Haxenhaus

While Cologne is well set up for big trade fairs and conventions, it also boasts a wide range of smaller venues. Haxenhaus restaurant and beer house is situated in an 13th-century salmon-coloured building in the Old Town, on the banks of the Rhine River. The owner is the exuberant and erudite Wilhelm H Wichert, a man with a passion for hosting historical theme nights. He’s also on a mission to rejuvenate the poor man’s dish of the day, pork knuckle – he has so far developed 16 different recipes and has designed a special plate that allows the cut to stand upright.

Wilhelm bought Haxenhaus in 1997 and has several spaces for hire. Two meeting rooms upstairs hold 25 and 55 people, while the ground-floor restaurant (open 11.30am until late) can take 120. The outside terrace seats 100 revellers. Bookings can be made online.

Haxenhaus is an ideal venue for letting off steam, especially for those in need of an antidote to trade fair monotony – medieval banquets are what it specialises in, so you can expect mountains of food, actors in traditional dress, and a complete disregard for conventional dining etiquette.

 

Koln Sky

The 103-metre tall Koln Triangle Tower is one of the city’s most striking new landmarks, with views of the Hyatt hotel, the river and the cathedral. The 29-floor building was completed in 2005 and has two floors designed specifically for events. Sky Conference on the 27th level is particularly suited to receptions and can be split into three sections. Sky Event on the 28th divides in two.

Both venues have stunning views through floor-to-ceiling windows, sleek wooden floors, lighting and audio-visual technology, and can accommodate up to 400 people standing. Catering can be done in house for up to 100, otherwise food and drink is brought in from outside. On the rooftop is the public Panorama platform, which can accommodate 400 people for summer parties. However, beware if you suffer from vertigo – despite the glass walls, it feels a little unnerving to be so high up.

 

Imhoff Chocolate Museum

The Chocolate Museum is built on a wharf that juts out into the Rhine. In addition to an impressive sweet shop and galleries that tell the story of chocolate and how it is produced, it has two venues available for hire. The 200 sqm Bel Etage is on one of the upper floors and has a sloping roof and a vast triangular window facing the river. It can seat 75 people in a clean, modern environment.

On the ground floor is a 960 sqm café and outdoor terrace that can be rented Tues-Sun from 7pm, after the museum has closed (on Mondays the museum is not open, so the area can be hired for the whole day). The space can accommodate 300 people for a stand-up reception or 200 banquet-style. Glass windows afford sweeping vistas and barbecue buffets can be arranged in good weather. The entrance atrium can also be used for breakout sessions or pre-function drinks.

 

Gir Keller

A rustic, centuries-old building in the Old Town, the highlight of Gir Keller is its vaulted cellar, a place once used by monks to store wine. For the past 15 years it has been exclusively hired out for events, holding up to 200 people. The interior features six basalt pillars dating back 300 years, exposed brickwork, iron sconces with melted candles wedged into them, medieval shackles, long wooden tables, a bar and a mezzanine for 80 people.

It’s a great place for some traditional German food and fun – try the “Witch’s Night” or “Feast at the Knight’s Table” and enjoy plenty of free-flowing Kolsch beer (the local brew) and musicians in costume. Don’t expect luxury – you are choosing this venue for its authentic charm – but lavish buffets and high-energy entertainment are assured.
On the ground floor is Gir Hall, a simple space with room for 100 people. It can be hired independently or in conjunction with the cellar.

  • 14 Lintgasse; tel +49 221 257 0981; gir.de

 

Hyatt Regency Cologne

The Hyatt enjoys a riverside location opposite the Old Town, which means it has great views of the cathedral and is near Lanxess Arena. The 306-room hotel opened in 1988 and is undergoing a major revamp – the meeting facilities, which are all on the mezzanine level, are scheduled for completion by the end of the summer.

There are ten rooms for hire, including the Rheinsaal ballroom, which can be divided into three soundproof venues accommodating up to 450 guests theatre-style. The 120 sqm Bibliothek has an open fireplace and wood-panelled walls and can seat 80 for a banquet, while the 35 sqm Studio and Senator suites are perfect for executive meetings of ten delegates.

Wired and wifi internet access is available throughout the hotel (costing €18 for 24 hours). The Hyatt also offers tastings for 20 people in its wine boutique and cooking classes in its kitchens.

 

Excelsior Hotel Ernst

Positioned right in the city centre, opposite the cathedral, the property originally opened in 1863 but was then torn down in 1908 and rebuilt in 1910, when it became the Excelsior Hotel Ernst. A member of the Leading Hotels of the World, it is in the process of undergoing full renovations, and offers lavish surroundings for dinners, conferences and board meetings.

There are 13 event spaces – the Gobelin Saal is the largest, at 166 sqm, and has high ceilings, tapestries and chandeliers. The Winter Garden is not in fact a garden but a blue room with a stained-glass roof – it connects to the Gobelin Saal and to the Van Dyck Salon for larger events. The Petit Palais, accessed via a spiral staircase and overlooking an outdoor patio, can host 30 people for drinks.

Half- and full-day delegate packages include room rental, fresh juices, lunch, coffee breaks, stationery, and an LCD projector and screen. Wifi internet costs €8 per hour. Incentive programmes are also available and these include the chance to learn fencing in one of the hotel’s ballrooms or play ice hockey at Lanxess Arena. A decadent Sunday brunch is served 12pm-3pm, costing from €59 per person.
For a full review of the hotel, visit businesstraveller.com/tried-and-tested/hotels

 

Alter Wartesaal

Located at the foot of Cologne’s awe-inspiring cathedral, Alter Wartesaal is the last remaining part of the city’s original railway station. It sits beneath the arches that support the tracks, with trains rumbling overhead.

In 1902 the venue housed a grand, elegant waiting room for first class passengers but in 1983, after extensive restorations, it reopened as a club and concert hall, the Grosser Saal, with dramatic columns, a vaulted roof and space for 800 standing.

Next door is the renovated restaurant, which features cherry wood panelling, stucco ceilings and art deco fittings. It’s open daily for lunch and dinner but can be closed any time for private parties – it can seat up to 150 people and when combined with the Grosser Saal, it provides about 800 sqm of space.

Also part of the complex is Die Kunstbar, a modern bar opposite Alter Wartesaal that sits next to a newly constructed stairway leading to the cathedral. Measuring 170 sqm, it’s open 7pm-2am daily and can be hired for events of up to 200 delegates.

Catering is all done in-house and designers, lighting technicians and event organisers are on hand to make sure everything goes smoothly The venues can be booked about a week in advance, but for larger events at least a month’s notice should be given.

 

Wolkenburg

Built on the site of a Benedictine monastery, this baroque house was completely destroyed in the Second World War but was reconstructed in the late fifties and rechristened Wolkenburg, meaning “cloud castle”. It was then renovated in 2007, with air conditioning and new light and sound equipment installed.

Wolkenburg has four rooms for hire, accommodating 30 to 450 people, but if you want to take over the whole building it can accommodate parties of 2,000. The central courtyard and terrace at the back can also be used. As the venue has its own in-house “gastronomical, full-service concept”, groups cannot provide their own food, but menus are varied and extremely flexible.

The rooms are suitable for all kinds of get-togethers, including brainstorming sessions, film shoots, banquets and press conferences. Wifi is free throughout. On the ground floor, Alexiana is decorated in murals and can host up to 150 people, while Amadeus has crimson walls and a bar, and can accommodate 70 delegates.

November to February are the busiest months as this is the season for Cologne’s carnival celebrations, during which time many events are held throughout the city. It is best to make reservations six or seven months in advance, but if you are lucky there might be a window.

 

Bauwerk Koln

Since 2006, this former truck construction plant has been a space-age venue for slick, high-tech product launches, presentations, receptions, exhibitions and conferences.

The venue occupies a converted warehouse, and almost half the ground floor is taken up by what appears to be a long, glossy white Perspex cuboid. But this is where the magic happens – at the touch of a button, up to six “boxes” slide out, unveiling a cocktail bar, a lounge with sofas and a shag-pile rug, and a black gallery with fire-coloured display tables. The spaces can be customised and are a unique way of surprising guests – you could have anything from cars to live cooking stations inside.

In addition to state-of-the-art lighting (and natural daylight), a movable stage, a hall for 180 people banquet-style and a kitchen, stairs at either end lead up to a mezzanine tier on top of the giant cuboid. Here there is a conference room for 60 delegates, a lounge and a bar, where smokers can also indulge in a cigarette. Bauwerk can accommodate up to 400 people in total.

 

Useful information

Visit conventioncologne.de, germany-tourism.co.uk

Lufthansa serves Cologne three times daily from London Heathrow. Easyjet flies twice a day (once at weekends) from Gatwick. Germanwings operates three times a day (twice at weekends) from Stansted.