Leipzig PentaHotel

quokka has stayed there last year (I think) when it was still a Renaissance hotel. I haven not, but considered it ... and it looked indeed intriguing. Personally, the Radisson is in a too noisy location for me. Really bad traffic around the hotel.

The location looks ok, but wouldn't be my first choice. We were in Leipzig last month and stayed at the Westin, which I liked very much (except for the fake fireplace in the top floor bar).

A new hotel in a terrific location is the Motel One (an awful name for a nice property). 60 euro a night, old town cafes, restaurants, shopping at your doorstep. http://www.motel-one.com/de/hotels/hotels-leipzig/hotel-leipzig.html

In some ways, I wish we had stayed there instead of the Westin, nice as that property is.

I just got off the phone with the Penta. They offered up a Club Level Jr. Suite at 170,00 a night vs. 199,00 a night for a Jr. Suite at the Radisson. It's not that big a difference. It just looks so much nicer. I had booked the Radisson for convenience only.

Go with the Penta.

For convenience I'd book the Park Hotel Seaside which is right across the street from the Central Railway Station. Junior Suite incl. breakfast 173 Euro at hrs.de

I was not too happy with the Westin last week. The room quite small, the entire hotel crowded with loud business folks, and since they made a mistake with my late check-out on Saturday I almost missed my train. Also, the location is a bit inconvenient compared to the other hotels.

Thanks! I'm going to try the Penta. Will let you know what I think.

I have no idea what and how much they changed when they transformed the Renaissance into the Penta, so my report may not be up to date. The room was nice and big, the bathroom ditto.
I stayed there in September 2008 for a venue, so the place was not my choice. In fact, it was above my usual budget and I am not sure if it was worth it - to me. I admit that luxury accommodation does not mean much to me. I found the place okay but would have felt just as happy with a cheaper room.
Coffee-making facilities were available in the room (rare in German hotels) but a charge applied per cup.

Location: still within walking distance from train station and city centre, about 15 minutes. The surrounding quarter has new office buildings, some old run-down houses and empty estates, so it is not pretty - one big advantage, the hotel is located in a quiet side street and there is hardly any traffic noise at all.

Breakfast: big buffet, everything one might want, very good. Bad layout of the breakfast room though, narrow aisles, the waiters' runway to/from the kitchen was past the buffet so one was in constant 'danger' of being run over when picking up food.

Hi Ingo, sorry you didn't like the Westin. They gave us a nice large room and as the hotel was not very busy, the service was excellent.

I hate check-out problems when there's a train to catch, so frustrating!

For me, the location was fine and an easy walk from the train station and the heart of the old town. For my traveling companion, it was too far to walk.

There is a stark contrast between the glitzy renovated buildings in the beautiful old town island vs the surrounding gloomy run down old buildings from the DDR days. For that reason I would choose the Radisson. The Westin was OK for me as it wasn't too far of a walk from the old town, plus there were always plenty of taxis waiting in front of the hotel. That said I wouldn't go back to the Westin either, I'm glad you had a good room Passerine. For me the Marriott room was much better, especially the heavenly bed. I had a hard time sleeping on the super hard mattress at the Westin.

Our bed wasn't hard at all, perhaps we had new mattresses. Mine seemed very similiar to the ones I've had at Marriotts.

That said, we'll probably stay at the Motel One on our next trip to Leipzig and put the money we'll save into a room upgrade at the Radisson Gewandhaus in Dresden...

(Hey DAX!)

Passerine, the Westin was not *that* bad, I just had expected a bit more. Btw, as pointed out before, the Westin at a rate of 84 Euro INCL. breakfast was only marginal more expensive than the Motel One which quoted a rate of 59 Euro WITHOUT breakfast. And the breakfast at the Westin was excellent.

I think I'll go with the Seaside Park Hotel (again) in Leipzig next time or try the Marriott.

2Motel One which quoted a rate of 59 Euro WITHOUT breakfast"

Yes, but there's that Bagel Brothers right down at the end of the block--good fresh real bagels! And their fresh squeeze orange juice and cappuccinos were good too.

I'm waffling for a change Although it is a bit less expensive,and the photos look great, I'm getting the impression that the Penta won't offer the same level of ammenities as the Radission. Besides, being directly across from the concert hall is such a gift!

flyer, in general I'd say Radisson has a better reputation and this hotel *does* look good. And since quokka said the Penta's surroundings are not so nice ... on the other hand, for me the Radisson's location would be too noisy.

Passerine, you don't really want to compare a Bagel Brothers breakfast with "bagels! And their fresh squeeze orange juice and cappuccinos" to a breakfast buffet at the Westin, do you? To each their own, but I need a BIG breakfast.

The Penta's surroundings are neither seedy nor troublesome in any way. They would not win a beauty contest, that's all. To Augustusplatz and Gewandhaus it's a walk of hardly more than 5 minutes.
To be honest, I do not think Augustusplatz and Georgiring would win a beauty contest either...

Hey Ingo! I agree with you the one good thing about the Westin was the buffet breakfast.

FYI Passerine, I've made a last minute stay at the Motel One in Wiesbaden and the room was literally a small box with carpet and a small window. I was sent there from the tourist center to check in at 1 pm, but when I got there they told me that the hotel rule forbade them from checking me in before 3 pm since the rate I signed up for was 59 euro. Fortunately they could check me in right away if I agree to pay their full rate of 79 euro (no breakfast) since there was a big group who shortened their stay. So I just want you to be aware of Motel One quality & service. On the plus side their bed was better than the hard bed I had at Westin.

Yes, Ingo, I do compare them! I can get a big hotel breakfast anywhere in Germany, Switzerland or Austria...but fresh bagels with a schmear? Rarer than hen's teeth.

Dax, the rooms at the Leipzig Motel One are small--but no worse than most Paris 3-star hotel rooms--and their windows are normal sized.

I have to ask--what's this trend with fake flat screen TV fireplaces? So cheesy. The Dresden Westin has one, so does the Motel One, and so does the Marriott in Zurich.

Sorry, meant the Leipzig Westin, not the Dresden.

I suppose it should tell me something that the Furstenhof, Westin and Radisson are sold out but the Penta still has availability... I wish there was someone who has actually seen or stayed there since the renovation. All the reviews I have found have been from the Renaissance days.

There are several reviews on www.holidaycheck.com (more on the German version of the website, quite mixed experiences).

Once again, I can recommend the Seaside Park Hotel.