"I should have looked more closely at the reviews before booking. Cocoon Sendlinger Tor is certainly unique, and it has a lot of potential, but it falls short in so many ways. My overall impression was that the hotel is more focused on cutting costs than providing good service—and several of those cost-cutting measures are presented as being about sustainability.
Let me take it step by step.
1. Self-service check-in that doesn't work well
Check-in is done as self-service. When you enter the hotel, there is a small terminal with a screen in the bar/lobby area where you are supposed to check yourself in. When I arrived, I was behind three other people waiting to use it. One person eventually gave up and went to the bar to ask an employee to check them in. I ended up doing the same thing. Ironically, both of us were checked in by staff before anyone using the self-service terminal managed to complete their check-in.
I have no problem with self-service check-in in principle, but it needs to be intuitive, clearly marked, and located near someone who can assist. This terminal was on a stand t where hotels keep maps and tourist pamphlets, and it was positioned next to the coffee machine. It was a confusing introduction to the hotel and, unfortunately, the beginning of a pattern of limited service.
2. Early check-in that wasn't honored
I had requested early check-in and confirmed the day before my arrival that it would be available for an additional fee, as always assuming the rooms are ready. When I arrived, however, the woman at the bar told me my room would not be ready until the normal check-in time. Initially, I assumed that perhaps previous guests had checked out late. However, while I sat in the lobby/bar area waiting, two different groups arrived, checked in at the bar, and immediately received keys to their rooms. When I asked again, I was simply told that no rooms were available for early check-in.
3. "Green" policies that feel more like cost cutting
When I finally received my key, I was told that, for environmental reasons, towels would not be changed and the bed would not be made unless I requested housekeeping each day before 11:00 a.m. If i wanted water, I could get a glass bottle from the bar and take it to my room. I completely understand not replacing towels every day. That is a reasonable environmental measure. But I struggle to understand how not making the bed is helping the environment. Combined with self-service check-in and limited staffing, this felt less like an environmental initiative and more like another cost-cutting measure wrapped in a "green" label.
4. Air conditioning that didn't work
The hotel supposedly has heating and air conditioning. I just wish the air conditioning had worked. I reported the problem twice and asked for someone to check it. As far as I could tell, nobody ever came to the room, and at no point during my stay did the AC actually blow air.
5. A very minimally equipped room
My room did not have a single chair. There was also no desk, bottled water, kettle, or coffee maker. For a hotel room, especially one where a guest might need to use a laptop, the absence of even one chair or a small usable work surface was surprising.
6. At least there was a fan
Perhaps the reason there wasn't room for a chair was because they needed the space for the fan provided to keep guests cool when the air conditioning doesn't work.
7. Poor shower design
The shower door could not open fully because the shower head was positioned so low that the door hit it.
8. An odd bathroom curtain arrangement
There was a cloth curtain separating the shower/sink area from the rest of the room. The arrangement was unusual, and if the curtain was moved too far, there was a direct view from the shower into the room. Privacy therefore depended somewhat on positioning the curtain correctly.
9. Leaking sink faucet
The sink faucet handle leaked. I didn't initially notice it, and unfortunately my toiletry bag was positioned nearby. By the time I realized what was happening, the bag and the toiletries inside it had gotten wet.
10. Very limited food options
There are plenty of good places to eat nearby, which is fortunate because, as far as I could tell, the hotel's food offering was essentially crispy flatbread pizza. The breakfast was good, and for a hotel not badly priced. But glasses are on one side of the bar, then OJ and apple juice on the other. Odd, the dirty glass return is next to the juices and multiple times I witnessed people pick up a dirty glass and almost use it before I pointed this out to them. Alot of the food was not covered so they had a fair amount of flies to deal with.
11. Dishes and bottles left in the hallways
Multiple times during my stay, I passed bottles, plates, and leftover food sitting outside guests' doors. Some of it remained there for more than 24 hours. That is not something I expect to repeatedly encounter in a well-run hotel.
12. Private event directly above guest rooms
One night during my stay, the seventh-floor area was closed for a private event. I was staying on the sixth floor, so I got to enjoy the steady thump of dance-club music from above while trying to sleep. If you are going to hold a loud private event immediately above occupied guest rooms, some consideration needs to be given to the guests staying below.
13. A particularly disappointing service interaction
One interaction summed up the service problem for me. I went to the bar register, where a staff member had been spending much of their time sitting at a high-top table using a laptop and phone. This perosn got up and came to the register and asked how they could help. I asked for a Coke Zero. Rather than helping me, the person pointed toward another employee near the pizza oven and told me to go ask her. They then returned to their table. It wasn't a major request, but it captured the overall experience: staff were present, yet getting actual service often seemed unnecessarily difficult.
There are some genuinely good things about this hotel.
The location is excellent, with easy access to the U-Bahn and bus service. The hotel's design also has some fun and creative touches. I particularly liked the elevator, with its three screens creating the feeling that you are being lifted into a tree canopy. Even the bird sounds outside the elevator were a nice touch.
That is what makes the experience frustrating: Cocoon Sendlinger Tor has the potential to be a very good 3.5 star hotel. The concept is interesting, the location is excellent, and some of the design elements are memorable.
But the hotel needs to stop confusing cost cutting with sustainability. it was a 2 star experience.
Have enough staff available to properly assist guests. Train staff to be attentive rather than sitting nearby on laptops or phones while guests search for someone to help them. Fix the air conditioning when a guest reports it. Clear old plates, food, and bottles from the hallways. Make the beds. And please give guests at least one chair and a small surface where they can sit and use a laptop.
There is a good hotel hiding inside Cocoon Sendlinger Tor. Unfortunately, the service and operational choices made my stay much less enjoyable than it should have been."
