Nh Collection Dresden Altmarkt

“Superb location, quiet, modern, great breakfast.”

We had a week-long World Orchid Congress meeting at the Messe Dresden, so I took a larger room, in a hotel by a tram stop that connects to the #10 tram, serving the Messe. Despite “alt” in the name, the Dresden Altmarkt, at least in late winter, is a huge, barren, modern square, with few traces of … more

We had a week-long World Orchid Congress meeting at the Messe Dresden, so I took a larger room, in a hotel by a tram stop that connects to the #10 tram, serving the Messe. Despite “alt” in the name, the Dresden Altmarkt, at least in late winter, is a huge, barren, modern square, with few traces of the pre-bombing city. (You can see the Frauenkirche in the distance, and the old Kreuzkirche almost faces the new-ish NH Dresden Altmarkt.) I think it is the site of a LARGE Christmas Market. The Culture Palace, with the concert hall and the main public library faces the Altmarkt square. You can just see the hotel 230 meters from the Dresden Altmarkt tram stop, but the busy Postplatz and Pragerstraße stops are also very short walks. Pirnaischer Platz stop also serves Altmarkt. There is a free-standing chain bakery (Dreißig, or “Thirty”) right beside the hotel. The Elbe river is only an eight-minute walk from the hotel. Similar walking times to the Green Vaults, Semperoper, Zwinger, and Gemäldegalerie. The Historic Green Vault sells out timed-tickets every day. I rate this a “Superior Business Hotel”, which seems less than 20 years old. The rooms use the relatively standardized NH interior accessories and bathroom fixtures. We had a -30 line room, which is a Junior Suite. The separate living room was a bit narrow, but still spacious and comfortable. One of the two huge wardrobe setups was there, and the other adjacent to the bathroom, with a sort-of Walk-In closet feel. I suspect the bathroom once had a fixed window facing the bedroom area, which (?) has been replaced with frosted glass in response to complaints! WiFi worked fine, lots of hot water. We enjoyed our stay. The adjacent church bells ring in the daytime, but not overnight. The hotel windows actually open, with dual action “tilt” or “swing” handles. No window screens. We faced a modern pedestrian alley, with perhaps apartments facing us. If you put up the “No housekeeping today” door-tag, they drop off two (limited) drink tickets for the hotel bar, good for house wine, beer, or a soft drink. The large, airy breakfast room (added charge) has a lavish buffet, including sparking wine (which I never saw anyone touch), non-dairy milks, and even one bowl of non-dairy yogurt (in addition to three kinds of dairy yogurt. Eggs and waffles to order are available on request. But there’s a nice chafing dish of shredded European pancakes, i.e. Kaiserschmarrn. I think I saw Pork Tartare, which I’ve found in German hotels before! Some of the small restaurants nearby we enjoyed were Mama Mia (Italian), Meraki (Greek), and Augustiner am Frauenkirche (very large beer-branded, three-floor traditional German.) It can be hard to get into even modest Dresden restaurants without a dinner reservation. (Augustiner does not accept reservations for peak hours, but that does not mean they will seat you just before the night reservation period begins.)

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