Berlin hall: Hotel for social Travel & Hospitalitylers opens

Berlin – Loft beds and communal tables, those sturdy standbys of summer camp, are coming to a hip new hotel that perfectly reflects the emerging social dynamic in the 21st-century culture of collaboration and social networks. Set in a former factory, the Michelberger Hotel, located in the electric, eclectic Friedrichshain district, boasts high ceilings, massive windows, and the collective imagination of its founding team – a group of young creatives who simply wanted to build rooms they’d like to stay in.

‘Perfection does not create memories, because memories only result from movement, from a lively experience of interaction – with people, the surroundings and the atmosphere,’ says founder Tom Michelberger.

The five room categories on offer include a cosy 33-cubic-metre space for one or two guests, and a larger space for four or more. ‘The Big One’, meanwhile, is a living/working loft space for eight. With room rates starting at €59, the property is ideal for the new budget traveller who is short on cash but long on sociability and design awareness.

Lest wary travellers think they are in for a rough-and-tumble night in student digs, however, consider that Werner Aisslinger, the German designer famous for the Loftcube mobile home unit for rooftop living, has had a hand to play in the Michelberger’s design. Common areas in the hotel feature oversized lampshades made out of vintage travel books, while the traditional reception desk has morphed into a friendly welcome island in the bar area. Elsewhere, the clean, modernist functionality of the guestrooms is punctuated with flea-market furniture and quirky home-made accessories.

Looks like it’s check-out time for boring budgeteers.

For more on New Budget Experiences, Bleisure travellers, and further news and insights on new and emerging trends in the leisure and hospitality sector, check out The Future Laboratory’s Leisure and Hospitality Futures Report, out now.