Film Set

Film Set

Several parts of the hotel date back to the 1970s but have been modernized to preserve the charm of that era. As a result, the hotel is a popular location for film and cinema productions, such as:

 

History

The Central-Hotel was a luxury hotel in Berlin. It opened in 1881 and was destroyed in 1945 during air raids. The hotel derived its name from its proximity to the nearby Friedrichstraße railway station. This marks the historical origin of the hotel name “Central” in Berlin.

Following World War II and the division of the city, the name “Central” was not reintroduced by any traditional-category hotel operation in either half of Berlin. The Wegner family, a long-established entrepreneurial family active in Berlin again since 1926, recognized this and, in the late 1960s, began constructing a hotel near the then-expanding Berlin-Tegel Airport (TXL). The adjacent “Holzhauser Straße” subway station on line U6 prompted the investors to revive the name “Central-Hotel”—particularly as the U6 provides a direct north-south link including Friedrichstraße station. Subsequently, the family developed additional hotels under the same name, leading to the name being extended with the location identifier to become “Central-Hotel-Tegel.”

The “Central-Hotel-Tegel” is considered an architectural landmark of the so-called “Brutalism” movement. Brutalism is a modern architectural style that began gaining prominence around 1950. Originally, the term referred to an architectural approach committed to authenticity in materials and construction, and to ethical considerations in social aspects of design. Today, the definition is broader, denoting the dominant architectural style between approximately 1960 and the early 1980s. This style is characterized by the use of exposed concrete, structural clarity, simple geometric forms, and often rough finishes and layouts. In the early 21st century, a renewed appreciation of Brutalism emerged, particularly in response to demolitions and disfiguring renovations. Architects and cultural critics increasingly recognized the historical and artistic value of this architectural approach. The architect of the “Central-Hotel-Tegel,” Gerd Hänska, is among the most prominent representatives of this design philosophy. He designed several buildings in Berlin in the same style, including the “Central Animal Laboratories of Freie Universität Berlin” and the building of the former Hahn-Meitner Institute “Electron Storage Ring BESSY 1.” In West Berlin, Le Corbusier, Werner Düttmann, and Klaus Kirsten created buildings associated with this era, while in East Berlin, Eckart Schmidt’s “Spitteldreieck” project reflected similar influences. For the Wegner family, still active in the capital, it is a matter of cultural commitment to preserve the hotel’s architecture—both exterior and interior—in its original form. Necessary modernizations have been and continue to be carried out with great care and in harmony with the architectural substance.

 

If you are considering our hotel as a filming location or have specific questions about production, we look forward to your inquiry.

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