The Burns Art Hotel in Dusseldorf, Germany – review written 16 March 2016

The Burns Art Hotel in Dusseldorf is wonderful. I know, I tend to say that a lot about the hotels I stay in, but it’s true. I wanted something small and unobtrusive. Nothing flashy, certainly nothing corporate, and while I’ve often criticised ‘boutique’ hotels for being, well, a little contrived, I’ve decided that small hotels – as opposed to big ones – are my bag.

I arrived after dark having flown in from Gatwick with easyJet. Normally I fly BA from City Airport, but not on this occasion, even if it did inconvenience me slightly – I almost missed dinner.

The hotel is next door to a Thai restaurant and when my taxi drew up around 2140hrs it was busy. The driver pointed to a doorway next to the restaurant. I smiled, paid up, jumped out and checked in – Room 32 on the third floor. The lift was small, big enough for one person and a suitcase; and it was slow, but I eventually arrived with a dull thud.

The flooring throughout the Burns Art Hotel is marble and while some might consider it cold unless in a hot country, I was happy.

I turned left out of the lift and followed the corridor round to the end. When I opened the door to room 32 I was pleasantly surprised. The room was huge, like an apartment. There was a living area, with a mini bar and a small television. I turned right, walked past the bathroom – which was clean and bright – to the sleeping area where there was a larger television, a desk, an empty television cabinet that served no function whatsoever and a double bed. The double aspect room had a balcony at one end.

The Burns doesn’t have a restaurant, but it’s very close to my favourite restaurant on Karlstrasse – Da Bruno – so I nipped out for a late dinner (pasta, wine, Grand Padano, very good). The next morning I was eager to check out the basement breakfast offering. It was excellent. The spread was amazing – everything I needed and more – and the bricked cellar style surroundings were impressive.

The front desk was perfect too. The receptionist was friendly at all times and there was a dish of free chocolate bars for the guests. ‘Balisto’ bars –not sold in England – joined a selection of KitKats and Twix bars and were to die for.

At the Burns I encountered the required boutique hotel ‘quirkiness’ wherever I went, although it was much more understated than in some places. It wasn’t ‘in your face’ as it is in some places. There were some interesting works of art and portrait photography exhibited in the stairwell, a collection of toy cars in a display case on the 3^rd floor and a ‘business centre’ on the ground floor, next to the lift, which consisted solely of a black laptop resting on a high table and accompanied by a few German newspapers.

The Burns Art Hotel was under 10 minutes’ walk from the central railway station and was, in my opinion, ideally located in an area known for its ethnic restaurants (Chinese, Korean, Thai and Indian).

For me this hotel had it all. First, it’s location near to the central station; second its closeness to my all-time favourite restaurant (Da Bruno); third, an excellent room; fourth, a friendly and helpful front desk and lastly those Balisto bars. I’ll definitely return.