25hours Hotel The Circle — Cologne, Germany
The 25hours hotel group is on a roll. Since June, it has opened almost one property per month in Germany, all the while plotting properties farther afield – Florence and Dubai are in the works for spring 2020. In August alone, three have come on-line, though the most visually striking, to our mind, is The Circle in Cologne.
The former HQ of the Gerling Insurance Group – a striking postmodernist curve of grey concrete and stone – has been repurposed by local architects O&O Baukunst and Berlin-based Studio Aisslinger into a lively stage-set straight out of the Jetsons’ playbook.
The 207 sun-lit rooms along with the large public spaces are a riot of colours and modular furniture – where armchairs resemble a space jockey’s cockpit and yellow globe lamps double as bug-eyed aliens. The bathrooms – the showers in particular – offer charming views of the Friesenviertel quarter and Cologne’s medieval skyline, though it’s the looming cathedral that dominates the horizon from the 8th-floor Neni restaurant. Here, the accompanying menu features Oriental-lite in the form of sabich with baked aubergines, and a luridly red ragu of tomatoes and chilli ragout crowned with a poached egg. Come sunset, retreat to the Monkey Bar for a highball.
ADDRESS
Im Klapperhof 22-24
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
Daven Wu is the Singapore Editor at Wallpaper*. A former corporate lawyer, he has been covering Singapore and the neighbouring South-East Asian region since 1999, writing extensively about architecture, design, and travel for both the magazine and website. He is also the City Editor for the Phaidon Wallpaper* City Guide to Singapore.
-
Utilitarian men’s fashion that will elevate your everyday
From Prada to Margaret Howell, utilitarian and workwear-inspired men’s fashion gets an upgrade for S/S 2024
By Jack Moss Published
-
Gerhard Richter unveils new sculpture at Serpentine South
Gerhard Richter revisits themes of pattern and repetition in ‘Strip-Tower’ at London’s Serpentine South
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Vipp’s Scandinavian guesthouse offers a sleek setting amid a wild landscape
Vipp Cold Hawaii is a Scandinavian guesthouse designed by architecture studio Hahn Lavsen in Denmark’s Thy National Park
By Sofia de la Cruz Published
-
Hamburg’s Central Congress Bar is all about 1960s smoky boardroom glamour
Central Congress Bar in Hamburg offers an unconventional and retro respite from the working week
By Anastasia Miari Published
-
Rosewood Munich’s opulent elegance embraces its historic features
Rosewood Munich balances historic detailing with modern luxury to create a quiet German escape
By Harriet Thorpe Published
-
Locke at East Side Gallery: step inside its characterful interiors in Berlin
Locke at East Side Gallery in Berlin opens its doors; get ready to check into its dynamic interiors by Grzywinski+Pons
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Villa One at the One & Only Palmilla — Los Cabos, Mexico
By Chadner Navarro Published
-
Martim — Wroclaw, Poland
By Daven Wu Last updated
-
Tattersalls Hotel — Armidale, Australia
By Dimity Noble Last updated
-
KLoé Hotel — Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
By Jennifer Choo Last updated
-
Gekko House — Frankfurt, Germany
By Harry McKinley Last updated