Arcotel Rubin, Hamburg

Arcotel Rubin Hamburg

Just located about 15 minute’s walk from the main train station of Hamburg lies the hotel of Arcotel Rubin Hamburg. It’s a relative large hotel with over 200 rooms and suites and meeting opportunities. We stayed here for just a couple of days when we were on holiday in the city.

The location

The location might be good since it’s easy to walk from the main station and about 30 minutes walking from the city centre. When you experience walking difficulties then I can imagine it’s a bit far but for us it was fine. The only problem I had was the area. The streets were the hotel is, is almost a red light district. Almost because it’s not like the one in Amsterdam but you will see a lot of sex shops and similar. Never I felt really unsafe, not even at night because it’s surprisingly quiet busy and there are even a few local supermarkets present. For me it wasn’t a problem but again I can imagine some people won’t find it very peasant.

The reception

When you enter the hotel you are greeted by a beautiful long hallway which looks very modern and still warm. The reception is all the way at the end and on your left you have the conference room and on your right a large seating area (lobby), three public computers, a restaurant and the three elevators. The people behind the reception were pleasant and spoke English. The level of English was fine and they were eager to help us with directions. Checking in was easy and done with a few minutes.

The room

We stayed at the top floor which is the seventh floor. Here is also the fitness room and three different saunas with showers and a changing room. The room was pretty large in size with a twin bed, a desk with chair, two armchairs, table, separate toilet and a bathroom with bath/shower combination. At the bathroom you had free toiletries, shampoo, body wash, body lotion and two bathrobes. The bathroom was large in size but the only problem was there was no door between the room and the bathroom. It was completely open which is a bit strange. You had a small area were you could stand when you weren’t in view from the room. Also the bath/shower was just behind the corner so you had some privacy but still strange.

The bed was pleasant with enough pillows and the matrass was soft but still firm. From the bed you could watch television and you had a DVD player. At the desk you also had the mini bar with a small selection of beverages and snacks. I can’t really say how much everything was but I noticed that the mineral water (large bottle) was already four euro’s. You had a window at the bathroom which you can open as well as the window in the room itself. There was also air conditioning in the room. The room itself was good, large and everything we needed.

The Breakfast

The breakfast was served on the first floor were you can also find a trendy bar. The breakfast is served in a separate room and the selection of food was quiet extensive with boiled eggs, scrambled eggs, sausages, selection of cheese, different kind of bread, juices, coffee and tea and even champagne! The staff was really attentive and we were served quickly. When you sit down they ask you if you want coffee or tea and the rest you will have to get yourself. The first day it was perfect but the second day (Saturday) we arrived when suddenly we noticed this big queue. The woman in front of the breakfast room told everybody the room was full and that we had to wait half an hour. Now I can’t say if this happen often but it didn’t look like that because it was soon chaos. People were told to sit at the bar section but because the woman didn’t wrote down any names or room numbers she didn’t know who was waiting the longest. The problem started with people getting in who just arrived while some had been sitting there for 15 minutes! You can imagine people got upset and even angry. After around 5 to 10 minutes people started to just stand around the entrance to get in the quickest and that’s when we decided to leave. At that moment we thought it was ridiculous and not something you expect at any hotel. Later on we complained at the hotel manager and she did tell us that this never happened before and they were surprised with the amount of people suddenly showing up. I do believe the staff was simply overwhelmed and didn’t know what to do which I can understand, so no hard feelings. Sunday the breakfast was busy but no queues or chaos.

The sauna/fitness room

We enjoyed our stay at the hotel. I went to the saunas and loved it. The saunas were completely empty so I had them all to myself. You had a light therapy sauna, a Finnish dry sauna and a steam room kind of sauna. You had several different kinds of showers like a rain forest shower. There are free towels and water. Next to the saunas you have the small workout room with two treadmills and a workout machine. Everything was clean and well taken care of.

The price

We paid 112 euro’s per night which is including breakfast.

Conclusion

I would recommend this hotel but giving it four stars. Mostly due the location even if it’s close to the main station. I forgive the problem with the breakfast but I hope they do get a bit better prepared for these things.