The Excelsior Hotel Ernst with a view of Cologne Cathedral, the Dom, was built in 1863. Carl Ernst was the constructor and first owner of the hotel, which was formerly called “Hotel Ernst”.  Eight years later, in 1871, Carl Ernst sold the hotel to Friedrich Kracht. Four years after buying the hotel, Kracht died and his wife and son, Carl Kracht, had to manage the Innenstadt hotel. Meanwhile, the hotel had become part of Cologne’s better society, and in 1884, Carl Kracht was appointed Prince of the Cologne Carnival – a big honor in Cologne. From early times, the hotel had famous guests, such as German Emperor William I and American artist Andy Warhol.

In 1889, Carl Kracht married Emma Pauline Baur of the Swiss Hoteliers family Baur, who owned both the famous Hotel Baur au Lac and the Savoy Baur en Ville. Carl Kracht and his family lived in Zurich and he managed the Hotel Baur au Lac. After his wedding, he appointed a general manager to take care of the Hotel Ernst’s operations.

From 1908 to 1910 the Hotel Ernst was rebuilt and re-opened as Grand-Hotel Excelsior Hotel Ernst with at the time unparalleled comfort: 100 rooms out of 250 had a private bathroom. In 1918, after World War I, the British Army moved into the hotel and used it as their headquarters during the occupation of the Rhineland. On 31 December 1926 Excelsior Hotel Ernst celebrated its second re-opening after the British army left. During World War II, a part of the hotel was damaged and the owner family was very concerned to rebuild it as soon as the war was over. So, another re-opening took place after the end of World War II.

In 1986 a new wing was constructed. The hotel is a member of the Leading Hotels of the World group and the Kracht family is still the owner.

My check-in was pleasant, swift and the agent escorted me to the room and explained  all features of the room.

My room was a Grand Deluxe room in the Hansewing. It was generous in size with a comfortable bed, a working desk, an all-inclusive minibar and a good sized bathroom.

The hotel has a piano bar and two restaurants, both of which are famous. Restaurant taku has one Michelin star and offers modern Asian cuisine.  The hotel’s second restaurant is the famous Hanse Stube restaurant.

Hanse Stube restaurant is well-known for its elegant and friendly atmosphere. It is an award winning restaurant  and has become famous in Germany.  People from Cologne, as well as international guests, have been enjoying innovative French cuisine combined with regional influences at this restaurant for decades.

I had breakfast at the Hanse Stube restaurant which offered a wide choice of food and freshly prepared egg dishes. The service was a bit unconfident and slow but that may have been due to the fact that only a single staff member was on duty at the time. It was early morning and only about 4 – 5 guests were present but the full buffet was available.

There is a small gym with a sauna, steam room, rain and a cold shower  and a relaxing room available on the top floor. The gym is impeccably clean, featuring plenty of towels, drinking water, fruit and all necessary items for a relaxing evening after a busy day.

The Excelsior Hotel Ernst is a very pleasant hotel. Modern, centrally located, just opposite the Dom and 2 min walk from the main train station and the Rhine River. The staff I met were friendly and helpful. The hotel tends to get very busy during Fair times and enjoys many return guests.

I can highly recommend the Excelsior Hotel Ernst in Cologne if you are looking for a luxury hotel with an excellent location and distinguished service.

 

https://www.excelsiorhotelernst.com/en/5-star-luxury-hotel-in-cologne.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

Swissotel Amsterdam is a four-star boutique hotel located by Dam Square, in the heart of Amsterdam’s historic city centre and a short walk from Amsterdam Central Station. The hotel is surrounded by shops, museums and restaurants and is a 20-minute drive from Amsterdam Schiphol International Airport.

Check-in at the Swissotel was a breeze. The front office agent was very welcoming and recognised me as a Swissotel Circle member and immediately upgraded me to a swiss-select room with a nice view over the square. It was a corner room with a small staircase going up to the bedroom. Nice clean room with electric curtains and a comfortable large bed. There was a working desk, a minibar and a Nespresso machine. The bathroom was small but the shower was large with a hand shower or a rain shower to choose from. The bathroom was layed out in grey stone and looked very chic. The hotel had a small gym and an outsourced restaurant called Royal 89. The restaurant looked nice and fresh but I did not try it. I checked out within 2 minutes and the same friendly front office staff member offered me a bottle of water to take with me on the way out.

My stay at the Swissotel was a pleasant experience and the best thing about the hotel is its location on Dam Square, right in the city centre and  just minutes walk from the main train station. Verdict: good standard hotel with reasonable rates during the off season.

https://www.swissotel.com/hotels/amsterdam

 

The Castillo Hotel Son Vida was built in the 13th century and is a member of The Luxury Collection of the Starwood/Marriott Hotels Group. Son Vida is a small village located above Palma de Mallorca, the main city on the island where the business centre, the airport and the shipping terminal are located. The hotel offers incomparable views of the Bay of Palma and has a large terrace which is often called “The Balcony of Palma”.

