nicolas75

The hotel is designed by Patricia Urquiola, one of the most talentuous designers.
The restaurant is very good. I love the bar (cosy more than living).

Kenji

the rebranding to become a sheraton property was finished on January 6th. a full report of my stay will follow soon.

ps: got all points already on day of departure before getting home

Fanjet

It's located alongside the Landwehrkanal (southside) about 4 blocks south of the Tiergarten park. It is not in Berlin Mitte, as the press release stated. It sits mostly in a residential setting. The main transportation link is the M29 bus (which IIRC runs 24 hours), running directly in front of the hotel, and is a major east-west line. The bus connects to several U-Bahn and a few S-Bahn stations. It runs along the Kurfürstendamm (heading west). And IIRC the M29 runs on the south side of the Landwehrkanal heading east; and the north side heading west. Also, the 200 line bus is a few blocks north (along the south side of the Tiergarten park) and will take you to Potsdamer Platz, Unter Den Linden, and Alexanderplatz; as well as the Zoologischergarten train station in the other direction.

However, if you are not familiar with Berlin, I would not recommend it on your first trip. If one is familiar with Berlin, I would not see staying there as being a problem location-wise. It actually sits right in the geographic center of the city

Kenji

Arrival
I took the airport bus from Berlin TXL airport towards Ku'Damm/Zoo with a bus change at Uhlandstraße underground station. The waiting time was around 2 min. In total I spent around half hour from the airport to get me infront the hotel. Cost: 2.70 EUR OW.

Check-In
I arrived on January 6th late around 9pm so the check-in was smooth without waiting. A dedicated SPG Gold/Platinum line was also available. The check-in agent explained everything about the hotel facilities, restaurants, indoor pool and spa etc. I was asked also about late check-out and the welcome amenity option; I took the breakfast in the restaurant.

After a few minutes I was greeted by name from the Manager on Duty who told me that the hotel operates the first day as Sheraton Berlin. As I was one of the first Platinum guests after rebranding we had some small talk and I was escorted to my room (as they do in Asian properties). The check in staff was extremely friendly helpful and friendly. I was offered help with luaggage; what is not standard in all hotels in that category.

The Club Lounge is not in operation yet but will be available soon.

Lobby
Very modern and spacious with seating options, internet desks etc. Also a fully stocked bar was available.

Room
I was upgraded to the Penthouse Level (rooms 7xx). The room was not a suite (per definition separate sleeping/sitting area) but very nice and comfy. The room size is about 45 sqm with outside patio over the full room length, dining table, seating area, flat sceen TV, writing desk (enough power outlets available), coffee maker etc.

A welcome fruit basket was provided with strawberries, oranges etc.



The sleeping comfort was very good, also the room lighting which is in most hotels a pain. lots of mirrors available, also full wall mirror in the bathroom. I loved the bathroom amenities which had a smell of lemom grass with orange ?? or something like that. For the future, extra conditioner would be nice. Pleanty of towels provided, as well slippers and bathrobe.







The complete floor was divided into 2 sections: Penthouse rooms facing the city and Parkview deluxe studios. I am sure but I guess the studios will become club rooms. Furthermore, 3 different types of suites are available.

Breakfast and check-out
Breakfast was served in a well decorated restaurant, not too big and loud. Cooked to order options (egg benedict etc.) are available as well as typical Berlin hotel options (Rollmops/sour hering, Buletten/meat balls) and a wide selection of internation cold cuts (spanish sausage, cheese, etc.) and the usual fruit section with yoghurt and cereals.

My bill was correct, check-out was smooth and the poits posted to my account surprisingly on day of departure (checked my account in the Senator Lounge at the airport in the afternoon)!

Fazit
I have expected not too much from my stay as new standards take time.
But the Sheraton Berlin exceeds my expectation.
If you are cool with the location near Wittenbergplatz and Ku'Damm shopping (5 min) or Schöneberg Bar hopping then the Sheraton is the far better option vs. Westin with lousy customer service and overpriced food etc.

