Review: Hotel Oderberger Berlin

Tell us what sets this one apart.
This hotel’s setting is one of the most splendid in Berlin: It's inside Prenzlauer Berg's landmarked 19th-century Stadtbad Oderberger, a public bathhouse designed by architect Ludwig Hoffmann, who also created the city’s iconic Pergamon Museum. The conversion to a boutique hotel preserved many of the grand building’s original details, most notably the 65-foot-long indoor pool, set beneath a magnificent vaulted stone ceiling and surrounded by massive arched columns and huge, church-like windows. It's the first thing you see when you enter the lobby, and it definitely impresses.

Nice. Who else do you see in the lobby?
Casual leisure travelers attracted to the buzzy bars and restaurants in surrounding Prenzlauer Berg.

How was check in? Is the hotel easy to navigate? The reception desk doubles as registration for the pool and sauna, which is open to the public, so hotel guests with roller bags have to wait in the same line as locals headed for a swim—a bit bizarre. Because it's a landmarked building, there's no air-conditioning, which might be bothersome during the warmer months, when open windows allow in street noise. And the Tower Suites, set in a five-story tower, don't have elevator access.

Well, as long as we're warned. Once you're upstairs, what are the rooms like?
The 72 rooms all are unique in layout, from smaller Comfort rooms to split-level Maisonettes with 16-foot ceilings, to two enormous attic Apartments with floor-to-ceiling windows and balconies offering fantastic city views. The modern design—neutral gray furnishings, oak-plank floors, copper lighting, and subway-tiled tables—incorporates historic details in a clever way: original numbered wood doors from the bathing cabins, now glassed in, live on as bathroom doors. Bathrooms are spacious and feature walk-in rainforest showers, heated towel racks, and organic products from Ada Cosmetics Naturals.

Any other little amenities to know about?
All rooms have a tablet that guests can use for free during their stay; it outlines all the services offered by the hotel, such as in-room beauty treatments and massages.

You mentioned visitors drawn by the food—could you tell us more?
At the moment, only breakfast is served at Restaurant Oderberger, once a power station. It’s a dramatic space, with 50-foot ceilings, large arched windows, exposed brick walls, and herringbone floors, plus cool details like original thermometers. Diners can eat on the ground level or across two open mezzanines. Breakfast is an additional charge outside the room rate, but it’s worth it for the generous buffet, which showcases many regionally sourced products. The Fireplace Bar, which doubles as the lobby lounge, opens at 5 p.m. and serves classic cocktails, seasonal drinks, and draft beer from the Neukölln district. In winter, you can cozy up to the wood-burning fireplace; summers, a lovely terrace is set up on the charming cobblestoned Oderbergerstrasse.

Anything else we should know about the facilities?
Hotel guests must pay a fee (5 euros, or approximately $5.50) to use the pool and sauna. It's occasionally closed for private events.

Bottom line: Why come to the Hotel Oderberger?
For the cool historical details and great location in the heart of buzzy Prenzlauer Berg.