We noticed that you're using an unsupported browser. The Tripadvisor website may not display properly.We support the following browsers:
Windows: Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome. Mac: Safari.

Need Air/Cond. in July ???

canada
3 posts
Need Air/Cond. in July ???
Save

We booked the Hotel Viktualienmarkt in Munich for July & it does not have any air-conditioning so we are hesitating & wondering if we should find another hotel with A/C - hard to find & expensive though.

Do you think we'll be ok without A/C in july in Munich ? Thanks.

Frankfurt, Germany
Level Contributor
1,004 posts
12 reviews
7 helpful votes
1. Re: Need Air/Cond. in July ???
Save

If this year's July is any like the past 5 ones you won't really enjoy be able to enjoy a room without AC. Problem is that usually only 4 and 5 star hotels have air conditioned rooms.

Before the climate change AC's weren't really necessary in Germany but that's changed since early this century. Try to find a hotel that's been modernized, refurbished or built from scratch past 2003 or so...

Boston
Level Contributor
926 posts
1 review
2. Re: Need Air/Cond. in July ???
Save

I agree, we have been going to Munich for the past 5 summers and I would not even consider staying at a hotel without a/c. Even then, one of our first stops is Herties to buy a fan as the a/c is not usually as cold as we are used to. I also stopped bring jeans as we always wear shorts. It gets very hot!

Sri Lanka
Destination Expert
for Air Travel
Level Contributor
6,929 posts
202 reviews
310 helpful votes
3. Re: Need Air/Cond. in July ???
Save

You really do need air con. The last few summers as said have been really hot and a few years a go made the mistake of booking the Excesior which had no air con (still dont think they have) and were were very hot and it was insufferable at night.

Having said that have stayed at the Novotel (not long after it opened) when its been really hot and their air con could not cope with the heat!

Pay the extra and get A/C

Munich, Germany
Level Contributor
351 posts
1 review
4. Re: Need Air/Cond. in July ???
Save

Reading these answers I ask myself how I survived the last years as my home (like almost all in Germany) does not have A/C.

Yes, there my be some hot days in June, July and August but usually at night the temperature falls to 20 C or below. Last year in June the warmest night hab a 23 C minimum.

So there should in general be no problem if you stay in a hotel in a quiet street with the window opened at night. Before you can enjoy the fun of the warm evening sitting outside at a restaurant in a lively district like Schwabing or Maxvorstadt which is surely better than getting a bad cold by the A/C.

Philipp

Sri Lanka
Destination Expert
for Air Travel
Level Contributor
6,929 posts
202 reviews
310 helpful votes
5. Re: Need Air/Cond. in July ???
Save

You are quite right Seybothph regarding not needing A/C in your own home, but staying in a hotel when its warm is quite different, hotels tend to be stuffy and well insulated esp the more modern ones which do tend to held the heat more. If you have a smaller room its even worse.Quite diffirent to your own home. It would be ideal to keep windows open but most hotels are in busy places and even if not so tend to have deliverys and waste collected early on in the mornings, which when your on holiday is an unwelcome intrushion at the best of times. I have stayed in many a hotel even in the UK (yes, we sometims get nice warm weather!) when the weather is not so warm but sufficating inside, and you need the A/C

Las Vegas, Nevada
Destination Expert
for Stuttgart, Baden-Wurttemberg
Level Contributor
19,920 posts
53 reviews
102 helpful votes
6. Re: Need Air/Cond. in July ???
Save

I tend to agree with seybothph, we also don't have AC in our apartment and only a very few nights during the summer do we suffer. Actually, staying in a very hot hotel in both Zurich and York, England when the temperature was about 100F (40C) are things I well remember, although a long time ago. My wife and I stayed in one room in Zurich and the children across the hall in another leaving the doors and windows open for a very little cross ventilation. The kids got a kick out of the drunken Italians singing on their balcony across the way. At least with time the unpleasantness fades to be replaced by more fond memories, and if it wasn't for the unfortunate very hot weather, I would have few memories of either place. Having grown up without AC in the USA, I find it no hardship to be without it in Europe and rather not have it if it means being in a typical the-world-over sterile modern hotel.

Boston
Level Contributor
926 posts
1 review
7. Re: Need Air/Cond. in July ???
Save

marcopolko,

Not sure what you having a lousy time in Zurich and York (both great places to visit) has to do with this topic. But I can tell you after spending many hours traveling or sightseeing, listening to drunk sailors (another knock you made) singing nor kids across the hall at 2 am is my idea of vacationing. I have stayed many times in older hotels and find them just as hot and stuffy as the "typical the-world-over sterile modern hotel". Also, leaving my hotel door open for this alleged cross ventalation breeze that is not never going to come is also not happening.

Although I enjoy visiting beer gardens on occasion, on the hottest of nights we like to go to (while in Munich) the Hard Rock cafe becasue they have great a/c and PUT ICE IN THE SODA.

Barcelona, Spain
Destination Expert
for Barcelona, Berlin
Level Contributor
25,594 posts
7 reviews
58 helpful votes
8. Re: Need Air/Cond. in July ???
Save

I think in Germany the environmental impact of air-con is also a factor taken into account. In Germany people are very environmentally-aware, compared even with other European countries.Certainly in places like Stasizentrale and Stasi Info centre, Gedenkstäte Deutscher Widerstand, it has been incedibly hot (and not even midsummer ) and no sign of cooling system.

But even here in Barcelona air-con is not the norm for homes except high-quality new-build and I doubt cheaper hotels have it installed either. We just grin and bear it, though at least things like shutters do help (compared with UK in a heatwave).

Salt Lake City
Level Contributor
1,793 posts
13 reviews
31 helpful votes
9. Re: Need Air/Cond. in July ???
Save

There is a sad dilemma in all of this. Flying on planes and using air conditioning are two factors in high energy use that lead to pollution and global warming, hence the want for air conditioning.

Natural cross-ventilation in hotel rooms rarely happens. Ceiling fans might help. A well devised ventilation system might also help with far less energy consumption than air conditioning; but, retrofitting buildings might be too expensive.

For us, one good reason to travel to Europe has been the pleasant climate. I would like to find a way to keep visiting without destroying it.

I do not hold a lot of hope. I live in a part of the world where evaporative coolers work great at a fraction of the energy use and cost and still most are converting to air-conditioning.

We all need to keep our eyes and minds open to reduced energy alternatives.

Regards, Gary

Austin
Level Contributor
933 posts
12 reviews
34 helpful votes
10. Re: Need Air/Cond. in July ???
Save

We stayed at the Hotel Blauer Bock during last July's heatwave. We didn't have a problem because our windows faced into the quiet courtyard. Yep, we had our windows wide open at night and our curtains drawn during the day. But if we had faced Sebastiansplatz or the Viktualienmarkt, we would have not survived the noise.

Unfortunately, in Vienna, during the same rotten heatwave (okay, yes, it's climate change), we had a room that looked on the street. Never ever again! Way too noisy. We will pay the extra money for a room with AC next time we visit Vienna.

© 2024 Tripadvisor LLC All rights reserved.

This is the version of our website addressed to speakers of English in United Kingdom. If you are a resident of another country or region, please select the appropriate version of Tripadvisor for your country or region in the drop-down menu.