DUS hotels?
 

Have an upcoming trade show in Cologne, but the hotel prices are through the roof as always. Since I'm paying out of my own pocket, I figured I'll stay in Dusseldorf and take the train in to the show every day. Anyone have any recommendations on hotels in Dusseldorf (3 to 4 Star) that are comfortable for the business traveler and within a 5 minute walk of the train station? Something with a balcony would be great.

Another alternative could be Bonn. The Hilton in Bonn is about 15 minutes walk from the main train station or you take the light train and connect to the regional train (you just need to buy one ticket).

I usually use http://bedmap.com/ for these things to find a place maybe out of town but near a train line.

The balcony might be a bit of a problem. Otherwise there is a Holiday Inn at Ludwig Erhard Allee which is right at the main station or try the NH Hotel City (Kölner Strasse, 186-188). The Intercity Hotels is also walkable distance.

We have quite good subway / tram connections to the main station, os if you extend it to five minutes tram ride, you have far more options (like Four Points - a view rooms have a balcony), another Holiday Inn, another NH (Aderstraße) ...

I recently spend a night there and it was absolute fine (and rather cheap, too). I would not invest the money to breakfast, but purchase breakfast at the station.

Enjoy!

Novotel and Mercure
 

From my personal experience I can recommend a couple of hotels in Dusseldorf.

The first would be the Mercure Dusseldorf City Center which is right across the street from the main train station in Dusseldorf. The rooms aren't the largest, but it is very stylish and comfortable and right in the heart of the city.
http://www.mercure.com/gb/hotel-5373...er/index.shtml

The second would be the Novotel Dusseldorf City West. While this is not near the train station, there is a metro stop right across from the hotel and it is a short (15 minute) ride to the train station from there. The metro drops you off directly underneath the train station. I enjoyed this hotel very much. The restaurant is very nice and just a great hotel. It exceeded my expectations.
http://www.novotel.com/gb/hotel-3279...rn/index.shtml

If you have any questions on either hotel please let me know.