Cologne within easy reach – a short walk from the main railway station as well as the nearby banks of the Rhine: Our historic journeymen’s house not only offers a convenient location but also an unusual choice of rooms.
Discover the charm of our breakfast room plus visitors’ garden, stimulating photographic art and one of Cologne’s most popular private theatres.
The singles, doubles and suites in our hotel are all charmingly designed boasting a quiet setting and location. In the vaulted cellar our guests can enjoy a small wellness area with fitness equipment and sauna.
You can hold your conference or meeting in our two bright meeting rooms equipped with modern technology. In our historic journeymen’s hall “L.Fritz im HOPPER” you start the day with our breakfast buffet and in good weather you can sit out in the adjoining visitors’ garden.
…because our hotel is located on a quiet side street. Stimulating photographic art, practical comfort and the sleek elegance of our furnishings give our single and double rooms and suites their very own aura. In the vaulted cellar our guests have a small wellness area with fitness facilities, and sauna at their disposal. You can hold a small conference or business meeting in two bright meeting rooms that are equipped with modern technology. And in our historic journeymen’s hall “L. Fritz im HOPPER” you can kick off the day with our breakfast buffet – and end it on an entertaining note in our very own “Tiefrot” theatre.
Located directly on the Rhine, the Kunibertsviertel owes its name to the Romanesque basilica of St. Kunibert. Situated close to the city centre this district boasts restaurants, cafés and boutiques as well as the University of Music and Dance. Typical for this area is its Mediterranean outdoor café culture around the Eigelstein. Visitors meet here both in and outside the many cosy restaurants and bars, and not just in summer.
A stroll through the historic old town or a walk by the cathedral and along the banks of the Rhine – many beautiful attractions are a short walk from Hotel St. Antonius. The German TV channel WDR, the main station, major museums and many cultural institutions are also within walking distance. Even destinations further afield can be easily reached by bus and tram.
The breakfast buffet in the former journeymen’s hall lets no one start the day on an empty stomach: high-quality, regional ingredients and freshly baked goods, a choice of coffee or tea plus many added extras all set you up for the day in Cologne in particularly atmospheric surroundings.
Small but sophisticated: In the vaulted cellar of the former journeymen’s house you will find the Finnish hemlock sauna and training equipment for healthy power and endurance training.
Opening Hours
Opening out onto our secluded visitors’ garden are two bright conference rooms featuring natural daylight and modern technology. They each offer space to comfortably host up to 10 or 14 people. The HOPPER Team would be happy to assist you with tailored solutions from planning through to implementation: Organise your small conference or business meeting, your presentation or private celebration. In combination with the options offered at our breakfast restaurant, our range of rooms upstairs and our cultural program in the cellar the possibilities are endless.
– Room rental or favourable all-inclusive rates
– Parking spaces in neighbouring underground car park (subject to a charge)
– Drinks and snacks
– For up to 14 people
– Natural daylight and garden access
– Modern conference technology
– Room rental or favourable all-inclusive rates
– Parking spaces in neighbouring underground car park (subject to a charge)
– Drinks and snacks
– For up to 10 people
– Natural daylight and garden access
– Modern conference technology
Professor L. Fritz Gruber performed a service to photography in Germany like perhaps no other. The role the doyen – born in 1908 – played in artistic photography is continually evidenced. His significant collection at Museum Ludwig growing over the years, his initiative establishing the world exhibition Photokina and the German Photographic Association as well as his commitment as a communicator and promoter of photography are invaluable, especially for the art city of Cologne.
HOPPER was all the more delighted at their several years spent together and at the role Prof. L Fritz played as a friend and mentor of the hotel. A selection of his originals, some classical, some contemporary in style, testifies to the stimulating encounters with Professor L. Fritz Gruber. Each room has been furnished with one or more original works. In honour of Cologne’s “Pope of Photography”, guests have been dining under his likeness in the in-house restaurant »L. Fritz im Hopper« for many years now.
A building with a long history of hospitality is today once again a place of international encounters: The HOPPER St. Antonius building was erected in 1904 by the Kolping Brotherhood in 1905 and dedicated to St. Antonius. Until a few years ago, the “Antoniushaus”, one of the largest and most modern Kolping Houses, was a hostel for wandering journeymen. With its central location near the cathedral and main station, it was always particularly popular. However, the life of journeymen “on the road” continued to decline in the age of technical and social change prompting the Kolping Society to finally abandon the Antoniushaus in 1997.
At the end of 1997, planning began for an extensive renovation and redesign of the building – one that after damage during the Second World War had not been restored to its original state. This error was largely corrected in the course of the redevelopment. Which means the original stepped gable and latticed windows were all lovingly restored to their former glory. In various places inside the building you can also find evidence of the original building’s structure. For instance, the historic mettlach tiles and restored vaults in today’s restaurant exude the hospitable charm of the old dining room.
The picture on the right shows the Kolpinghaus St. Antonius as it was following the war – gables, dormers and windows had only been restored to a functional standard.
Adolph Kolping was born on 8 December 1813 in Kerpen near Cologne. He grew up in poor circumstances, attended the village school and began an apprenticeship as a shoemaker at the age of 13. This was followed by ten years as a journeyman, during which Kolping experienced the collapse of the guilds. On his obligatory wanderings he experienced the misery of the wandering journeymen. But Adolph Kolping wanted to continue his education and become a priest. In 1841 he passed his “Abitur” school leaving certificate at the Marzellengymnasium in Cologne. He was lucky enough to receive a scholarship to study theology, and on 13 April 1845 he was ordained a priest in the Minorite Church in Cologne. At the age of 32 he started his first job as chaplain in Elberfeld, where he soon became involved in an association for the support of young journeymen. Kolping was inspired by the idea of founding journeymen’s associations in other places for young craftsmen. By 1849 as the cathedral vicar in Cologne, he founded the Kölner Gesellenverein, a society of journeymen, in line with the Elberfeld model. The association was very popular and the wandering journeymen carried the idea of Kolping out into the world. Kolping died on 4 December 1865 and was buried in the Minorite Church in Cologne.
Yes, cats and dogs are also very welcome.
For a small cleaning fee (€ 10 per night per animal) your pet can stay with you overnight in your room.
Want to store your luggage at the hotel before and after check-in?
Just drop off your luggage at reception. We’ll take care of everything else.
Thanks to our laundry provider Bräuninger we offer a laundry service in all HOPPER hotels from Monday to Friday. Simply drop off your laundry at the reception by 8.30 am and you will have it returned to you the same day!
To give your garments a quick press, we will gladly provide you with an ironing board and iron free of charge.
At HOPPER Hotel St. Josef an iron can be found in your room.
Parking for coaches near the cathedral is available on Komödienstraße. Here you can park for up to 15 minutes.
Entering and alighting the vehicle is possible at any time.
Further coach parking is available at the Chocolate Museum (both directions). Here, too, the number of parking spaces and parking times are limited. On the left bank of the Rhine, below the Bastei, there are further coach parking spaces right by the river. Free coach parking for longer periods (overnight or longer) is signposted on the exhibition grounds.
Cologne coach park (“Buspark Köln”) is located in the Cologne-Riehl district. This offers space for 80 coaches. Parking is free of charge.