I'm still at the hotel writing the review via wlan. I spent one night here after a friend recomended it. It reminds me a bit of an upscale Britisch B&B with the old lady coming to the door and showing you around. She is very nice and has beautifully decorated this turn-of-the century appartment with heigh ceilings in the fourth floor. The old caged-in-elevetor is like in a movie. The rooms are very clean with a newly reanovated bathroom. The breakfast room is bright and decorated with anitque furniture. The room I had was very quiet. For 65€ a night this is a very good bargain!

My wife and I spent five days this past week at the Hotel-Pension Dittberner in Berlin. We thought it was great. Getting there is a bit of a job. Not that location is far out - it is at Wielendstrasse 26, a half block south of and towards the west end of the Kurfurstendamm in the Charlottenburg District. But to reach the actual pension you must ring the doorbell. Your hostess, Sophia Lange, will answer and buzz you in. You then go to an ancient wooden cage elevator, and she will come down to let you on and take you up to the third floor (fourth floor for Americans) where the Pension is located. The elevator ride is remarkably silent and smooth. Once inside you will be struck by the very nice furnishings of the small lobby, and the delightful breakfast room. Frau Lange will lead you down the hall to your room. Ours had a very high, decorated ceiling, with large windows opening out to a courtyard. There were two comfortable chairs, a table and a very large double clothes commode which had plent of room for all our clothes. The bathroom was small, but had a very servicable shower, and the sink had two cabinets with mirrors which were more than adequate for our toiletries. Don't forget to bring your own washcloth, most European hotels do not supply them. The bathroom also had a large window which opened. The walls had seven lithographs of pen and ink sketches which were all very well done. The halls leading to the rooms were covered with art works, some of very high quality. Frau Lange's brother is an artist who has a gallery next to the pension.
It was a little difficult to tell how many rooms are vailable, but the dining room had seats for 32.
Breakfast each morning (included in the price as in most 3 and 4 star European hotels) was typical of German establishments; rolls, dark and rye bread, cold cuts, cheese, fruit juice and coffee; all quite good and substantial. You are provided with three keys, one opens the street door and the pension front door, one is your room key, and the third is the key to the marvelous elevator. Fitting into the door on the street floor takes a bit of practice.
As I noted, the pension is only a short half block from the Ku'damm, and near that street's array of tacky shops such as Hermes, Piaget, Yves St. Laurent, Bvlgari, well, you get the picture. But the area also has a large number of varied and reasonably priced restaurants, including a fine Spanish establishment right next door. Buses are frequent along the Ku'damm, and they will take you to the Philharmonie Hall, and Potsdamer Platz with its striking Sony Center. Berlin is a lively, busy city, and there is a great deal to see, although there is also a lot of construction going on, and the traffic can get a little hectic. You can walk the full length of the shopping area along the Ku'damm however. Also, whern you take a bus to the Brandenberg Gate, you can walk down the Unter den Linden to the other shopping area on Freidrichstrasse easily.
Frau Lange will be most helpful in providing directions and rendering other assistance. If you want a cab, she can buzz one on a box at the front desk and it will be there quickly.
The cost for 5 days was less than 500 Euros, with the only added charge to the basic rate of 97.50 a night being a 4.80 Euro charge for 4 phone calls. Frau Lange wanted to be paid in cash, but since there were a number of banks very close by, getting cash fron theie ATMs was no problem.
If you are hooked on high tech, high end large hotels, the Hotel-Pension Dittberner is not for you; but if you want a real place, with real people, great art, excellent food and service, in a fine location and at a very reasonable price, this is the place.