Hotel Santo

Despite mixed reviews on TripAdvisor, I booked a room at the Hotel Santo for my brief stay in Cologne. All I can say is that for my needs, it was absolutely perfect.     Location: The hotel is located less than a 10 minute walk from the Rhein and Cologne’s famous cathedral. There is a grocery store near (Rewe) and it’s very close to the main train station, which means you can buy just about anything you want (food, toiletries, clothes etc.).Noise: Alert! It may come as a shock to some, but Cologne is a big city. If you stay in the city, you will hear traffic noise etc. at night. On weekends, you will hear signs of life such as mildly toasted people talking too loud while they try to find their car in the rain. I did not find the noise excessive at all.

Decoration: I could usually care less about how a hotel is decorated, but this place’s decor catches your eye. For a small, inexpensive hotel, it has style.

Staff: I can’t remember the last time I was treated so nicely by everyone who worked at a hotel. The front desk staff are genuinely nice and helpful, something you don’t find in a majority of hotels.

Room: The room I stayed in (311) was tiny, but just fine for what I needed. It was clean and had a small refrigerator. By the way, contrary to other reviews I read, my room had air conditioning (although I didn’t need it).Breakfast: Breakfast was included and was extremely good, with a wide selection of buffet-style fare. I was there at around 8:00 and the restaurant was empty. I sat in a corner table peering out of the huge windows at the neighbors starting their day. I found it most pleasant (although I would have preferred sunshine!).