This hotel is a solid three stars. It had some great plusses but also a few drawbacks. Considering most rates we saw were 50-100% higher than this property, we do feel that we received a good value for our hotel expenditure.
Pros were cleanliness (exceptional!), air conditioning (hard to find in mid-range properties in Germany), and a really awesome, deep soaking tub in the fully updated bathroom. The quiet location and generally older mix of guests made this a fine place to lay our heads and clean our bodies. In-room coffee, on-premise full breakfast, free parking and a super-cool trouser press would make this a good location for business travelers.
That being said, we were here for pleasure, not business, and wanted a bit more than the area had to offer. This is not the fault of the hotel chain, of course, but rather something for other pleasure travelers to be aware! One HUGE plus was that it is literally a half-block from the Gunzelstrasse U-station, so we could get anywhere we wanted without taxis or a rental car. Very economical! The immediate vicinity is primarily residential, so there were a few good (but not great) restaurants, and very limited (i.e., almost zero) nightlife. This would be ideal for older patrons who may not want a lot of commotion and just want to rest in the evenings, but we are the type who enjoy fine dining, live music, clubbing and other more lively nightlife. This Wilmersdorf district is not the place for such things.
Staff was adequately helpful and provided other assistance as needed. However, we did have conflict with whether the Internet was free or paid. We booked at a site stating it was free, but were not granted free access without a bit of discussion with the front desk. In the end, they made it good, and that was the only hiccup in the service.
We did not use the amenities, mostly deterred by their pricing. The small lobby bar wanted 4 euro for a beer, almost double prices elsewhere. The lobby computer charged by-the-minute for Internet. And the on-premise breakfast buffet was 16 euro per person, whereas any of the local bakeries could fuel us with quiche, pastry and coffee for less than 6 euro apiece.
All in all a solid hotel for the price, but next time we will try to find something more aligned with our personal tastes and needs as leisure travelers. read more