The Hotel Nassauer Hof is a luxury hotel in central Wiesbaden, Germany. The hotel’s history can be traced back in 1813 and the classical design of the current building dates from 1819. It has provided hospitality to the likes of Fyodor Dostoevsky, the Dalai Lama plus presidents John F. Kennedy and Vladimir Putin.
Photos of several of the hotel’s well-known guests are displayed in glass cabinets in the lobby. In addition to the high-end service and security you’d expect of a five-star superior property, the hotel is superbly placed for visiting the Hessian State Theatre and Kurhaus on the opposite side of the street.
The Kurhaus was instrumental in establishing Wiesbaden as a meeting place for members of royal families and European high society during the 19th century. The city has 26 thermal spas. Wealthy and influential people came to take the waters, spending weeks at a time in the city while undertaking treatments in the original Kurhaus, then a spa building. This hotel was established to meet their needs.
The current incarnation of Kurhaus was built as a grand meeting place early in the last century and evolved into a convention centre and venue for red carpet events. It also hosts a casino that locals were barred from entering prior to 1996, when laws that entered the statute books long ago were repealed – their intention was to prevent the city’s residents from losing their money at the tables. Dostoevsky, the Russian novelist, lost a fortune while gambling in Wiesbaden and drew inspiration from the experience to write The Gambler.
If you enjoy a touch of pampering and indulgence, it’s possible to book an appointment in a treatment room at the Hotel Nassauer Hof’s Artemis Beauty Spa. Alternatively, you could simply relax in the sauna before taking to a lounger on the rooftop sun terrace: the pool is filled with thermally heated mineral water. There’s a fitness room if you’re feeling particularly energetic.
That may not be the case if you’ve sat long into the night enjoying cocktails in the hotel’s subtly illuminated cigar lounge. Live piano music plus comfortable armchairs and sofas make it easy to sink back by the fireside and people watch while enjoying a drink or two. There’s also a lobby bar ideal for coffee and refreshments earlier in the day.
The Nassauer Hof is the location of Ente, Wiesbaden’s only Michelin-starred restaurant. Chef Michael Kammermeier and his team prepare dishes inspired by cuisines from around the world. Tasting menus of between four and seven courses are an option, so too are à la carte choices. Alternatively, you could reserve a table for dinner in the airy Restaurant Orangerie, where an expansive buffet is laid out for breakfast each morning.
The hotel’s guestrooms are classically furnished, some overlooking the Kurhaus others the courtyard at the back of the property.
The superior single category rooms feature a sizable desk, ideal for undertaking business-related tasks, and are topped by two bottles of mineral water, which are replenished each day. Their armchair, with a footstool, is suited for more leisurely reading. The bedrooms are carpeted and supplied with bathrobes. Slippers are laid by the bedside each evening during the turndown. The rooms have a safe, television and a minibar. Their bathroom features a bathtub in which there’s a shower.
The highest category of room at the Hotel Nassauer Hof is the Presidential Suite, in which some of the world’s most powerful individuals have worked and slept.
The Hotel Nassauer Hof is a fine choice if you’re in Wiesbaden for business – the city’s RheinMain Congress Center, the convention centre which opened in 2018 is a 15-minute walk from the property – or a city break if you want to treat yourself or someone special.
The Details
Hotel Nassauer Hof, Kaiser-Friedrich-Platz 3-4, 65183 Wiesbaden, Germany.
Tel: +49 61 11330
Website: www.nassauer-hof.de
Email: info@nassauer-hof.de
The Hotel Nassauer Hof is located opposite Wiesbaden’s Kurhaus, one of the city’s best-known landmarks. The hotel is on the other side of Wilhelmstrasse to the Bowling Green, the grassy area in front of the Kurhaus and colonnaded façade of the Hessian State Theatre, where fountains flow day and night.
Type of Hotel: 5-star Superior Hotel
Number of Rooms: 159 guestrooms and suites, including complimentary Wi-Fi.
Price Band: High
Insider Tip: If you enjoy fine-dining experiences, reserve a table at the Michelin-starred restaurant Ente, on the ground floor of the hotel. And don’t miss the opportunity to take a dip in the rooftop pool with thermally heated mineral water and then relax on the sun terrace.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9/10
Author Bio:
Stuart Forster is an award-winning freelance writer and photographer specialising in food and travel related features.
Photographs by Stuart Forster
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