Atlantic Congress Hotel Essen, WorldHotels Elite

Essen is one of the big cities of the Ruhr, Germany's old coal-and-steel heartland, now reborn as a place of art, design and green space and named a European Capital of Culture in 2010. Just north of the centre, the huge Zollverein colliery, once among the largest coal mines in the world, has been turned into a sweeping park of museums, design studios and walking paths, while the Museum Folkwang and the beaches of Lake Baldeney add art and open water nearby. In the lively Rüttenscheid district, the Atlantic Congress Hotel Essen,WorldHotels Elite, Essen, Germany, makes a polished base, with a big modern conference centre, a flexible auditorium and seminar rooms, a Finnish sauna, a fitness centre, free Wi-Fi, a restaurant serving regional and international food, and smart rooms with rainfall showers and a choice of pillows. A tram stop right outside links the whole city, and Dusseldorf airport is about twenty minutes away by car. Step out and you are among the shops and cafés of Ruttenscheid, with the city's congress halls close by. Forests, lakes and a web of old mining trails ring the city, making Essen an easy place to explore the wider Ruhr by train and bike.