Germany’s fourth largest city has been on my radar for decades. It all started with a childhood trip on the East-West Express…

When I was a child back in the 1970s, air travel was a lot less affordable than it is nowadays. So we often took the boat and train when we visited my German family in Hannover.

The classic route was via Harwich and Hoek of Holland. But the North Sea crossing was long and storm-tossed, and I much preferred the alternative via Dover and Ostend. The Channel was usually calmer and kinder – and from Ostend we got to ride the East-West Express, Europe’s longest and most intriguing train…

It ran all the way from Paris and Ostend to Moscow, and featured a glamorous array of carriages: from Belgian, West and East German coaches to Polish couchettes and Russian sleepers. The latter seemed very exotic, with their lace curtains and Cyrillic signs. Keeping a watchful eye over everyone was the Russian conductor, who walked up and down the corridors offering tea from his samovar and spicy biscuits.

The train left Ostend shortly after 5pm, and as a child I would sit entranced by the window, writing down the names of the stops and loving every minute of the nine-hour journey. Brussels came and went, then the Ardennes and the German border, and at Aachen the train stopped for 45 minutes to allow various coaches to be shunted on and off.

But for me the most dramatic moment always came at Cologne, where the train pulled into the vast central station under the looming spires of the world-famous cathedral, and with neon lights blazing KÖLNISCH WASSER – EAU DE COLOGNE overhead. Germany has some spectacular stations, but Cologne’s is one of the most impressive.

Travel on a shoestring

In 1985 (when I was not quite sixteen) I went on my first Interrail trip with my best friend Simon. The two of us crisscrossed Europe on a shoestring budget, sleeping on trains and at my grandmother’s flat in Hannover. My carefully preserved Interrail pass shows that we spent a day in Cologne before heading north to Copenhagen…

It was 13th August 1985. Another time, another Europe, another world… Of course we visited Cologne’s famous cathedral and climbed its many steps – all for just 1 DM, or about 35p in those days. I wonder how much it costs now.

We also took a tram for DM1.40. I am pleased to see that despite our meagre budget we were not tempted to do any schwarzfahren…

Fast forward a decade and I was teaching English in the Czech Republic. When I returned to the UK for good in the summer of 1995, I had accumulated too many possessions to take them all back by plane. So I loaded multiple bags and suitcases onto the sleeper from Prague to Cologne – along with a case of 72 Czech beers that a kind friend had given me as a leaving present. I was quite a popular passenger that night…

When I got to Cologne with a mild hangover the next morning I briefly wondered how I’d get all these cumbersome items from one platform to the other. But I needn’t have worried: even in those days, German stations were fitted with lifts. And so at least half of my 72 beers made it safely to England…

A truly grand hotel

For many years afterwards I had little to do with Cologne. But one morning in 2022 I got a friendly email from the city’s Excelsior Hotel Ernst inviting me to work on their English language web content. A big task and one that I took on with relish, because the hotel is one of the finest in Germany. It also enjoys a unique location, right opposite Cologne Cathedral in the very heart of this lively city.

The hotel exterior exudes dignified charm and a real sense of history. The Kaiser himself was once a guest here. And over the years, politicians, artists, celebrities and business leaders have all come to stay at the Excelsior Hotel Ernst. Without a doubt it is the address to stay at in Cologne.

The Excelsior is a great base from which to explore Germany’s fourth largest city. And Cologne really has so much to offer: the Cathedral, the Rhine, designer shops, lively bars, a vibrant cultural scene… There’s always something going on.

And the accommodation? Well, it’s no exaggeration to say that the rooms and suites at the Excelsior are a home like no other. Try the Cathedral View Suite for a view that’s the envy of the city. Or a Grand Deluxe Room with its indivual design, bold colours and marble bathroom. You won’t be disappointed.

The Excelsior culinary offer is also in a league of its own. From French haute cuisine in the Hanse Stube, to East Asian creations at Michelin-starred taku, to gorgeous patisserie and afternoon tea in the Wintergarten, and wine and cocktails in the Piano Bar… fine dining and good service are all part of the experience at Excelsior Hotel Ernst.

I certainly know where I’ll be staying on my next visit to Cologne…