Hotel Sandmanns Am Dom

The room was small and average, though the location was great. Staff availability was unreliable. We left our passports in the only safe when we checked out, which was our mistake, but reception closes at 11:30 a.m. on Sundays and doesn’t reopen until Monday. We didn’t notice until around noon, after they’d left, and were stranded in Cologne for the day. I’ve never heard of a hotel with no customer service access for a whole day. Awful, and I wouldn’t recommend it.

There’s no elevator, so you’ll need to carry your luggage up the stairs to your room. My room for the next two nights was also near the main road, and the curtains were too narrow to block the streetlights, which kept me from sleeping well. I arrived at 8:30 p.m. on a cold evening after major travel delays and a missed connection, only to find the hotel closed. I couldn’t reach the property, and the booking service couldn’t get through either, so I had to find somewhere else for the night. The next day, the service center reached the hotel and was told that the 6 p.m. closing time had been listed on Booking.com, but that information hadn’t been passed on to me. If you need a 24-hour desk or late-night service, this place won’t suit you. On my last day, the electric kettle was inexplicably taken from my room. There was nobody available after 6 p.m. for me to ask about it.

The bathroom was lovely, with new tile, and the staff were very friendly. That’s about all I liked. The tiny reception and breakfast areas are the same room, and staff had to move several bags so we could sit at a table. Our room was small and smelled damp and musty. It felt old under a fresh coat of paint, especially around the edges and corners. I’m surprised there are so many good reviews. To me, this is a step above a hostel, not really a hotel.

We drove and parked a bit further up at Q-Park Börsenplatz, which was cheap and had plenty of room. The location is fantastic, right in central Cologne, with the Cathedral Dom very close by. Our room was nice and clean, but the shower drain was clogged, so after two minutes the water started rising. Breakfast was pleasant but nothing special. There’s no elevator, and since we were on the top floor, we got some exercise :')