I stayed in a deluxe room on the 8th floor (highest floor) with a splendid view. The room was oversized with a charming wooden ceiling decoration, warm colours and all amenities that you could wish for. The room had a large bathroom with separate shower and bathtub.

The hotel’s occupancy was not high as it was low season, but the bar and 1 of the 2 restaurants were open and all the food that I tasted was excellent. There were friendly staff everywhere and beautiful decorations all over the hotel. The Spa was closed for renovation but a gym was available with a small heated pool/jacuzzi.

I enjoyed my stay at the Castillo Hotel Son Vida very much and would come back to this beautiful castle any time. All round it was a very pleasant experience.

 

http://www.castillosonvidamallorca.com/en

Club Lounge:

 

The Grand Hyatt Dubai is a huge resort style hotel located between Dubai airport and Dubai downtown. There is a large airy lobby with plenty of plants and other decorations. It seems like a small jungle in the desert. The hotel has numerous restaurants and bars, a hair salon, a pharmacy, a jewellery shop and some excursion desks.

I booked a room with club level access on the 14th floor. The room was nicely decorated with a comfortable bed, a working desk and a small separate wardrobe. The bathroom had a separate shower, bathtub and toilet.

The club lounge was very large with a great view over the hotel gardens. You could see the 3 pools, the children’s play area and the event venue. The lounge food offerings were breakfast (a nice extensive choice), coffee and tea as well as soft drinks all day.

Happy hour consisted of cocktails and wines, and the food was more like a small dinner buffet rather than only a snack choice. Hot and cold items, as well as salads and desserts, were available. It seemed to me that many guests used this as their place to have dinner so seating was almost always full, but due to the size of the lounge it was still pleasant. There was also a separate section for families with children.

The hotel has a gym, 3 outdoor swimming pools, sports facilities which include a heated indoor pool and a gym. All the staff members that I met were friendly and nice. There is no scheduled turn-down service but it is available on request and given the large size of the hotel, the housekeeping department was quick in response, efficient and fast.

If you are looking for a hotel which is away from the beach, and still not too far from the city centre or the airport, the Grand Hyatt Dubai is a good choice.

https://dubai.grand.hyatt.com/en/hotel/home.html

TRIED AND TESTED: JW MARRIOTT HOTEL DUBAI

 

 

Located just minutes away from Dubai International Airport this hotel is a top standard business class hotel with several high class restaurants such as JW Steakhouse, Cucina, Hofbräuhaus, Vienna Cafe, Champion Sports Bar and Bamboo Lounge which are very popular among locals as well as hotel guests.

http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/dxbae-jw-marriott-hotel-dubai/

 

The former Relais Spa Hotel at Paris CDG Airport is now managed by Crown Plaza. It is a large hotel which caters for the crews of several Asian airlines. The rooms are a good size with a small kitchenette  including a microwave oven for warming food or drinks.

The hotel features all the normal amenities  that you would expect. There is a bar and a restaurant which never seem to be busy.  I had a meal at the restaurant and it was good and service was well done. There is a large Spa which has a sauna, massages and a heated indoor swimming pool. Computer stations are also available as well as free wifi. The area around the hotelcomprises other hotels and not much else. There has been a terrible robbery attack to a tourist group with gas sprays outside on the public street and they were all robbed. So better be careful.

Unfortunately, under the new hotel management, the hotel shuttle bus now stops at CDG Terminal 2 only and no longer stops at Terminal 1 and the Roissypole RER train station. In my view, this is a major oversight as Terminal 1 is served by many airlines, including all Star Alliance airlines, and the Roissypole RER train station is the gateway to downtown Paris and the Paris Metro system. Passengers travelling to Terminal 1, or the Roissypole RER train station, now need to take a taxi directly from the hotel, or travel via Terminal 2 and use CDG’s free CDGVAL train system. Both options are inefficient, as compared to direct transportation via hotel shuttle bus. The taxi option is an added expense and can be an uncomfortable experience as taxi drivers do not like the short trip to/from CDG airport.  I believe that management should address this oversight as soon as possible and update the hotel’s website with details of the shuttle bus arrangements.  UBER is another option. I used it and it was easy and cheaper than regular taxis.

Verdict: One of the many options at CDG, certainly not the highest standard but acceptable for 1 night.

 

https://www.ihg.com/crowneplaza/hotels/us/en/roissy-en-france/parca/hoteldetail