Visitors to the first Seaside Hotel in November 1974 on Gran Canaria were very close to not having water or electricity. Both were only provided when an opening hotel license was obtained. And Theo Gerlach waited for this until an hour before the festive start of Don Gregory – even though guests from politics, media, and travel agencies had already arrived on the island with a specially chartered Boeing 727. Courage and risk were part of it, thought the Hamburg-based construction entrepreneur. With the entry into the hotel industry, his creed was born: “We want to offer guests what we expect from a hotel ourselves.” Gradually, more hotels were added. In 1975, Palm Beach, 1986, Sandy Beach, and shortly after the reunification, the first hotel in Germany: the Seaside Residence Hotel in Chemnitz (1992). And in 2000, the Grand Hotel Residencia, still the first and only Leading Hotel of the World in Gran Canaria. Today, Anouchka Gerlach and Gregor Gerlach continue to develop the hotels under the umbrella of the Seaside Collection, founded in 2019. Like their father Theo Gerlach, they also live by his creed. A good hotel for them is a place that combines design, excellent cuisine, and professional as well as warm-hearted staff.