Creative hub in Augsburg, Germany where travelers and asylum seekers stay under one roof
Grand Hotel Cosmopolis / Augsburg / Germany
If you haven’t already noticed, I love the unique. Both in life and when referring to hotels. Generic bores me. This hotel, the Grand Cosmopolis is really, really unique. In what way, you might wonder? This isn’t only a hotel for us tourists but also offers accommodation for asylum seekers. On top of this there are artist’s studios, social areas, café and open work spaces.
The story of the Grand Hotel Cosmopolis started with an old retirement home in central Augsburg, Bavaria that had been empty for five years. Heber, Koch and Adamczyk, the guys behind this initiative saw an opportunity for how refugees could be integrated into social life rather than being completely isolated from society. They managed to get the local community to help renovate the place and gave different artists the opportunity to design their own hotel room. In 2013 the work was completed and the hotel opened its doors.
There are a total of 65 rooms for asylum seekers and 11 hotel rooms open to us tourists. The room we stayed in was called Utopia and is designed by Finnish designers Suvi Ermilä and Aapo Raudaskoski. A room that was very discreetly designed with space to think and reflect on our own utopian thoughts.
Our room at Grand Hotel Cosmopolis. A very pared down design with naked walls and a raw wooden bed frame.
The room was very simple with a retro feel and enough space to think about questions posted by Suvi and Aapo, the artists that designed our room.
Don’t know if the phallic connotation of the mirrors and neon lamp in our room was intentional…
There are plenty of open, social spaces in the hotel where creatives of all kinds (and everyone else) can meet, hang out, drink, talk and connect.
Outside there is a small beer garden (this is Germany after all) where you can enjoy the sun beneath some leafy trees.
RG inside info
This place is perfect if you…
…want to stay in a place where you’ll get to meet people that you don’t usually meet when staying in hotels. If you like to somehow contribute to local society when staying at a hotel and don’t mind a somewhat simpler standard, then this is totally your place.
My favorite thing about this place…
…is the initiative behind this hotel. To try to integrate refugees into normal society by not referring them to some distant refugee ASYLUM but to have all kinds of people to meet under one roof.
What not to miss when staying here is…
…to take part in some of the creative activities at the hotel. There are things happening all the time. Everything from concerts to art exhibits and different social events. And of course it is also well worth to take a stroll through this old, Bavarian town and maybe stop for a beer at one of the many Bier Gartens.
If you like this hotel you might also like…
Michelberger, Berlin, Germany
Volkshotel, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Lloyd, Amsterdam, Netherlands
