Ackselhaus

Since I live in Berlin, I can not describe a stay at this hotel. Still I would like to recommend Ackselhaus, and more so, Blue Home to (mostly) business travellers and couples who plan on spending their honeymoons in Berlin.

And visit the hotel's website, it is worth it, and be it for the pictures alone.

Unique Quality: Both hotels, Ackselhaus and Blue Home, first and foremost adress business travelers who are growing weary of always seeing the same interior in chain hotels. Plus, both hotels are small and former apartment houses from the Gründerzeit era with beautifully refurbished courtyards.

They are a five-minute-walk away from Kollwitzplatz with many coffehouses, restaurants and small shops whose owners sometimes are adventurous enough to try something new, although the constantly growing number of tourists have turned most into mainstream, albeit still nice service-oriented shops. Unfortunately, Belforter Str. itself is, speaking in terms of beauty, only so-so.

The main difference between the two hotels is that rooms in Ackselhaus follow different themes i.e. "Movie" or "Rome" and are furnished accordingly. It's a bit like a matured Disneyworld. Even though rooms are stylish, I for one am more attracted to Ackselhaus' sibling the Blue Home.
Here, rooms don't follow themes, they are just nice and welcoming, modern and conservative at the same time. Without the theme oriented bells and whistles, no matter how stylish, I find rooms to be more calming. The subject of water, however, is reflected everywhere in the house - hence it's name, and I like water.

Blue Home is possibly Berlin's most charming hotel - if you can afford to shell out € 90 - 250 per night sometimes without breakfast, that is. But you promised to marry only once, right?

Speaking of breakfast, guests of Ackselhaus and Blue Home can have breakfast or dinner at Club del Mar between Oleander and Olive trees, a chilling restaurant, which is part of the Blue Home hotel.

Directions: Take the U2 to Pankow and exit at Senefelder Platz. Go down Metzer Str. and turn left into Straßburger Str., then right into Belforter Str. (0.4 miles or 600 meters).