Some here don’t like Ku’damm’s Sofitel but I do. This was probably my sixth stay there. I have never had any major issues staying at the hotel and have always been given access to the lounge. I have mainly been unhappy with the welcome gift of cheap fruits.

Since the general manager changed last year I contacted him and asked about the lounge policy. He confirmed that platinum members are welcome to use the lounge.

Check In

The check-in at the front desk was swift. I had prepaid the stay and there was no need to show credit card. The luxury premium room booked was upgraded to a junior suite. It wasn’t ready when we arrived at 10am but we could enjoy breakfast in the lounge while waiting.

Room

The junior suite was spacious, one open space of about 60 sqm. Bathroom had both rain shower and bathtub, plus two sinks. Amenities included complimentary mineral water, Nespresso coffee, Hermes toiletries (originally Lanvin but they were changed after I asked), and bathrobes and slippers of course.

Lounge

The lounge was small but never too crowded. There were about ten people at best, us included.

It served basic breakfast (the quality had decreased a little bit since last visit but did the job), afternoon tea (only sweets, unfortunately, but of good quality) and happy hour (a few canapés, cheese and desserts, not sufficient to replace dinner but different every evening). The lounge staff offered a possibility to order food from the room service menu which we did.

Drinks included two white wines, one red, cremant, beers, soft drinks, and some mediocre spirits. A good enough selection.

Unfortunately, breakfast in the restaurant wasn’t complimentary. One must had it in the lounge. Another strange thing: they didn’t have a printed list of lounge benefits but one of the kind staff members wrote them down when I asked.

Platinum treatment

On top of the early check-in, the room upgrade and the lounge access, we received a late check-out at 4pm, two drinks vouchers and an improved welcome amenity: a larger fruit platter with chocolates.

Overall

Excellent value, keep returning.

My second stay at the Sofitel Kurfürstendamm and it was brilliant, not perfect but overall a very good stay.

Check In

Check in initially (at 11am) promised to be a problem. When I asked about an upgrade I got the usual range of excuses. However after some pushback and once the staff member actually checked the computer an upgrade materialised. A very good 2 category upgrade actually, from junior suite to .... well you'll see. The room was not ready yet so I went to the lounge for a coffee and a Danish and then to work. When I came back at 13h the room was ready and waiting for me.

Room

Entrance of the room

Dining area

Lounge area

Desk

Kitchenette

Bedroom

Bathroom amenities

Panoramic views from the room

So I got the best room in the house. Can't complain at all.

Welcome amenity

The Platinum welcome gift consisted of a bowl of fruit and some Turkish style sweets.

A personalised note welcomed me back to the hotel. There was no info on the lounge times but a quick look back at this thread helped!

Executive Lounge

Having an executive lounge at a European Sofitel is a rarity as we all know but it is certainly very welcome (not matter what the Accor CEO Sébastien Bazin thinks). I could not detect any enlargement to be honest. It looked exactly as it did when I was there last. What did unfortunately change was the range and quality of the offering (and some of the staff).

When I popped in initially a very friendly woman (who I remembered from my previous stay) was staffing the lounge. She is truly excellent and on the top of her game. Unfortunately for the rest of my stay she was not there and the other staff were less motivated. This meant no personal greeting and food and drinks were slow to be replenished.

The range and quality has gone down a little bit. My travelling companion remarked that this lounge was not like an Asian lounge. Indeed it wasn't.

The breakfast was probably the best, though the warm offering of scrambled eggs and bacon was not very good. Other warm options cost money. The cold buffet was ok though, but just during cocktail time plates were often left empty for too long. Despite the lounge never really being full it took time to get coffee refilled.

The evening drinks consisted of the some spirits, wine and very few nibbles. the best being the cheese, the rest was forgettable.

Service

We had room service and couple of cocktails sent up to the room. Overall service was ok though the room service guy was a tad abrupt. That said when I asked for a few slices of lime to be sent up I got a whole bowl of lime and lemons, peeled.

Drinks vouchers

I was issued with four! drinks vouchers (occupancy 2). One version for wine and one for an "aperitif". None of them apparently were valid for champagne or a G&T as I was told in the bar. The aperitif only applied to the restaurant. I was not the only one complaining about this rather strange policy as the waitress was well aware that this was odd for a Sofitel.

Bar

The bar, on the ground floor, is not great. Over it are the hotel's function rooms and noise from there travels. The poor drinks voucher encounter did not enhance my experience.

Location

Location is as before ;) Taxi ride from Tegel airport is €23 though a bus will also bring you very close to the hotel.

Overall

Overall this was a brilliant stay. The upgrade really made this stay. When I checked out I told them that they needed to watch service and quality in the lounge. It is a great asset to have but only if they maintain standards.

I'd happily return. Value for money was decent.