I stayed here 3 nights in early November. I chose the pension for its proximity to Koln Messe, where I was attending the World Cyber Games. Their rates are quite reasonable, but I think that I would prefer to stay in a hotel if I came again. I saw a very good hotel Dorint an Der Messe Koln, which I would recommend to anyone going to KolnMesse.
The pension itself is adequate – I had a double room just for me, which was good sized for Europe, with a large bathroom, and a desk for working. The pension has a very nice outdoor patio area which is quiet and peaceful. The problem is the location is in the middle of a residential (rather seedy) neighborhood – not really that close to restaurants or shopping. Koln Messe is about a 20 minute (brisk) walk, and the main pedestrian city centers and Dom are about a 30 minute walk across the river. There is market on the corner and a laundromat on the next street over. During the day walking around was fine, but I did not feel totally comfortable as a woman alone, walking around after dark.
The accommodations while very simple (rather like being in the dorms or at camp), were clean and well-maintained. However, if you like a warm room in winter - this is not the place for you. The room was chilly and slow to heat, but at least there was a very nice down comforter on the bed. Breakfast is quite good – breads, yogurt, cheese, meats, fruit, cereal and they will make you an egg on request.
There are two reasons that I would rather have a hotel. First, if one needs assistance, there is no one at the pension during the afternoon and evening hours. (You could probably call the number and get some help although I didn’t try it – you do have to be sure to check in before 10 p.m.) I had a lot of trouble one night – because it was completely dark inside and I had to get to my room on the third floor. I finally found the light switch, but its tough to find in the dark! The two gentlemen who run the pension try to be helpful and speak fairly good English. But any questions or problems have to be addressed early in the day. Second, I had to come back to the States two days early, and even if I stayed the first three days, I was charged for all 5 nights. This would have not have happened in a hotel or even a bed and breakfast in the US. So if there is any possibility of your travel plans changing, I would not recommend to stay here.
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
31 October 2009
I want to comment some points:
1. It is wrong that there is no one at the pension in the afternoon or evening. Although I am not always visible for the guests I am there most of the time, day and night. To get my assistance, a guest just has to lift the handset of the phone and press the "Reception" Button. Even when I am not in, the calls are forwarded to my mobile phone.
2. The heating in our house is working well, of course there could be problems e.g. if there is air in the radiator of a room. If we are informed about such faults, we will correct them as soon as possible. In this case we did not here any complaints. We encourage our guests to tell us about things that makes them feel uncomfortable to give us the chance to help them.
3. Our neighbourhood is a preferred and good residential area. We are located in the city centre of Cologne. A street with many shops can be reached within a 5 or 10 minutes walk. I never heard from guests coming from Europe that they felt insecure. This seems to be a problem for some US-citizens only.
4. As a small pension we are dependent to rent our rooms. If we reserve them for our customers, that made a binding booking, we have to reject other bookings for the same days. Until an agreed day, our customers can cancel the booking free of charge. In case of a late cancellation, we try to sell the rooms to someone else. If we are not successful, as in this case, when the cancellation was done very late, we have to ask for a compensation. Because days that have passed never come back again.
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC