BACKGROUND The Park Inn by Radisson in Stuttgart is a four-star hotel opened in November 2010.
WHAT’S IT LIKE? A newly-built hotel with 181 rooms spread over seven floors, the building still has the bright sheen of a new hotel. The lobby area is small with large red sofas in the centre, the reception desk and a lobby bar with plenty of bar stools and a television showing sport. To the right is the lift, which requires you to insert your room key before it will take you to your floor.
WHERE IS IT? The hotel is located just 200m from the large grey concrete Marienplatz square after crossing a main road. Marienplatz has a few cafes, bars and restaurants, some more inviting than others, but was deathly quiet during my mid-winter stay. Marienplatz also has its own S-Bahn station which links directly with the central Hauptbahnhof rail station within ten minutes via the U14 line. A taxi transfer to the airport will cost you between €25-€28.
ROOM FACILITIES I was in Room 617. The room was roughly 22sqm and overlooked the Marienplatz and the busy main road, which was noticeably audible at night even with the windows closed. There are no wardrobes so storage consists of two large wooden boxes and two aluminium poles protruding from the wall with hangers on them.
This is all part of the new design concept of the hotel brand to make the rooms feel more open and clutter free and will be the blueprint for all future Park Inn rooms. The bathroom had a great walk in shower with bottles of shampoo/body wash and body lotion.
I had a double bed with a thick, soft duvet and pillows. The colour scheme is generally cream with touches of green and a black and white thinly striped carpet, with three painted canvases on the wall in the bright Park Inn colour swatch.
In-room wifi is available for free to all hotel guests. There is no minibar but there is tea and coffee making facilities. Other facilities include a small flatscreen LG TV (26 inch) with a selection of satellite channels including BBC Worldwide, Eurosport and Pay TV. Other facilities include telephone with voicemail, a work desk, a hair dryer, two leather sofas with a small coffee table and a laptop sized safe.
Check in is from 1400 and check out until 1200.
RESTAURANTS AND BARS The RBG bar and grill consists of a restaurant and adjacent lobby bar and is open for lunch between 1200 and 1430 daily and 1730 to 2230 for dinner. The RBG bar and grill concept can be seen at several Park Inn properties including a number in its UK portfolio. The bar is open from 1100 until 0100 and shows major football matches and along with the restaurant is open to the public. The restaurant also has a terrace area.
I had dinner at the restaurant on a Friday night (to see the menu click here) and there were only two other tables occupied for the entire time that I ate. However my rib eye steak was a magnificent piece of meat, cooked medium rare it was soft and delicious with a crisp, grilled crust.
I ordered the Argentinean Chimmichurri sauce and this came in a small metal bucket. The sauce was a bright green mush, like a salsa verde with a heavy garlicky punch, it worked deliciously with the well seasoned steak. The main dish came with lightly spiced onion rings and a small rocket salad with honey mustard dressing. Washed down with two half litres of Radeberger Pilsner the bill came to just short of €34, without sampling any of the delicious sounding starters, side dishes or desserts.
Continental breakfast and boiled eggs can be pre-ordered by ticking a card to be hung on the door. Full breakfast is served at the back of the RBG restaurant between 0630 - 1030 Monday to Friday and 0700 to 1100 on weekends and public holidays. My departure was at 0650 so I was out too early to sample the breakfast.
Room service consists of a reduced RBG menu of burgers, sandwiches, pastas and other simple fare and is available from 0630 to 1030 seven days a week.
BUSINESS AND MEETING FACILITIES There are nine meeting rooms located on floors one and two. All meeting rooms have natural daylight. There is a total conference capability of 460sqm including facilities with flexible seating for up to 70 delegates classroom style and receptions for up to 150 guests. All meeting rooms come equipped with projectors and high speed internet access. Each floor has a pre-function area with tea and coffee making facilities and some meetings can be catered for. Underground car parking is also available.
The basic package costs €49 per person and consist of one soft drink during the meeting, two coffee breaks including coffee, biscuits and fruits and a three-course menu or buffet including one soft drink.
A small business centre is available in the lobby with a computer for use following a credit card payment, or by using a voucher as part of the business or superior room rates.
LEISURE FACILITIES There is a fitness and sauna area with a roof terrace on the sixth floor which is open from 0600 to 2200. There are towels and water available on entering and the modern equipment includes two cross trainers and three exercise bikes with views over the terrace and a selection of fixed weight dumbbells and three treadmills in a separate room. There is no pool but there is a sauna and separate men and women’s changing facilities are in the fitness centre itself.
VERDICT Modern and simple design with good connections into the city centre and a very good restaurant all made for a very enjoyable short stay.
FACT FILE
HOW MANY ROOMS 181 rooms including Standard and Business rooms, 12 Superior rooms with balconies, two handicap-accessible and eight are fitted with bathtubs.
ROOM HIGHLIGHTS Free wifi and a new, fresh design which puts simplicity first and cuts down on clutter.
PRICE Booking a midweek stay in January through the Park Inn website prices start at €89 for a standard room and €129 for a business friendly room.
CONTACT Hauptstätter Strasse 147 / Kolbstrasse 70178 Stuttgart, tel +49 711 320 94 0; parkinn.com.
Scott Carey