The hotel will doing good in keeping room rates as they are by now (lot of competition in that area).

I will likely return back to the Sheraton and will see what the Club has to offer.

Fanjet

Hmmm... it looks like the BVG raised their ticket fares again . Also, one can take the TXL bus from the airport and transfer at the Turmstraße U-Bahn station to the 187 bus. Which will drop you off at the cross-street by the hotel (the one that runs south from the Siegessäule).

I'm surprised how nice the rooms look. The hotel looks so dated from the outside (that 70's "concrete gothic" look). Did you have anything else to look at from the balcony besides the Berlin,Berlin hotel on the other side of the Lützowplatz? I suppose the rooms on the other side have a nice view of the park.

Kenji

Thats why they called Parkview Studio
However, apart from the Sheraton on the Park in Sydney, I dun care for the view in city hotels. They upgraded me to an Suite room with "view" in Singapore; took the larger room with terrace on pool level next day which was the better option....

claes059

Thank you for your review and pictures. The accomodation looks comfy though a little old? The pictures on the hotelsite seem to offer a new interior?


I will stay here in a few weeks was planning to take Express Bus X9 towards City West and stop at Zoo and take bus 100 to the hotel. Which bus did you take from Zoo?

Did you have a look at the pool? And did you have dinner in the restaurant?
What do you mean with Fazit?

claes059

Pictures:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/857937...7652023703802/


It was a comfortable ride with airportbus N9 to Zoologischer Garten Bahnhof and bus100 took me in just 10 minutes to Lützowplatz. From here its only a 3 minutes walk to the hotel. Since bus 100 is a popular bus for touristic sightseeing, it can be crowded. When traveling with large suitcases you are better off with a taxi. A busticket will cost you 2,70 euro when you buy it in the bus.

Walking to the area where the hotel is located, I noticed some signs for the Sheraton Berlin. The hotel does not have the brandname Sheraton on the façade, so you do not know from a distance if the hotel is a Sheraton, what is rather strange. ( see picture).

My first impression of the lobby was rather disappointing for a 5* hotel, orange and red colors ( retro?) and a rather messy “island of seats” in the middle. The restaurant looked fine but the location was for me very strange, in the middle of the lobby.

Check-in was fast and friendly, though I was surprised no MAGC information was available. The friendly receptionists told me the hotel was still in the process to have an agreement with Unicef, regarding the procedure of MAGC. Still, it would have been more adequate to have an alternative regarding the MAGC information when checking in. However, no information was available and only when I mentioned MAGC the receptionists told me the actual situation. In the room the MAGC doorsign is available, but with no additional information.

I was very happy with my suite. And even more with the nice bottle of wine and small sweets as a welcome amenity!

The livingroom was more or less narrow and since so many furniture was placed in this room, two small desks, a couch, a comfy large seat, lamps etc. it did not feel spacious. The glass wall cabinet and brown marble shelf appears a little outdated. I guess sometimes less is more….. . I did not prefer the colors of the interior, grey and brown makes the room dark especially when the room is located on the shadowside of the building. In the evening the lights were not sufficient, I had to rearrange the large lamp in the room.
The couch and seats were very comfortable. I was happy with the Nespresso machine, since I use Nespresso at home. Some flavors of Nespresso cubes were available. No cubes with milk, only creamer. On my request a kettle was available, so I could make some tea. No teabags were available. It would be even more convenient when suites would also offer kettles with an assortment of tea flavors.
The livingroom offered a large flatsquare tv and a music center with cd player and excellent Bose speakers, it was a pleasure to listen to the music. It would have been even better to have a Bluetooth speaker, so one can listen to the music of their own smartphone.

