The aloft Munich

AIM: Our Trip to Amsterdam, Iceland and Munich
Iberia Business Class Between Chicago and Munich
The Kimpton DeWitt, Amsterdam
AIM: Our Time in Amsterdam
The Sheraton Amsterdam Airport Hotel and Conference Center
The Radisson Blu 1919, Reykjavik
The Center Hotel Plaza, Reykjavik
AIM: Our Time in Iceland, Part I
AIM: Our Time in Iceland, Part II
AIM: Our Time in Iceland, Part III
The aloft Munich
AIM: Our Time at Dachau
AIM: Our Time in Munich
The Hilton Munich Airport

Our flight arrived in Munich around 1 PM and we took the train into the city center.  The only way the aloft Hotel could be any more convenient to the train station is if the entrance was inside.  We used the station's southern exit, crossed the street and entered the hotel.  Outside the train station many of the above-ground trams have stops and the hop-on/hop-off bus companies have offices nearby as well.  So this is a great central location for sightseeing.

aloft Munich
(photo courtesy marriott.com)

Map made with Google maps

Even though we arrived a little earlier than the official check-in time, our room was ready.  The clerk noted that even though we have Gold status with Marriott, that didn't entitle us to free breakfast.  We actually went to the food court inside the train station and found a wide variety of things to eat and that worked well for us.

Lobby

With the chain name always keeping the word "aloft" in lowercase, that's a tip-off of the hip, casual customer that's their target.  I was a little concerned that C and I would feel out of place there as we're definitely not in the target millennial age bracket but we barely even saw any other guests so it wasn't an issue.

The seating areas in the lobby did give off the hipster vibe a bit, with several different seating areas and types of seats.

While the hotel itself was non-smoking, there was an interior patio with tables and chairs that seemed to be the designated smoking area.  I never saw anyone out there though since this area was in the shade almost all the time, it would likely be too cool to linger out there.

The area where breakfast was served was called the Refuel Station.  At other times of day it was a pantry with snacks and beverages for sale.

Guest Room

Our room was on the first floor, which to Europeans means the level above the lobby/ground floor. When thinking about the typical layout of a hotel room, they're usually deeper than they are wide.  In this hotel it was just the opposite.  Yes, the bathroom was just to the left upon entering but when we stepped beyond that to the bed area, the beds were side by side with their heads up against the bathroom wall instead of the wall to the next room.  Best I can tell this was a Loft room with a courtyard view.  We didn't spend a lot of time in the room anyway so the fact that it wasn't a suite and didn't have a great view didn't bother us.  We had used SPG (now Marriott) points for the room so we weren't going to quibble.  It was much larger than the room at the Center Hotel Plaza so it was all good.

These were called twin beds but they were much wider than what we in the US call twins, something I liked very much.  There was only the one nightstand and it was wall-mounted but it did have outlets on each side so both of us could keep our electronics charging and handy at night.

Across from the beds were the desk/counter with mini-fridge underneath and a padded bench I used as a luggage rack.  There were no drawers (or maybe one) in the desk.

As I mentioned, our view wasn't great but the view was not a factor in our choosing this hotel.  You can see on the right side of the photo where the grass stops and down below that is the smoking patio.

The bathroom was quite long and divided into two sections.  The area with the sink on the left and the wardrobe on the right was open to the room.  Beyond that was a sliding door with the toilet and the shower.  This made it nice because one person could continue to get ready while the second person took her shower.  It seemed a little odd that there was only one sink since there was ample counter space for two sinks but it just meant more space for us to put our toiletry bags.  After that tiny bathroom in Iceland, it's certainly not a complaint, just an observation.

The toiletries were Bliss brand and at the sink we had a small bar of soap, a tube of lotion and a small kit with a make-up removal pad, an emery board and cotton swabs.

Beside the wardrobe were some shelves with the coffee/tea supplies, the safe, extra towels and the hairdryer.  This was the only real place to store folded clothes.

The wardrobe had hanging space, an iron and board and a luggage rack.  No robe or slippers here.

The toilet and shower had a glass partition between them and I was glad to see the partition covered about half the length of the shower stall.  Though the bathmat did get a little wet, it wasn't soaked.

One thing I didn't like was that the toiletries were wall-mounted. As I understand it, this is going to be a more common thing worldwide because it is more "green" and I get that.  And at least there were separate products for hair and body (unlike Iceland) but I don't care for the 2-in-1 shampoo and conditioner, I prefer separate products.  At least on this trip I still had the hair products from the Radisson Blu so I continued to use those during our stay.  I did like the hooks on the wire tray as that was a great place (and the only place) to hang a washrag.

Gym

The gym isn't large but it had enough equipment to work up a sweat and push your muscles a bit.  Unlike most gyms that are on the ground floor or in the basement, this one was actually on our own floor, in the far back corner from the elevator.

Wrap-Up

Location, location, location.  You really can't beat the aloft's location within Munich. We were able to walk to a good number of tourist spots and caught the train or walked a block to the hop-on/hop-off bus to the other places we wanted to see.  The room was clean, the desk staff was friendly and spoke great English.  I'd be happy to stay here again.