Hamburg’s Strandhotel Blankenese is beautiful where it dispenses with design gimmicks. A local visit to a graceful old lady. This egg. If only there wasn’t this egg. I’m sitting at breakfast in Hamburg’s Strandhotel Blankenese, looking out over the Elbe, the seagulls are screeching, everything is fine. Except for this strange and completely useless egg-shaped design object standing next to my cappuccino with an equally useless ornamental plant sticking out of it. There are a few such oddities in this traditional hotel in Hamburg’s upmarket Blankenese district, which was remodeled in 2009: the slightly too flirtatious crystal chandeliers on the ceiling, the lounge music in the breakfast room that has degenerated into its own cliché. Such things are probably a tribute to the title of “design hotel”, which the Strandhotel has pinned to its immaculate white lapel.
But even if they are as unnecessary as the pseudo-funny ringtone of the cell phone that the man next to me on a bench on the Elbe will later use to make a long phone call: Fortunately, they do not dominate the overall appearance of this charmingly unpretentious establishment. Blankenese, that is demonstrative Hanseatic self-assurance. The Strandhotel also exudes this in good moments. The color scheme of the rooms is pleasantly restrained. Grey and brown-grey tones provide the perfect backdrop for the truly spectacular thing about this hotel: the view of the Elbe, just 50 meters away. It’s nice to see a white lounge chair not standing around pointlessly, but in an alcove where there’s really nothing better to do than lounge and watch the container giants sail in and out of the Elbe for hours on end. Any illustrations of rooms or the cool lounge become secondary when these representatives of the global container economy pass silently by the pleasantly large window fronts. This hotel is always good when it shows off its distinctiveness. Only a few German city hotels allow for a stroll along the beach. And when you come back after a walk along the Elbe beach and see this incredibly casual Art Nouveau palace, you’ll be glad you made the slightly longer journey from the city center. So: check-in recommended. You can put down the designer egg from the breakfast table – or take your coffee with you to the terrace garden.
Address
Strandhotel Blankenese
Strandweg 13
22587 Hamburg
www.strandhotel-blankenese.de