According to the Sheraton Berlin hotelsite, the Sheraton Sweet Sleepers are available, I did receive information the regular beds were not replaced by the Sheraton Sweet Sleepers. However this suite did not even have a boxspring….
The bedroom seemed more spacious and with artistic details, for instance ( cupido?) on the headbord, a mask in the wall of the bathtub and much more. I liked it so much and it made my stay in this suite even more pleasant.
The bathroomarea was the “masterpiece” of this suite. Just wonderful! A big tub was waiting to be used and I liked the design and high quality brands and layout of this area. The design toilet, bidet and the rainshower were separate. I did have a great bath experience here! The design of the sink was beautiful but it did not provide a sink stopper. It will safe water when it is used, f.i. when needing hot water for shaving.
One minor issue can be the small step when walking from the bedroom to the bathroom area especially during the night. One can easily bump against the step which may be hurtful and one can easily fall.
Another minor issue is the safe, which has to be locked with your creditcard or bankcard. I wished for a safe where I could safe my bank and creditcards…. and could be locked with a digital combination.

The riverview from the suite is peaceful and I have been told most guests like this view. Turndown service is not what I am used to in a Starwood hotel. The duvet is placed loose on the bed and is rather short. It is not fixed at the foot end of the bed and the light short duvet slides away. I looked if I could fix it but I could not. During the night the bed appeared not so comfy and I did not have a good sleep. I would have prefered a boxspring such as the Sheraton Sweet Sleeper ofcourse.

Most of the receptionists are very friendly and accommodating, they did make a reservation for the restaurant in the lobby for me.
It was striking for me to notice the small tables for single guests were placed in the spotlights, just in the middle of everything and in the front.. It was like putting these guests” on stage” and I would never like to sit here. When seated here, one must have a feeling everybody is watching, since even the entrance door of the hotel is facing them…. So why not place those single tables at the side, so guest would feel more at ease….

On my request I could sit at a table on the side and was relieved. The waitress, mrs. Nicole, who served me was very friendly and professional. She really made me feel at home. The menu of the restaurant is rather limited, however they do offer a great healthy and spicy Thai Wok dish. At first I hesitated, would it be a good idea to have this kind of meal in a hotel restaurant… But the waitress told me the chef had been to Thailand and was experienced in making the Thai dish, she even asked if I would like it spicy! Well, sure I like spicy food! I started with a delicious carrot soup with ginger and coconut cream. The Thai wokdish was hot and spicy….. It was even possible to use chopsticks and this made the experience even better. The restaurant offers nice wines and after some tasting I made a choice for a deep spicy Spanish Rioga which tasted well. The menu for the desert is too limited i.m.h.o. I did have a chocolate mousse with mango and it tasted heavenly! The waitress checked several times if everything was ok and if I needed something more. She made the extra step to make sure I was happy with my dinner, she seemed one of those twinkling stars of Starwood…

The next night I had a another great dinner in this restaurant. Mr. Carlos, the supervisor was very helpful and forthcoming and on my request I did not have to sit “on stage” at the small tables for singles and in the spotlights of everyone. Since I had some trouble with my stomach the kitchen prepared something light for me.
This time I was served a delicious fresh salad, mashed potatoes with my favorite veggies like asparagus and chigorei ( Brussels lof) and a delicious capuchino as a desert.
I had wonderful dinner experiences in this lobby restaurant.. But the location could be much better. Instead of this location, in front of the entrance; next to the pounding music of Harry’s Bar and next to the reception, this restaurant needs her own place with her own ambiance. So a guest can enjoy the great quality of the food in a decent ambiance and with suitable music on the background while not disturbed and distracted by all the “traffic’ and noise in the lobby, the entrance and Music from Harry’s Bar. This way a guest can enjoy the friendly and professional service even more and focus on the beautiful dishes with high quality ingrediënts. The lobby can offer a nice bar and a great seating area, where guests can have a drink or a light snack.

