Berlin tourism seems to be an ever increasing business. As the number of tourists is still increasing, the number of hotels is also. At the moment Berlin has already over 500 hotels, providing over 136.000 beds to tired travelers. That is a relatively high number – at least according to media reports in 2012 Berlin had already some 30.000 more Hotel beds than New York City.
For the next couple of years another 15.000 hotels beds can be added to that number. The German Hotel and Restaurant Association (Dehoga) mentions another 31 hotels to be built in the near future.
Booming Berlin Hotel Business
But the boom in hotel business is does not have a positive effect on all hotels. Smaller, often older houses are facing difficult times since large hotels chains are building massive hotels, beeing able to offer lower rates, basically ‘next door’. Competition is high, even though one should thing there would be a slice of the pie for everybody.
On the other hand, the rather small and ‘old’ Hotel President just had to close down in September some 10 – 20 minute walk further down the road. The reasons remain unclear – but charging around 170 Euro per night the Hotel was comparably expensive. And with ‘only’ 180 rooms rather small. Next door another Motel One hotel had just opened – about twice the size, charging half the price. And where prices are low, competition is high.
See also: “Schon 800 Hotels – und 31 sind noch geplant” (tagesspiegel.de)