November and December 2017. During my solo trip to Taiwan – the vacation which was a catalyst to start Trip By Trip – I met Ugo. Fast forward to August 2025. Ugo is touring Europe and we decided to meet up. Showing him Antwerp was an option, but fitting the metropolis into his itinerary was hard, as Antwerp doesn’t have a great train connection with Berlin, his next stop. So, we decided on converging in Cologne in North Rhine-Westphalia for a weekend.
We met on the train – yes, we were on the same train – and checked in at Mercure Hotel Severinshof Koeln City. Koeln is the ‘international spelling’ for Köln, when keyboards don’t have umlauts. The two little dots on the o.
When I travel with Thanh, Oriol or Danny, they know I will take photos of the room when it’s not being used yet. Actually, when travelling with Danny, hotel reviews are his thing. But I decided not to bother Ugo with it. So you’ll see some messy situations on the photos for once.
Hotels were expensive that weekend in Cologne. It turned out there was a Gamescon gathering going on.
Mercure within the Accor hotel group
Accor is one of the largest hotel groups in the world, with more than forty brands covering every segment of the market, from budget stays to luxury resorts.
At the very top of the portfolio are the luxury names such as Raffles, Fairmont and Sofitel, alongside boutique collections like MGallery and eco-focused resorts under the Banyan Tree and Angsana brands. Pullman, Swissôtel and Mövenpick also sit in the premium range, aimed at travellers who expect a higher level of service, style and comfort.
In the midscale category, Accor operates Novotel, Adagio aparthotels and Mercure. Novotel is consistent and family-friendly, offering a standardised experience across the world, while Adagio is designed for longer stays with self-catering facilities.
Mercure takes a different approach: it is a 3- to 4-star brand that combines the reliability of an international chain with a strong local flavour. Each property is encouraged to reflect its surroundings through design, food and atmosphere, giving Mercure a more individual character than Novotel.
Below this sit the economy brands, dominated by the ibis family. The core ibis hotels are simple and affordable, ibis Styles adds a playful design element, and ibis budget is the most basic and low-priced. In France, Accor also runs the very low-cost hotelF1 brand.
Alongside these mainstream categories, Accor has invested heavily in lifestyle hotels through its partnership with Ennismore. This side of the portfolio includes trend-driven names such as Mama Shelter, TRIBE, JO&JOE, Mondrian, SLS and The Hoxton, which focus on design, social spaces and younger urban travellers.
The group also operates onefinestay for luxury home rentals, as well as branded residences and luxury train experiences under the revived Orient Express name.
Mercure’s role within this structure is clear: it sits firmly in the midscale segment, positioned between the economy-focused ibis brands and the more standardised Novotel.
What distinguishes Mercure is its emphasis on local identity, offering business and leisure travellers a balance between the dependability of a chain and the individuality of a hotel rooted in its location.
Mercure Hotel Severinshof Koeln City
The building of Mercure Hotel Severinshof Koeln City is very nineties and has a strange lay-out. It’s square-ish, with a patio. Our room, 514, is on the fifth floor, but it’s not a proper floor. The top floor is 4n, and at intervals you go up, stairs for two rooms in the 500s. So basically, 5XX rooms are attic rooms.
Lay-out of the room
Our room was a studio, with a corridor, a kitchenette, a sofa, a desk, a bed. Two TVs, yes two. The kitchenette was open but not the cupboards with the utensils and other kitchen accessories. I guess that costs extra.
There is a terrace, with two chairs and a table. Good for smokers and working or drinking, eating outside.
There is enough light, but more power outlets would be welcome.
The bathroom
The bathroom is small, with a shower certainly not handily fitting two people. The shower door didn’t open 100% because of a design fault. But the shower is okay.
The all-in-one shampoo / shower gel is branded elemental herbology.
Breakfast?
Breakfast was not included in our price, and Ugo was travelling on a budget, we didn’t have breakfast there. My friends are split on the breakfast at hotels matter: Thanh and Oriol really don’t like it, Danny and Sam absolutely want it.
Gym and sauna?
The Mercure Hotel Severinshof Koeln City does have a gym and a sauna. The gym machines are in the sauna area, around a little pond. Strange.
So?
We basically only used the room at Mercure Hotel Severinshof Koeln City. We’ve had very mixed experiences with Mercure hotels. This one is fine.