Since I did not have a good sleep in the non boxspring of the suite I was happy the hotel could arrange a change to a penthousesuite with a comfy boxspring. When I asked the reception during the late afternoon if the suite would be ready, everything was take care of! Though the penthouse suite was like a large juniorsuite, with one large room, the room was bright and offered my desired boxspring, a diningtable with chairs, a couch, a coffeetable, a comfy seat, a low cabinet and a large flatsquare tv. The cabinet offered a small safe (with a number combination) and a stocked minibar. I was happy since I did not need my creditcard to lock the safe. The penthousesuite offered a spacious balcony with a table and chairs. I liked the “ green balcony” with the beautiful and groomed tree. April can still be cold in Berlin but since the sun was shining i was able to have a coffee on the balcony and I liked it.
I was happy I had taken the kettle with me, since the suite did not offer this. Neither did it offer a Nespresso machine but a Tassimo coffeemachine with some coffee and tea capsules of the brand Jacobs. I do think a suite should offer the Nespressomachine, since the quality is much better.
The bathroom offered a bathtub and a small sink. When having a bath its not a pleasant view to look at the tubes of the drainage of the sink ( see the pictures). It would be more appropriate to hide these tubes with a appropriate design in this suite.
Though I have noticed guests complaining they did not like the penthousesuite, since it was not spacious enough, I was very happy to stay here. But thinking of the opinion of the other guests I noticed this suite was also very full with lots of furniture. Less is more I guess, less ( large) furniture gives a much more spacious feeling. It was the same situation in my former execute suite.

Though I had high expectations of the breakfast after my delightful dinner in the restaurant, I had a one of the lowest ever breakfasts experiences, in a Starwood hotel. The breakfast rooms are next to Harry’s Bar, and the interior could be more bright and inviting. I had two times a breakfast here. The first time this place was very crowded. The buffet was located in a rather cramped area, and when its busy guests do not have enough space to walk to reach the buffet. Before the entrance of this area is a table with a large selection of tea, but with a very limited choice of fresh juices, only orange juice. I did notice some machines with juices. I did not take anything since the display was so unattractive. I did not see any healthy smoothies.

The buffet offered a wide range of breads, and a limited range of cereals. Large bowls of jam where guest have to grab a portion with a spoon. Not very attractive in my opinion. The same for the yoghurt and quark, everything in large bowls open without a cover. Some jars with fruit syrup next to it….Not very attractive and very limited in choice. Everything is open and not closed with a cover. Why not offer f.i. Danone cups with different flavors so guests have more choice?
The buffet offers a very wide range of a selection of cold cut meat. I was happy to see the Sheraton nametags, however all the tags were not on the right place, it was rather chaotic. Guests had to figure out which buffet item belonged to which tag… Nice wide selection of cheese. The choice of pastries was very very limited.
I ordered an omelet with some veggies. The omelet was served in a very unattractive way, without a nice presentation as a 5* hotel should offer.

I noticed “Elements “signs on the wall ( see pictures) but no corresponding buffet items, so this was kind of useless.

Most of the breakfast items appeared to be of a low quality to me, they were rather tasteless. I just had one bite of my omelet and I did not finish it, it was tasteless. I had ordered coffee, but it tasted like old tea. It reminded me of the coffee in the US many years ago. So I ordered a double espresso with milk, but the taste was also very bad.

My story of the hardboiled egg… I like to have a hardboiled egg. When I started my breakfast I noticed only the Easter colored cold eggs. I asked a waitress for a hard boiled egg and she showed me where I could find. But it appeared to be soft. Since I did not like a soft-boiled egg I asked a waiter. After waiting for 20 min. I asked again. When they were served they were….. soft… again…I ordered again and waited and asked, and asked again…. and finally when I was almost finished the eggs were served. When I asked if these eggs were hard boiled she replied she could not look into the eggs if they were hard……

Next day the waitress Betti recognized me at breakfast and told me she would get me the hard boiled eggs and she would make sure the kitchen prepared it right. I had to wait around 20 minutes according to the kitchen. ( It would be easier if the buffet would offer a selection of hard and soft boiled eggs so a guest does not have to wait for so long?)
Still I was very pleased with her service.
The rest of the quality and taste of my breakfast was the same, a boring quality of products which doesn’t make me happy. I did try one of the pastries, but after one bite I had enough. It was tasteless and of unbearable quality for me.

