Since Bill and I have lived in the Stuttgart area twice, I never thought I’d get the chance to try a hotel in Stuttgart proper. Then we got the chance to see Van Morrison in concert. Having attended a couple of concerts in Stuttgart, I realized that if we tried to drive to and from Stuttgart, it could make for a long day. Since we’re not as broke as we used to be and I had sprung for “business class” seats at last night’s concert, I convinced Bill that we needed a short “staycation”. Since I like to do things as first class as possible, I booked us a superior room at Stuttgart’s Waldhotel.
The Waldhotel is very well regarded on TripAdvisor and is located in Degerloch, a rather leafy part of the city near the TV tower and a large sports complex. I also noticed that Waldhotel was very convenient to the U-Bahn, had parking, air conditioning, and located near several restaurants. It ticked all of the boxes, except for maybe the fact that it lacks a pool and a hot tub.
We arrived at the hotel at about 6:30pm. I was a little stressed because I’d been worrying all day about my dog, Zane, who just had a lump aspirated. I knew we would be getting the results of the needle biopsy on Tuesday. Fortunately, the lump turned out to be a harmless lipoma. Aside from being really happy that Zane doesn’t have a cancerous lump (that I know of, anyway), we also battled traffic while hangry and Bill was stressing needlessly about our dinner reservations at Ampulle. So maybe we were a little edgy when we got to the hotel. Fortunately, the kind, professional, English speaking receptionist had our room all ready for us.
First impressions.
I’m not usually one to spend a lot of money on hotel rooms. I mean, I’ll spend more if I think the upgrade is worthwhile. A lot of times, the higher priced room just means more square footage or a better view. I decided to splurge at the Waldhotel because the superior rooms have either balconies or terraces and are facing the woods. I don’t remember there being a huge price difference. And, it could be that the less expensive rooms were booked, but since I booked in June, I don’t remember.
Our room was outfitted with a very comfortable bed complete with little Ritter Sports at the foot. The linens and duvet were excellent was just right. I slept a lot during our staycation. The bathroom was enclosed with frosted glass, which I didn’t like so much because when Bill got up to shower, the light woke me up. But the bathroom did have a fabulous rainfall shower head and excellent toiletries.
The TV welcomed us. Our room had a complimentary “minibar”, which really just consisted of water and apple juice. Bill drank the apple juice and said it was delicious. The TV offered several news channels in English, at least one French channel, and of course, the usual German programming. I watched a German show about Polizei yesterday. It was surprisingly entertaining despite my tenuous grasp on the German language.
Breakfast was not included in the rate I booked, but we went ahead and had breakfast both mornings. It was 21 euros a person, which is admittedly expensive. However, I can’t deny that the buffet offered plenty– there were scrambled eggs, boiled eggs, bacon, sausage, tomatoes, beans, and mushrooms (yecch). There were cereals, cold cuts, cheeses, breads, yogurts, and plenty of drinks. The wait staff was attentive, friendly, and professional. Yes, it was pricey, but what the hell… The hotel also has a bar that is open from 5:00pm until 1:00am. The restaurant, which requires reservations, is very fancy. We didn’t try it, but maybe we will on a future visit. I am convinced that booking a hotel for concert nights in Stuttgart is a good idea.
The view from our terrace. It was outfitted with a table and chairs, as well as an ashtray.
Waldhotel has bikes for rent, as well as a fitness room and sauna (which I didn’t investigate).
The front of the hotel.
Waldhotel has a couple of outdoor parking areas. It also has a garage. It costs 12 euros a day to park in the garage, but we lucked into an outdoor spot. Bill took the train to work yesterday, which was super easy from the Waldau-GAZi Station.
Normally, when I accompany Bill on trips where he’s working, I’m hard pressed to find things to do. I didn’t have that problem at the Waldhotel. Yesterday, I took a walk and ended up at Stuttgart’s TV tower, which is located just down the street from the hotel. For seven euros, I rode an elevator for 36 seconds to some of the best views in Stuttgart. It was cloudy yesterday and actually pretty damn cold at the top of the tower. There was also rain up there that wasn’t on the ground. I was wearing a short sleeved shirt and got a bit chilly, but I did manage to get some good photos. The TV tower offers discounts for kids as well as seasonal tickets. It’s well worth a look if you’re in the neighborhood.
The TV tower has a little cafe in it that serves drinks and snacks during the day and offers cocktails at night. There’s also a bathroom up there. I thought about having some coffee, but it was close to lunchtime, so I decided not to. As for lunch, I ended up at Luftbad Restaurant Der Grieche im Grünen. I ate dorade with vegetables and potatoes, drank a glass of wine, and had a hefeweizen for dessert. I did take pictures of my lunch, but accidentally deleted them. Oops. I’ll just say that the food and service were fine. Other dining options in the area include an Italian restaurant, a Swabian restaurant that was having a ruhetag yesterday, but was putting off lovely aromas on Tuesday night, an Imbiss near the TV tower, and the TV tower’s own restaurant, Leonhardts. I thought about trying Leonhardts, but was scared away by the reviews.
I went back to the hotel after lunch and ended up taking a really long, wonderful nap– probably about two solid hours. Had I wanted to, I could have enjoyed a hike through the many walking trails around the Waldhotel. I’m glad I got a chance to catch up on my sleep, though. I was well prepared for Lizz Wright and Van Morrison. I will be writing about their performances in my next post. Stay tuned for that.