Rocco Forte Charles Hotel
Munich, Germany  Location Tranquilly sited by the old botanical gardens, a two-minute walk from Munich's main rail station, the Charles is a 45-minute (€10) ride on the S-Bahn from Munich airport; taxis cost around €40 and the 27km ride takes between 40 minutes and an hour. Ambience Despite being new, this eight-storey hotel perfectly encapsulates the Deco period. Blonde sycamore and warm cherry wood abound. Paintings by Franz von Lenbach add local favour to the slightly bland 'international luxury' feel. Guestrooms 160 rooms with 40 sq m, 27 suites and a 185 sq m presidential suite. All rooms have a relaxation area and large fatscreen TV; some have French-style balconies overlooking parkland. Service Brilliant! Faultless doormen, very pleasant front desk staff. Can I work here? Broadband connections in all rooms (costing €20 a day), plus Wi-fiin all public areas. Underground parking complements seven meeting rooms seating up to 60 guests. Can I live here? The Davvero restaurant offers Italian cuisine while the entrance lobby culminates in a bar that epitomises the interwar years – clubby yet not stuffy. And perfectly congenial for a last puff – Bavaria's smoking ban begins 1 January 2008. Worth noting The economics of Munich are robust compared to Berlin, so rates are high – from €390 to €2,220 for a deluxe suite. RL
Sophienstrasse 28, Munich, Germany, D-80333
+49 (0) 89 544 5550
www.roccofortecollection.com Fairmont Vier Jahreszeiten Hotel
Hamburg, Germany  Location Around 30km (or a 20 minute, €20 cab ride) from Hamburg Airport, the Vier Jahreszeiten boasts the best position in this wealthy city's label-dripping shopping and business district. The only thing between the hotel's guests and the Inner Alster Lake shore is a crescent of parked Bentleys and Mercs. Ambience Antiques worth more than Airbuses, Persian rugs and marble, marble, marble. While Fairmont has invested in high-speed, high-tech communications – there is free Wi-fieverywhere – Vier Jahreszeiten is firmly on the side of traditional comfort rather than the cutting edge. Expect plenty of CEOs and second wives carrying shopping bags with rope handles. Guestrooms A range of rooms and suites in various sizes but all comfortable in a Laura von Ashley kind of way. High design is certainly not a talking point here, although the absence of flatscreen TVs (for probably another year) might well be. Bathrooms are well appointed rather than amazing. Complimentary mineral water and 24-hour room service. Service: A rule-of-thumb is: five-star luxury + German = impeccable service. This is a particularly well-run, friendly hotel (with a high staffto- guest ratio) that doesn't feel like a chain. Can I work here? In-room desks are fine, with ISDN lines and free Wi-Fi. Small but adequate business centre with five rooms for conferences and meetings. The hotel's branded '1897 InStyle Catering Service' can provide corporate refreshments for off-site events. Helpful multilingual staff. Express check-out. Can I live here? Immaculately clean rooftop spa and a wide choice of restaurants and bars. The Art Deco-themed Jahreszeiten Grill offers superb Hanseatic dining, lots of dark wood and a view of the Alster. The European-Asian fused cuisine of Doc Cheng's attracts a younger, trendier crowd. Worth noting Although this is Hamburg's most expensive hotel, with an average nightly tariff of €275, there are usually special corporate packages on offer. BF
Neuer Jungfernstieg 9-14, Hamburg, Germany D-20354
+49 (0) 40 34940
www.fairmont.com/hamburg |