In general the attitude of the waiters is not inviting, they do not look happy and hardly ever smile. No stylish serving as the waiters in the restaurant in the evening, and in a way they are not inviting to the guests.
Even more, my table was not cleared when I was finished with some breakfast items. So I was happy I could place the empty used plates on the other side of the table, but I was not amused it was not cleared.

I did have a talk with the assistant F&B manager and told her my experiences. She was very surprised regarding my comments. I wondered if she ever had breakfast here.
I did notice the general manager had breakfast the same morning.

Resuming: I did not like the cramped area for the breakfast buffet, the lack of choice in fresh juices, the very limited choice of flavors regarding the yoghurts, quark and jam, the confusing way the nametags were placed so a guest could not see what kind of meat was offered, the unattractive presentation of the tasteless omelet, the dreadful coffee, the frustrating experience of ordering a hardboiled egg, the very limited range of pastries, the unprofessional and not inviting way of service of the waiters, the lack of quality of the breakfast products …. to name a few….

I visited the pool two times and had the opportunity to pay a short visit to the Sauna. The pool is free but the sauna will cost you 9/10 euro if I remember well. The elevator to the gym and Spa is not in the middle of the building but at the end of the eastwing. So when having a room at the end of the west wing, you have to walk the long corridors.
During my first visit the place was messy, with towels everywhere in the chairs and beds near the pool. The pool is large enough for some nice swimming and the water is warm. Its great! The second time the place was tidy and clean, I had another good swim and visited the sauna. Its located on the lower floor, and offers 3 types of sauna. I enjoyed it and can recommend it!
The gym is very smallish and the personal fitness area seems not attractive. This place could use an upgrade i.m.o..

I did have a look into some different accommodations and even the standard rooms are so comfortable and bright, offer boxspring beds and are just… wonderful! The executive suites are great but do miss the spacious balconies…. so I do prefer the penthousesuite.

The Sheraton Clublounge was not ready yet. I have been told it will be opened in the former restaurant/bar of the hotel, on the ground floor. Most Clublounges, worldwide, I know are preferred on the topfloors, for more exclusiveness and with a great view. Sometimes even with a terrace or balcony. In general the Clubfloors are on the topfloors too. So why will the Sheraton Berlin have the Sheraton Clublounge on the groundfloor in a corner of the westwing? I do not understand it.

During check out it appeared the hotel was not ready to donate my SPG points for the MAGC to Unicef. I did it myself via my SPG account at home. Though I do understand the hotel can donate the points directly to Unicef from now.

In general I had a nice stay in this new Sheraton hotel. The location is fine, and bus 100 stops nearby. I liked the suites and especially the bright Penthousesuite with balcony. I had great dinner experiences in the Lobby restaurant and was charmed by the friendly and professional services. I was happy with the pool and sauna facilities and the friendly and professional attitude of the personnel of the reception.
I did not like the comfort of the bed in the executive suite and my breakfastexperience was two times on a row very bad. I do think the restaurant needs her own location instead in the middle of the lobby.
I hope the hotel will offer the Sheraton Sweet Sleepers in the executive suites, as mentioned on the hotelsite and will have a Clublounge on the high (Club and SPG) floors……

I do want to thank the FOM and Shiftleader of the reception for taking care of me during my stay!


Pictures: https://www.flickr.com/photos/857937...7652023703802/[url]h

FD1971

claes, Thank you for the comprehensive review.

As a frequent guest and refugee from the Grand Hyatt and Westin, let me comment on some of your points.

The fee for the Sauna is indeed €9, also for Platinum guests, quite often they are running out of water or glasses or towels, simply depending on the person in charge of the facility, three saunas, 60°, 85° with aromatherapy and the classic dry sauna at 100°, no steam bath.

Staying at the Sheraton Berlin, one is constantly under the impression that they want to save every penny possible, starting with the charge for the sauna, the breakfast selection, slightly outdated furniture, the gym equipment etc.

Staff is nice, Lützowplatz is also used by other bus lines, predominantly the M29 with easy connections to U/M stations and the 106 with service to Berlin Südkreuz for all the connections to Leipzig, Dresden and further south.

