8 of us went to Hotel Cristall, good location, great for markets etc. The hotel was ok, but no coffee or tea facilities in room or hotel after breakfast. Could not even get lemonade in the hotel bar , and told, we English only come once a year and that Germans don`t drink lemonade, so one of us stopped drinking because they only drink vodka and lemonade, whatever other drink she asked for they did not have, which we found in all the other bars. We never went in the hotel bar again. We would give him 0 out of 10 for his people`s skills. They should get rid of him. He would have got SOME tips if he had been more friendly. Overall we had a great holiday but would not stay there again. The Chrismas Markets were great. PS they did not have Baileys, Advocaat, Tia Maria, etc. So you know we like a drink or 2.

My recent stay at the Hotel Cristall was my fifth in the past two years. As with other visits I found the hotel to a good value for the room rate offered. The location is close to the railway station and less than 10 minutes walk to the Dom and the pedestrian shopping area. Again, the staff were pleasant and helpful and my non-smoking room was clean. The rooms are on the small side, and as others have said the decor might be considered "tacky" by some, but if you only plan on using the room as a place to lay your head at night you can't go wrong with the Hotel Cristall. Even though the front side of the hotel faces the railway station, you really can't hear much noise if the windows to your room are closed. More noise comes from the cars traveling on the expressway right next to the hotel. The noise might be a problem during the warmer months if you have to leave your window open as there is no air conditioning. The breakfast buffet, included with most room rates, is quite good. As for safety, I returned to the hotel during late evening on several occasions and never encountered any problems. Via Hotels.com I was able to secure a US$89 per night rate. No photos this time as the ones posted by other guests are quite accurate. DIRECTIONS TO THE HOTEL From the railway station: Exit via the doors leading to the Dom. Walk towards the street in front of you and slightly to the right. This is Dom-Propst-Ketzer Strasse ("Street" in German). Walk to the next street on your RIGHT (about 200 yards). This is Marzellen Strasse. Turn right and walk about one long block (you will pass the Hilton Cologne on your left) where you will come across Ursula Platz and see the hotel on your left. On your right is the outskirts of the railway station.

Hotel close to train station & cathedral. Room stank terribly of stale smoke so try to get a non smoking room if you are a non smoker. Rooms clean & well maintained. Decor dated & tacky. Breakfast large. Service indifferent. Not the greatest value.

Stayed at hotel Cristall with friends (booked 2 rooms) in december. The hotel is okay and very central, indeed. Rather good breakfast buffet, the rooms are small, but with all the essentials and original design. However, not so sure about the cleanliness of the hotel. Won't go into detai but l didn't get the impression the rooms were properly cleaned.

My partner and i stayed at the Hotel Cristall for 4 nights in November. The hotel is well decorated and welcoming with funky furniture and decor. The hotel has its own bar which was open every night until late, excpt on the Sunday night, where it closed at midnight (we were told this was becasue the hotel did not have many guests staying that night). The breakfast this hotel offers is excellent! A wide selection of breads, rolls, cheese, meats, cereals, salad, juices, milk, yoghurts....not to meantion the scrambled eggs, frankfurters and coffee! I fell ill when staying in Cologne but the hotel staff were lovely, they filled my thermos flask with hot coffee for the day and allowed me to make lemsips at 1am when unable to sleep. The location of the hotel is perfect. It is out of the way enough so you are not in the hustle and bustle, but you are only a 2minute walk for the Dom (main catherdral) and the shopping streets and markets. Thank you for a lovely stay.