Bahnübergang

More information about the history

Image: Postcard, Westfalenhof, around 1920

Even away from the sophisticated Rheinallee right on the river, tourists could still enjoy accommodation with an extremely grand feel at the “Westfalenhof” hotel, which boasted an unrestricted view of the Drachenfels.

Image: Postcard, approx. 1900 (...) “Hier hab‘ ich ein Heim gefunden | Wo man frei und ungebunden | Wo der Geist so klar und hell | sprudelt wie ein frischer Quell, Hier bei Becherklang und Lieder Lass ich mich häuslich nieder”

The tourist boom at the end of the 19th century was not only the driving force behind the construction of guest houses and hotels on the Rhine; new hotels were also built in the centre of the town. The largest of them was the “Westfalenhof” from 1897. Its first owner was Fritz Klein, who penned a poem in which he voiced his joy about his life and his property in 1910.

Image: Postcard, around 1950, view of Drachenfelsstrasse, in the direction of the railway crossing

The years of change after the First World War also took their toll on this hotel. French soldiers were quartered there from 1923 to 1930. The hotel filed for bankruptcy a short while later. During the Second World War, the building was used as a military hospital. In 1987, the guest house, which had been frequently remodelled in years gone by, was completely gutted and turned into flats. Since then it has been a listed building.