We're frequent visitors to wonderful Berlin; back at this particular hotel for the first time in a few years. Lovely to see the friendly concierge who's worked here for 23 years again - he's the star in an otherwise generally indifferent staff.

Despite the limited refurb, the hotel is still very dated and "80's" in feel. There's new check-in desks and a refurbished lobby coffee shop. We got a 5th floor "newly refurbished executive room" that has had the shower over bath replaced and now has a walk-in shower. In reality, only the bathroom has been updated - the main part of the room hasn't been touched - not even new floorings!! The room smelt stale and musty but was fit for purpose once we'd opened the window for a while. Flash new pillow menu but it didn't feature our nasty pillows that were overstuffed with chopped up bits of foam....

Very average breakfast in Wilson's restaurant- rock hard scrambled eggs, burnt bacon, and sausages grilled on only one side and then steamed to death!! At least they now have an espresso machine!! Breakfast done on a budget.

When we last stayed here what annoyed us was a corporate lack of attention to detail. That doesn't seem to have changed much - Berlin's own Basil Fawlty lookalike apparently still managing the franchise. This time round it was things like broken floor tiles in the lifts - with holes, the sloppy breakfast offering, and the filthy restaurant carpet. This hotel is the poor relation in the brand.

The (truly 5*) Intercontinental is 300 yards away and at weekends often has similar rates, so shop around. Make sure you join the IHG Priority Club before booking......build points and get your freebies. Lots of new hotel openings coming up.

If visiting Berlin, use the excellent Thermen Am Europa Center as a spa rather than the hotel offering. Its just across the street. For entertainment there's the Irish Bar in the basement of the Europa Center, with live music from 2130 every night except Monday. Have fun!!

My first impression on this hotel was good as The hotel is well located at the centre of Berlin (five mintues walk to Zoo, and 20 mintues from the airport by taxi). Also the receptionist was quite friendly. The breakfast was extensive with various choices, not just English breakfast. However, I was disappointed by housekeeping service as all used towels were not replaced. what they did was just to hang all used towels again even though I put them on the floor. The floor was not cleaned either. After my complaint, they replaced them. Another negative point is that they don't have facilities for children. In my opinion, it is not a hotel for a family with young children.

We had a non smoking double room on the 3rd floor. The view was to the backyard and not much too see. The room is nothing special but also there is nothing to complain about either, it had twin beds, flat screen tv with some English channels, desk and chair. We got the room next to the staircase and the wall facing the staircase was so cold it affected the whole room. We turned up the air-condition to max but it didn’t have any affect. Luckily the duvets were very thick. The air-condition is also quite loud. The next day the heating throughout the hotel was broken so the room was even colder. The pool was closed one day, and the next open but the water was too cold so it was impossible to take a swim (this was in relation to the broken heating system).

On the morning of our checkout, housekeeping knocked once and then opened the door at 8.30 in the morning and then again at 11. You would think that there should be a record of which rooms have checked out. We found the staff not very helpful and sometimes quite rude.

The bar is nice and the lounge had good deserts and coffee. The breakfast is good, has all the normal options and more. The location of the hotel is great. You are close to u-bahn and s-bahn. The hotel also has a pillow selection, where you can make a choice of 5 pillows and someone from the staff will bring it to your room.

Nice 4-star hotel with a new lobby and an extensive breakfast buffe. My room was ok but a little old. Feels like the hotel has renovated the common areas but not the hotel rooms. There is a gym (relatively small) that works fine for a few work outs and a swiming pool. The hotel is nearby KaDeWe (the large retail store) and Kurfurstendam street with lots of stores. Museums and other sights are not far away but most require a taxi or public transport as Berlin is a massive city.