Ed U.
Yelp
Is this hotel named after the much revered inventor of the brassiere, Otto Titsling? Get it? Tit-sling. OK, that's what Bette Midler sang in "Beaches", but I think she made that up. I saw no paintings of full-figured brassieres in my room... oh wait, there was that pink mannequin wallpaper with the pointy tit... uh, skip it (see photo).
If you want modern, minimalist and surprisingly comfortable, you don't need to look much further than Hotel Otto in the tony neighborhood of Charlottenburg. It's all that with an undeniable hipster factor that should appeal to anyone looking for mid-priced cosmopolitan accommodations close enough to the city center. What's especially nice is that the location is on a quiet street but within a three-minute walk from a U-Bahn station in one direction (Ernst-Reuter-Platz) and a five-minute stroll to the S-Bahn station in the other direction (Sauvignyplatz).
It's definitely a boutique hotel with just 46 rooms. There's a front desk with someone who is locally informed and multilingual, no lobby, and you hear very little foot traffic. There's a spacious breakfast area up on the 7th floor which does give you a rooftop view of Charlottenburg, and the elevator, as slow as it is, is filled with tropical bird noises for reasons only known to the owner. Quirky touches abound as there's even a "surprise" button in the elevator that you can press to hear the cock-a-doodle-do of a rooster in the morning (see photo).
I was honestly impressed with the spacious room (see photo) - two adjoining double beds with down comforters (no spreads), a walk-in dressing room and closet, a separate bathroom, basic cable TV (with just CNN in English), free WiFi (though you need to retrieve the code at the front desk). For $146 per night, I thought it was quite a good deal given the proximity to the Ku'damm (Kurfurstendamm), the city's main shopping boulevard, and several top-notch restaurants. I would definitely consider coming back for my next visit.