres). The station is served by the S9 and S15 lines.
The arrival experience
I arrived by plane at Zürich Kloten airport at 10 pm and managed to catch the shuttle bus leaving at 10.30 pm. The shuttle bus generally leaves every 30 minutes during most of the day. The timetable is available on the hotel webpage.
The shuttle bus leaves (and arrives, on the way back from the hotel) at the designated ‘Hotelbus’ busstop outside the arrivals hall. There are plenty of signs.
The ride to the hotel is free but on the way back you will have to pay 3 CHF. The ticket can be purchased at the reception desk at the same time as you check out.
The ride to the hotel usually takes around ten minutes however this evening it was incredibly windy in the Zürich area and apparently a tree had fallen across the road leading to the hotel so the police had closed it meaning we had to take another much longer route to get there. This was also the reason the bus was somewhat late, which the driver apologised about. This was obviously not his fault and he probably got a rather stressful evening having to take the longer route back and forth.
I arrived at the hotel around 10.45 pm. We were only two passengers in the bus and were both immediately checked in.
The small lobby gave a good first impression with its fairly modern and colourful interior and the receptionist who checked me in was friendly and accommodating.
The room
The hotel has 211 rooms divided into Standard rooms, High floor standard rooms, Superior rooms (with either a countryside view or an airport view) and Family rooms.
I had booked a standard room but was upgraded to a superior room thanks to my Radisson Rewards Gold card and on top of that one of the rooms with a great airport view.
The room was located on the fourth floor and measured 24 sqm. The standard rooms and the superior rooms are of the same size so the main differences are the view and some extra amenities available in the room such as coffee and tea-making facilities.
The room had a rather comfortable king-sized bed from European Ecolabel Elite, with a nice picture above it featuring downtown Zürich. There was also a work desk and a TV, rather conveniently mounted in the ceiling so you could enjoy it from the bed.
There was a small cupboard with coffee and tea-making facilities, iron board and a safe, but there was no minibar.
There was no separate bathroom in the room, with a door or some kind of divider, instead these were placed in full view from the rest of the room.
There was a shower booth with colouful pictures from Zürich, a wash basin and a toilet (with a door fortunately).
But best of all, if you enjoy airplanes, which I do, I got one of the superior rooms with a fantastic airport view.
The view was really terrific. By the time I arrived at the room around 11 pm most flights for the day had already departed or landed, and on top of that it was rather dark, but I got to see some of the longhaul flights taking off to Asia and South America.
The view was obviously significantly better in the morning when there was also more traffic.
Food and drinks
There is a bar and a restaurant called Bocca Buona and as the name suggests the focus is on Italian food like pizza and pasta.
I made a quick visit to the bar in the evening to have a glass of wine before going to bed. The Bocca Buona bar is a very relaxed and informal place with long wooden tables where you can stress down after a long day. It is certainly nothing fancy but quite enjoyable if you enjoy something casual.
They also have some rather interesting decorations in the bar.
Some snacks and drinks, such as yoghurt and sandwiches, are also available from the small self-service shop in the lobby.
And not to forget, there is a McDonalds at the hotel, in the very same building. There is even a small corridor leading from the lobby to the restaurant, so you do not even have to go outdoors. And it is open late, from 8 am until midnight all days of the week, and to 4 am on Friday and Saturday nights. So if you want something inexpensive to eat you can always pop in there.
There are also several other dining options close to the hotel, for example a Subway restaurant just across the street, which is also open late.
Other facilities
Free Wi-Fi is available at the hotel and there is a small business centre with internet computers in the lobby. There are also 10 multipurpose meeting rooms for up to 150 guests and a fitness centre, which is open 24 hours.
Service
The service was friendly and accommodating both at the reception desk and at the bar.
The recognition of me as Radisson Rewards Gold was also good with both an upgrade to a superior room (and I very much enjoyed the airport view) and a small welcome gift waiting on the desk.
Breakfast
Breakfast was not included in my rate and since I had lounge access at the airport, where I would be able to have a proper hot breakfast, I decided to skip the breakfast at the hotel.
The breakfast is served in the Bocca Buona restaurant on the ground floor.
Final impression
A surprisingly pleasant and modern hotel, especially given the price tag, even though it is somewhat far from the airport terminal. Both the room and the public areas were spotless while the bar was rather relaxed. The hotel is significantly cheaper than the other Radisson Hotel at the airport but requires taking a shuttle bus. And a big plus for having a McDonalds in the same building, if you want a late evening snack.
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