LondonElite

The Westin has the better location for restaurants/shopping, but the Marriott has the much nicer and larger rooms.

James Luckard

The Westin is almost 20 years older than the Marriott (1987 vs 2004), and was built by the Communist GDR regime, as the Grand Hotel.

Even though the East Germans built it as a luxury hotel to attract foreign tourists (it accepted only Western hard currency, so it was effectively closed to GDR residents), and the construction itself was run by Japanese and Swedish firms, in the end it was designed by the East German state and built by and for a government for which luxury and even Western comfort in accommodations were alien concepts.

No matter how the current owners renovate it, they're going to be stuck with the basic structure.

Also, hotel rooms were simply smaller in general years ago, no matter where in the world.

I haven't been in the rooms, but I walked through the lobby a couple of times when I was there in 2001. It seemed designed to impress, like most Eastern Bloc buildings.

jh6000

Thanks to all of you for your insights and perspectives.

John H

voweffekt

I've stayed at the Westin for business purposes. It's closer to the Friedrichstrasse train station which has a grocery and good connections for getting around town. The Westin is also closer to other bus/train lines that connect with the city. If you end up at the Westin, ask for a Garden room. They are a part of the annex and are updated rooms that are larger, quieter, etc. A little hike down two hallways but OK. Breakfast is in a big hall with a bunch of people.
The Marriott is preferable in many ways in terms of the building (not location in my opinion) but I've had little luck with upgrades and the staff has not been friendly despite the many stays I've had there.

Kacee

Yes, most people will prefer the Westin's Mitte location over Potsdamer Platz, where Marriott is located. The best you can say about Potsdamer Platz is that it's relatively central and it's close to the Tiergarten and Philharmonie. It's otherwise pretty awful, in terms of both aesthetics and proliferation of fast food outlets.

submonte

You could also consider to stay at Hotel Luc, Autograph Collection, opening soon, 300m from Westin.

Former Sofitel Gendarmenmarkt, fully renovated.

Hotel Luc

Kacee

A fantastic location. Stayed here when it was the Sofitel, with a great view of Gendarmenmarkt.

LondonElite

I hope they made the rooms larger. As a Sofitel it was pretty dreadful. Aigner, the restaurant in the hotel, is fantastic.

ElevatorEnthusiast

Well, it's a Westin, so yeah, I liked it, but it's also a Westin with an atrium and elevators with glass doors, so yeah, I loved it :-) I jest somewhat - the stay was not perfect, but overall, I enjoyed my time at the Westin Berlin and would not hesitate to return. It does appear that the rooms were recently renovated. Here are my pros, cons, and photos:

Pros:

• Upgraded a few days in advance to a Grand Garden Suite but was moved to a Junior Suite when I arrived around 12:30 PM as the "previously-blocked room wasn't ready" (I wish I was told this and offered the choice of waiting, but it's still an upgrade)
• The Junior Suite was pleasant (though a bit dark) with lots of good storage space, comfortable seating (the curved couch was more comfortable than it looked, and the desk chair was nice), and an effective interpretation of the beige and green styling seen throughout new Westin builds and recent Westin renovations
• The bed was very comfortable with plush covers, plush mattress, and plush pillows (two were fatter, two were feather)
• Shower pressure was decent - more like a calm rain, but there was a lot of water flow, so it worked
• Plenty of towels (unlike the Berlin Marriott)
• The garden views here are decent, and it's nice since the space is really large (the rooms on the other side are far away from your window)
• Beautiful interior architecture - the glass-doored elevators and the atrium are very pleasant
• Elite welcome gift breakfast is quite nice
  • Tasty pancakes and really crispy bacon
  • Nice cream-filled cake pastries
  • Yummy scrambled eggs on the buffet + made-to-order omelets, etc., from a paper order form you can fill out
• Had to ask (have had to across Germany), but no issue with the 2 PM checkout I requested
• Service was friendly - the front desk remembered our conversation about my itinerary between check-in and check-out and asked about where I was going to be staying in Hamburg, they also really liked my photos of the sunset at Brandenburg Gate after I showed them after they asked what sights I had seen (see Beautiful Images...Just Because for one of the photos in question)

Cons:

• No in-room Ambassador welcome amenity
• The room seemed to be controlled at a central temperature, so it could be a little warm
• Wi-Fi was very flaky on my iPhone - not an issue on Android or Chrome OS
• No club, so no evening service options - a bit of a downer at a hotel of this class in Germany

Between this and the Marriott, I would easily return here.

Photos (apologies as I had taken a nap and shower before taking these):

DELee

Passable bed making skills but gotta improve on those squeegee techniques.

David

ElevatorEnthusiast

I knew I must have forgotten something at home - I must make room for my squeegee next time.

3rdworldresident

The newly refurbished room looks pretty nice.

Big improvement from 8 years ago.

dw

Reporting back from a one night stay this week reserved at the last minute due to a flight cancellation. I made the reservation late at night the day prior, and was surprised to see that prior to check-in, I had been upgraded to a Grand Garden Suite. The room actually looks pretty similar to the Junior Suite ElevatorEnthusiast stayed in recently, but is slightly larger and has a separate powder room by the entrance. Unfortunately I had to leave the hotel at 4:30 am to catch my rebooked fight, so I didn't partake in breakfast, or really spend much time in the room, but I thought the suite was quite nice.

SkyTeam777

Is there still an indoor pool, whirlpool and spa here? Do guest rooms have white tea-scented toiletries? Are there Bulgari toiletries in the suites?