Originally Posted by
747LWW
I especially appreciate and I am impressed by your detailed knowledge of the area and your kind reference to the hotel site. I am interested in history and your description of the area has convienced me that I must include Eufurt/Weimar on my agenda for a visit later this year. (Since I am a member of the Accor program, this makes your hotel recommendation most helpful.) By the way, if I understood correctly The Grand Hotel we are discussing is a Mercure property, correct?
Thanks for your kind words - and it's my pleasure to urge others to see this beautiful and "off-the-beaten path" area of Germany.
The hotel is indeed a Mercure. I recall being in Erfurt in October 2003 - I attended a performance in the Theater Erfrt, which had opened just the previous month. When walking across the street, I saw the construction site for the future hotel - the wording mentioned Accor Hotels (no brand was mentioned). There was also an artist's depiction of what the hotel would lok like, and I thought for sure that it would be a Sofitel (but I was wrong). I think that Accor may have determined that the local market might not be able to support Sofitel-level pricing, so the furnishings were scaled back (but they're just fine, as you can see in the website photos).
The hotel is just a short distance from the city center (the Anger plaza, the heart of the shopping area and the "crossroads" for the city's extensive tram system (EVAG). For example, if arriving by DB train, one would simply walk out of the Hauptbahnhof and find the tram stop (same side of the street as the station). Tram #4 runs directly to the side entrance of the Theater, which is across the plaza from the entrance to the hotel (only four stops away).
Another helpful link to info on the area is:
http://www.erfurt-tourist-info.de/en.htm