Hotel Esplanade Berlin

During its colorful and turbulent history it went from being one of the German capital's most luxurious and celebrated hotels to a bombed-out ruin lost in the wastelands alongside the Berlin Wall.

[1] Wilhelm II is said to have spent many evenings at the hotel entertaining guests, although no women were allowed at these dining parties.

The architectural style, with its richly ornamented sandstone façade, was that of the Belle Epoque, and the interior palatial design incorporated elements from the Neo-Baroque and Neo-Rococo.

Nevertheless, although now adrift from the rest of the city it was, with police permission, still accessible and so began a third lease of life as a popular set for films and television programmes.

However, when the resurrection of Potsdamer Platz was underway and the first plans for the new Sony Center were drawn up, this factor was not considered; the Kaisersaal stood in the way and was therefore earmarked for demolition.