From a pilot project of post-war GDR modernism to a family-run hotel on the banks of the Elbe — the story of this house is also a piece of Dresden's own history.
Between 1962 and 1964, a modern high-rise in the style of post-war GDR modernism was built on the banks of the Elbe. It was an architectural pilot project: the first building in Dresden with a ceramic-tile façade, and one of the first high-rises constructed using prefabricated panel building.
What began as a symbol of socialist reconstruction is today a defining example of GDR architecture in Dresden's cityscape — a house that stands for tradition and change, and that connects the past with the present.
From its windows, the view opens onto the Elbe and the Old Town — a harmonious meeting of baroque splendour and architectural modernism.
A high-rise in the style of post-war GDR modernism rises on the banks of the Elbe — an architectural pilot project featuring Dresden's first ceramic-tile façade and one of the city's earliest panel-built structures.
On 14 May 1964, the house opens its doors. 216 single rooms of around 30 m² serve both hotel guests and long-term residents — a then-novel combination of living and hospitality, and a symbol of socialist reconstruction.
During the 1980s, the high-rise is used in part as a workers' residence.
After the fall of the Wall, the building takes its present name. A comprehensive modernisation and a new operating structure carry the hotel into a new era.
While an identical neighbouring high-rise is demolished, the hotel remains. Planned demolitions are never carried out — the deliberate choice is made for preservation and careful renovation.
The Hotel Am Terrassenufer remains a defining example of GDR architecture in Dresden's cityscape — uniting baroque splendour and architectural modernism through its view of the Elbe and the Old Town.
The first building in Dresden with a ceramic-tile façade — a novelty of the early 1960s.
One of Dresden's first high-rises in prefabricated panel construction — a pilot project of its time.
Set directly on the Elbe with a view of the Old Town — both the hotel's namesake and its heart.
Stay where Dresden's history and the view over the Elbe come together.
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