StarwoodGuy: Around the World With Starwood Hotels in 30 Days

I opted for a taxi from the Westin to the train station in Dresden since it was still pouring and stopped in at Starbucks for much needed electrical juice for my computer and a caffeine jolt for myself. The train from Dresden to Leipzig was another regional train with my first class car having 6 seats, a Deutsche Bahn employee was fast asleep and the only other person in the car. There was another dubious electrical outlet, though it said ‘only 90 volts’, I gave it a try hoping not to blow power to the train and success! When the train pulled into Leipzig, Mother Nature had returned her blessings and the sun was back.

I walked across the street to the towering Westin Leipzig which looked much like a US Westin or Sheraton Tower. Once again I had a very warm greeting and I was told I had been upgraded to the tower rooms on the top four levels of the hotel. I went up and dropped my bags, the room was very modern and business efficient, but again no iron, ironing board or coffee machine. The power worked wonderfully so I was happy. I likely could have ordered the iron and ironing board with my not having enough time for laundry, but instead I decided to stay wrinkled and head out to explore the city.

It is a very short walk into the main shopping area and then into the old town. There are many historic buildings to see in the beautiful city, the St. Nicholas Church, the old town hall and the market, and the new town hall, which coming from North America looked pretty old to me. The biggest difference from Dresden to Leipzig was the drop in the average age. The city is a university town and students packed the streets. The stores definitely were staffed by students and everything from Starbucks to Scotch and Soda was packed with an early twenty-something crowd both working and shopping. I walked around the full old town area, then made my way back to the hotel to get some work done. I opted for dinner in the lobby and had some drinks there, on the house thanks to the hotel offering Club Lounge benefits at the lobby bar. After I made a quick walk around to see the old town at night and I also poked my head into the other Starwood hotel, the Hotel Fursetenhof which is a charming boutique hotel, less of a business focus and very romantic in nature. Once back at the Westin I then went up to the hotel’s rooftop bar and restaurant. The view was amazing, but it was a smoking bar, so I walked in, took a picture and made it to of there not wanting to have my clothes jeans and jacket smell.

The next morning I woke up early to go to the train station to get some coffee since there was no coffee machine in the room, I then did a quick walk around the old town in the early morning light, came back for a quick workout, and then had a wonderful breakfast in the breakfast restaurant. There was a large conference in the hotel but I kept missing their schedule so it felt as though I had the place to myself. After breakfast I had a quick walk around the Zoo Park right next to the hotel but I did not have time for the zoo. Instead I stopped in at the Hotel’s spa where for five Euros (or free for Platinum) you get access to the large pool, the shared sauna or the separate men or women’s sauna, and the separate men and women’s infared saunas. It was my first time in an infared sauna and I had the entire spa complex to myself, the perfect relaxation before my next almost four hour train.

Overall Leipzig was a beautiful youthful city. There were slight traces of the East German past just as there had been in Berlin and Dresden. The little walking man as the signal for crossing the street, the interesting anecdotes from shopkeepers about how when they were children it was Russian they were taught in school. The Westin is the right choice for location to town, the Zoo, the train station, and it is likely the better choice for conventions, for business and for larger groups. For a romantic and quieter time as in the same location I would pick the Hotel Fursetenhof, but both are great options in the city.