As part of my Wellbeing Ambassadorial duties for Westin Hotels & Resorts, I recently had the awesome opportunity to attend the opening of The Westin Hotel Hamburg, Germany. It’s a brand-new, architectural art-piece at the heart of the city’s cultural center, built literally on top of the Elbphilharmonie (the city’s world-class Concert Halls, opening Jan 11th 2017), it offers epic views over the city and has a 1.3 square kilometer wellness spa! The best news of all? COMPETITION TIME! Westin has teamed up with me to offer 1 lucky reader (+ partner) their very own Wellness Weekend Escape here! Click MORE to see how to enter…
As cities go, this is pretty incredible. At almost 2 million souls, it’s the 2nd largest in Germany behind the capital, and is an incredibly diverse metropolitan experience. Nestled on the River Elbe, it’s a classic sprawling port city sustaining a spread of leading companies in Europe’s heavy industries, but it’s also a city rich in cultural heritage and sporting excellence.
The Westin Hotel Hamburg is a place unlike any other I’ve been. Journeying there is symbolic; most likely you’ll be driving down a wide industrial road, along which you’ll see some of the oldest buildings in the city, untouched by time – the beautiful red-brick shipyard buildings. Facing off against that is ‘the new’ – modern elegant real estate which looks out upon the gorgeous waterfront. The Westin Hamburg is THE focal point of these two worlds; it’s a glass superstructure which soars 110m into the sky, built upon a much older red-brick base building.
Lift your gaze to the sky and the roof top catches you off guard; it’s surprising and unique. The irregular shape resembles dramatic waves crashing against each other, which aside from making reference to the maritime significance of the city, also poetically symbolize the crashing waves of old-and-new. The scope and scale of dropping a building on top of an existing building is overwhelming, and the architectural genius is mind-boggling. How does a building support such incredible weight?!
The walls of the hotel are also an irregular lattice of curved glass, which echoes that wave motif. Floor to ceiling glass maximizes the view when you’re in it, and the rooms – much like the one where we shot the morning video in the corner room – is astonishing. The feeling is as though you’re adrift on the sea… yet you’re high up in the sky looking down onto the water below and miniature ferries passing by. It has an incredibly calming effect and waking up to such a view makes you question if you even want to leave the room it’s so stunning!
However, the position is perfect for a long run along the port side. Once back you can indulge in delicious superfoods whilst watching the sun set over the water. My active weekend included runs along the Elbe (along with the super knowledgeable Run Concierge), yoga on the viewing platform, cycling through the city, group workouts in the Hotel’s brand new facilities, and an array of delicious SuperfoodRX inspired healthy food, fashioned by Executive Chef Martin Kirchgasser.
THE COMPETITION?
This is easy! It’s over on my Facebook page, HERE. Head to that page, watch the video, and leave me a comment with your top tips on how to travel healthily & Work Well, including the hashtags #WestinOnToast and #WestinHamburg. And that’s it, you’re entered! The winner will know before Xmas, so this will be a wonderful extra present
T&C’s
- The promotion commences on 3.12.2016, and remains open for submissions until the closing date of 23:59:59 GMT on 18.12.2016
- The winner will be chosen by Faya Nilsson, from all submissions received by the closing date.
- The winners will be informed via a Facebook message, and will also be announced at the Westin Hamburg/Fitness On Toast Facebook pages as appropriate
- The winner must respond within 14 days of the day on which their notification message was sent.
- Full T&Cs here: http://www.starwoodpromotion.eu/wellnessweekend/
http://pc.cd/MazotalK
