sly Berlin — Hotel in Berlin

Result: 10/10

I have worked in many hotels before and spent more than 300 nights in a single year in a hotel. This hotel is definitely worth a visit and worth every penny.

Location: Great connection to public transportation, short distance to some more touristic areas, or choose a quiet affordable restaurant nearby. There are public parking areas available, and every couple of meters, you will find a shared e-scooter or bike. If you prefer MILES, there are plenty around.

Building Condition: The hotel just opened in Nov. 2023, so you can expect a very new, and really fresh building. Compared to some of the luxury buildings near Kudamm, where the leather is ripped apart, this building is brand new, as well as the interior.

ROOM: I had a "standard" room, and it was absolutely great. It was so clean that I was surprised, and the amenities are more than enough. I fell in love with the shower and especially the selection of soap and shampoo...a great choice. The mattress is hard enough for heavy guys, and the rest of the room is designed very well. Small details like the light in the closet make a plus.

STAFF: Probably, next to the breakfast, the most important part of any hotel. The reception is well-trained, and knows your benefits as well as the necessary information. The hotel shines when it comes to the cleaners and the service personnel in the restaurants. They are very friendly, highly professional, without being too "snobby" like other hotels.

Breakfast: Every hotel rises and falls with the breakfast. The Head of the Breakfast service was extremely professional, quick, friendly, and you could see that the kitchen personnel who is working in the open kitchen has everything under control. The quality of the food is great, and you have as much avocado, smoked salmon, amazing croissants as you want. Vegan, carnivore, whatever you choose, they've got you covered.

Drinks & Dining Kitchen: A well-equipped bar with homemade ingredients, what I would expect from a luxury hotel in Dubai, or a high-class bar in Paris. They've got you covered. The names of the drinks are German, so ask the bartender to help you out. They know exactly what to do.

Wellness Area: How often do you find a good quality sauna inside a hotel of this price range? There is no ice bath, which I have missed, but the quality of the wellness area is definitely good. You can relax in the evening or at 6 am, while looking over the city. There is tea, fresh fruits every morning, nuts, and berries.

Fitness: Available and really well equipped.

Many other good things apply to this hotel, but I guess you should experience it...

I have mixed feelings about my stay at sly Berlin.

The hotel has a modern, industrial vibe. Our room was very spacious and the decor looks great, but there is a lack of attention to detail. There are stains on the bedroom and bathroom walls that could be easily cleaned/fixed. This alone would give a much better impression. There are no light switches next to the bed, and the power plugs are very inconveniently located behind the nightstand, on the floor. There are also no telephones or tablets in the bedroom, i.e., no direct way to communicate with the reception desk. In addition, there is no minibar in the room. The concept of having a small store by the reception desk with a good range of products is very cool, but it would be nice to have at least a small fridge in the bedroom.

Although there is shampoo and conditioner from Molton Brown in the shower, there is no soap. We needed to move the soap from the sink every day, which is not really a big deal, but can be bothersome at a 5* hotel. I think the range of amenities offered could also be bigger–for instance, there are no shower caps.

There is an excessive (and weird) concern regarding theft. During check-in, guests already agree that, if anything is taken from the room, it will be charged to their credit cards. Then you get into the room, and this is once again stated.

The staff is polite, but far from being friendly. The ladies taking care of breakfast and housekeeping never replied to our "good morning". The person who did our checking also could not be colder. She did not explain anything about the hotel, where things were, or how they worked. I understand German culture might not be as "warm" as others, but if you expect to have foreigners visiting the hotel, it is necessary to train the staff accordingly. The service kind of works, but it lacks hospitality.

The breakfast costed €28 at the time of our stay, and was not worth it. The impression that I had is that they are not spending/investing the money correctly. There was, for instance, scrambled eggs in the buffet and they could also cook it for you on demand. There were two different types of salmon, but only three types of bread. Moreover, there is just one coffee machine for over 100 rooms.

One detail worth mentioning is that housekeeping is extremely careful and attentive.

I think that, overall, the concept and the hard-product are great. But the soft-product performance could...

Staff was extremely pleasant and accommodating at check-in. The rooms are clean and esthetically pleasing with high ceilings and a wonderful rain shower. But, for $300+ Euro a night, there's three significant things that you're not told when booking at Sly hotel.

The thermostats are locked to 25c/77f during fall/winter. So off the bat, the hotel is cheap and you're treated like a child who can't change the temperature in your room. Unlike other hotels in Deutschland where you have control of the temperature, but the central air shuts off when you open a window for energy efficiency. This caused me to wake up drenched in sweat and get a cold my first day in Berlin. The hotels answer to this is to open the windows. However, with the constant ambulance sirens blarring non-stop all night, this is equally frustrating and impossible sleep conditions.

There's no room service or concierge of any type. With extremely limited snack/food/drink options. That is, unless you're an alcoholic or a 5-year old. As there's more hard liquor options than tea/soda/water combined. And the snacks are 90% candy. As a guest you get no priority service from the restaurant. Meaning you can wait up to 30 minutes before even being able to place your order in the dining room after 5pm. Even if you're not dining in and want to take food up to your room.

There's also no mini-fridge in the room. Which I've never seen in any hotel in my decades of international travel. This wouldn't be as big of a deal if the hotel made me aware of this when booking. As I ordered the in-room birthday cake upgrade, which was 10/10 absolutly beautiful and delicious. Far exceeding my expectations. However, with no place to keep it cool. Me and my wife only had a couple hours to eat an entire cheesecake. Forcing me to throw away 80% of such a beautiful and...