All the rooms seem to be comparable, aside from the view towards the river/centre of Berlin or Lützowplatz/strasse or the adjoining street. I strongly recommend the river view. Suites are not comparable at all and they have several different set-ups.

You can get a comparable hotel room (glorified 5*, actually more a 4 and simply outdated to a certain extent) for much less in Berlin. Location is solid and it might become a better option after renovating the gym, rooms and the introduction of a club lounge.

But I fear this will take more time than originally expected and communicated by the property.

claes059

You are welcome. And pictures say more than a thousand words, right!
Yes, I did miss a steambath, but the three sauna's were fine to me. So, now I can understand from you the hotel is busy with cost cutting policies? Not a clever idea when opening the hotel as a Sheraton property I guess. It can clarify the poor breakfastbuffet and the terrible gym. Though the riverview is nice I do prefer the "sunny" side with the balcony. I have seen several suites but in general I noticed the same bright interior, which I like very much. The lay out of the suites is indeed very different. The presidential (?) suite is very spacious and from the balcony one has a beautiful view of the Alexanderturm. Would be great as a Clublounge by the way!!
The rooms look fine to me and are spacious and bright!

Indeed, in general the staff is nice, but they should have another attitude and style during breakfast i.m.o.

I would love to go back and see if they change!

carpetbagger

Thank you Claes059 for the report and the many details in your pictures. The hotel which was already opened 26 years ago belongs now to the HOST reit to which it was sold with a good profit from Blackstone. The cheapest room rates at the moment are 87 euros maybe even cheaper. In which european capital you will find a better price for a 5* hotel? This in mind you got very good value for your money.

claes059

Thank you for your reaction. Indeed, the rates are not high, but in Berlin many 5* hotels have moderate rates. The rate I paid was much higher by the way. The Sheraton Brussels offers moderate rates too f.i.

I always hope to make a constructive report of my stay, and in general most Starwoodhotels appreciate my reports.

Football Fan

So this hotel limits the number of devices for the internet to 2, which is utterly ridiculous. Then they want to charge Starwood Platinum members € 9 to access the sauna.

I had a discussion with the front office manager, Mr. G., about the additional charge for sauna access. He said that Starwood told them this was okay.

https://www.starwoodhotels.com/prefe...efits.platinum

I think there might be some other threads with discussion about what a hotel defines to not be part of the "health club". Anyway, not going to stay here again. Who cares about € 9, but I don't want to stay in a hotel that nickels and dimes Platinum members like that.

The whole hotel has kind of an 80s/90s feel to it. Even though it is quite cheap, I'd rather go elsewhere.

CanRulez

Agreed. The same hotel wanted an extra 60 Euros for a suite upgrade. It looks like certain hotels are able to make up their own rules on the fly.

Platinum status at this hotel means nothing.

heakja

My partner and I actually stayed this weekend, too. While we did get a nice platinum upgrade (even though the hotel was sold out two of the three nights) to a large executive suite ("komforter suite, x75"), we were very surprised to see that they did not have any blackout-curtains in the room. The curtains they had were in fact so thin that it was impossible to keep the room dark after sunrise (5am-ish - our room faced the sun directly at this time, and it was like sleeping in front of a giant lamp). We asked about this, but neither front desk or housekeeping was able to help us. Light (-sensitive) sleepers should probably avoid this hotel until this is fixed.

I also agree with the previous poster that the breakfast quality was pretty weak, and the ambience there not very good. Daddy Cool with Boney M in the breakfast area at 8am Sunday morning was certainly not my cup of tea.

Other things we noticed:
- Still no club, but they are "planning it".
- We could not find any business center to print our boarding passes.
- The two device issue also mentioned by Footbal Fan is indeed irritating.
- Pool was rather small.
- Location surprinsingly attratictive, 10-15 min walk to Kurdam or Schönberg, and away from the hustle and bustle.
- Late check out on a Sunday (6pm) was granted from Alexander at front desk with a smile.