Been here at least two dozen times, often with my crew with ten rooms and more. Even though the…read morearea can be scary and the process to get extensive luggage to the room can be painful, I went again and again.
Sadly, the entire attitude in the hotel has changed. Even though the hotel appeared to be pretty booked, they are saving money on staff and service.
I stayed multiple night and had to work from my room. The internet was a nightmare - I could barely get text emails, no chance to submit any images to my clients. I tried to change the room, no one cared.
Then, there is no single power outlet that stays active when pulling the key card. I tried submit files while on breakfast and dinner - but ran out of power while trying to submit a single image.....
Finally, I used to love their breakfast - I am a Rösti (hash brown) junkie. Since my stroke, I have to lose weight, so the "have breakfast like a king, lunch like a beggar and no dinner at all" rule applies to me, so a big breakfast sort of takes me though the day.
Could not wait to get their Rösti - after all this is the Swiss hotel Mövenpick, they sort of invented the thing. Man I tell you: I had the worst in my life on any day I stayed. Soggy, cold - and yes, I did bring this to the chef's attention. His response was that the Hamburg is not an original Mövenpick but a franchise, and they get the potatoes ready in a bag and that's how they do it. No chance to get some fresh warm ones.
Sorry, not good enough for me. I will not go again - and my next Hamburg stay is this weekend on tour with Alphaville.
Thanks for reading my comment. Now, if you are curious enough about my "rating scheme", here's "the moment of truth. I am a music photographer who travels the world with the worlds greatest musical talents (Michael Jackson, AC/DC, Rolling Stones or Rammstein, to name a few) for almost 40 years. When being asked "where do you live" I tended to ask "in hotels". At my peak, I "shot" 250 shows a year. Will say: been there, saw and tasted it, and a lot, as I may say and much to the dismay of my doctor who is in my back to lose a few pounds. Quite a few, as I may add, which is why my wife and I walk ten thousand steps per day, where- and whenever we can - and explore a lot of new exciting places - places you may oversee when just driving by.
While I love to share my experience with others, I am sometimes shocked how people use their "power of word" to down-rate amazing places because of minor incidents (in my all time favourite restaurant Le Petit Four on Sunset Plaza the owner was even called a racist as he refused to toast the (free) bread in his packed restaurant - they simply do not offer toasted bread, as no French place does, as I may add). Or I just read "Chicken piccata so over-salted I hope the dog enjoys the leftovers tomorrow, I brought home most of the dish." Did they speak to their service? How could the restaurant learn that something was wrong when patrons even have their leftovers boxed to take home? As a dog owner, I want to take the writer and shake him or her really bad and say "you give over-salted food to your dog? Anyone with a bit of brain understands this is a horrible idea... I hope you agree.
So If I had the say on this portal, I would offer just to see ratings of my friends. So I would see what the ratings were by like-minded people. Sadly, I have no say. I try not to compare apples with oranges. A place like this simply does not compare to "The Ritz". At first, I assume that a restaurant is clean, they do not greet you with a gun - and they deliver whatever they promise. I do not give stars for things that are expected. In my rating scheme, three or more stars are awarded if they actually exceeded my expectation. Four, if I am sure I will come back. To achieve five stars, I must be willing to take a detour of thirty minutes or more to go again.
Thank you for reading this.
