25hours Hotel Altes Hafenamt

Hamburg knows the value of its waterfront, and is currently rehabilitating huge swaths of industrial, run-their-course harbor sites to drum up more visitors, particularly the business set. Case in point: the erstwhile Office for Electricity and Harbor Construction, gutted and reinhabited by 25hours Hotel Hamburg Altes Hafenamt. The past still lives in its way — a whiff of the sea-captain persists — but it’s combined with a healthy dose of the boutique chain’s fresh irreverence.

It’s also got a sibling just up the street, 25hours Hafencity, but rest assured they’re separate entities. Nevertheless they share a few public spaces, including the sauna, as this one keeps operations fairly petite at just 49 rooms across 4 floors. At this scale, the building’s amusing idiosyncrasies make themselves known in the layout, with no room exactly like its neighbor. Think of it as variations on a vaguely nautical theme: pipe-and-chain fixtures, globes, and eclectic curios share space against a soft, almost pastel palette of grays, pinks, and seafaring blue-greens. Amenities, thankfully, far outstrip the quartermasters of old, with smart TVs, free wi-fi, Bluetooth speakers, and iMac workstations in every room. Born navigators will appreciate the free bike and MINI rentals to get a better handle on the evolving map of Hamburg.

Downstairs, you’ll like what they’ve done with the place, retaining exposed bricks and plumbing while infusing character with hanging plants and large, expressive windows. It’s a balancing act between sleek contemporary sensibilities, material indulgence, and a very German orderliness. Long story short, it’s a pleasurable stroll on one’s way to the galley, Neni Hamburg, which dishes up “cosmopolitan soul food” shareables, drawing on Persian, Russian, Moroccan, and Turkish flavors among many others in conversation with Continental favorites. Wrap things up with the aforementioned cocktails at Boilerman Bar, complete with a wry mural of our wizened sea-captain contemplatively toking his pipe.