Category: Hotel

Hotel Grande Bretagne

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Hotel Grande Bretagne

Having breakfast on a balcony with the Acropolis in full view is a good way to start the day in Athens, and staying at the Grande Bretagne, where you can do just that, is a good way to spend the rest of it. Despite the outstanding attractions that fill the city, there are days when the heat and the chaos build up, and this great old hotel, with its cool lavish interiors exerts a powerful pull as an elegant escape from the blur of sightseeing in sauna-like conditions. Of course it’s impossible to be in Athens without wanting to see some sights from time to time, and when a spell in the long cool indoor pool at the hotel’s state of the art spa has restored some energy, the centre of the city is right on the doorstep.

Situated next to Syntagma Square and the Parliament building, the Grande Bretagne couldn’t be better placed. The metro is seconds away, although most attractions are within walking distance. The hotel is in the centre of things physically, as it has been from the time when chickens ran around the surrounding streets when it opened in 1874. (There were two bathrooms then, for eighty bedrooms. Now each ensuite bathroom is a marbled extravaganza filled with Molton Brown goodies and gilded mirrors). As the hotel at the heart of city, the Grande Bretagne has been at the heart of many a historical happening. Spies, agents and other political players have stayed here and many an alliance or plot has been planned within its walls. When Athens fell to the Nazis, the hotel that had been at the centre of local social life and celebrations was requisitioned as the headquarters of the German Army – apparently Himmler, Goering and Hitler all stayed here.

Then the hotel became the headquarters of the British Expeditionary Force and later the Civil War between the Greek Army and the communist resistance in Athens saw the hotel become a combination fortress/refugee camp, with machine-guns at the entrance and hundreds of homeless people in the rooms. During these times of crisis Churchill, Macmillan and Eden all visited the hotel for conferences. Heads of state continue to visit, although now it’s usually to take up luxurious residence in the Presidential or Royal suites. All the rooms at the Grande Bretagne are sumptuously appointed with fine fabrics and furnishings, but sizes and views do vary. This is not a problem with these premier suites – living rooms with fireplaces, formal sitting areas, dining rooms for private dinners, bathrooms with jet tubs and steam baths – and the best views the hotel can offer, with the Parliament building and the Acropolis taking centre stage. Some of the standard rooms do offer similar views, with good sized balconies to enjoy them from, but there’s no missing out on the Athens skyline at this hotel.

A spell by the rooftop pool offers a fine vista of Lycabettus Hill beyond the blue waters of a pool that is the ultimate antidote to the sticky street heat, and the simple routine of having breakfast involves gazing out at the Acropolis, preferably from the outside terrace where the sun is warm but not blistering as the day starts. And in the evening, the same sight is set aflame by the setting sun as cocktail hourunfurls and the heat fades to a soft balm. Although it’s hard, it’s worth the effort to leave the hotel at this point and wander to the nearby and lively district of Plaka for a meal, if only to have the pleasure of returning to the Grande Bretagne and walking through the impressive lobby to finish the evening in Alexander’s, one of the world’s better hotel bars. An eighteenth century handmade tapestry hangs behind the bar, depicting Alexander the Great’s entrance into Gavgamila. They serve Dom Perignon by the glass, and not many places do that.

And therein lies the formula that makes this place special. The massive restoration that took place before the 2004 Summer Olympics took care to update the old building with all the mod-cons imaginable, but also took care to leave the historic grandeur of the hotel in place. That same rigorous attention to detail and service can be found in Alexander’s, and in the adjoining Winter Garden, where locals drop in every day for coffee. Continuity is comforting in a frenetic city, and while the Grande Bretagne is no longer the only place in town, it remains the place in town.


Madinat Jumeirah Dubai

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Madinat Jumeirah – das arabische Resort. Eine Stadt in der Stadt wie ein Traum aus Tausendundeiner Nacht. Der Facettenreichtum dieses Resorts bietet für jeden Gast die Möglichkeit, seinen Auftenthalt individuell zu gestallten. Genießen Sie den Komfort, den exzellenten Service und die arabische Gastfreundschaft in einem der 3 Premium Hotels:  Dar Al Masyaf, Al Qasr und Mina A´Salam. Eine 3,7 km lange Wasserstraße verläuft durch die ganze Anlage und verbindet die beiden Hotels “Al Qasr” und “Mina  A´Salam” die Dar Al Masayf Sommerhäuser sowie den Souk des Resorts miteinander. Fahren Sie gemütlich in einer Abra, einem arabischen Wassertaxi, den Kanal entlang, der gesäumt ist von ausgedehnten Blumengärtner, Palmen und großen Poolbereichen. Vorbei an Boutiqen mit Designer Kleidung, Straßencafes und Restaurants mit Terrasse, arabischen Sommerhäusern und luftigen Plätzen mit Brunnen. Sie brauchen das Resort nicht zu verlassen, um die genüssen Dubai´s zu kosten. Im hauseigenen Souk (arabischen für Markt) können Sie Waren aller Art erwerben: von arabischen Parfumfläschen über traditionelle Shischas bis hin zu Paschminaschals gibt es hier fast alles. Besuchen Sie außerdem das Madinat Theater oder die Freilichtbühne .

Insgesamt bietet das Resort 44 Restaurants, Bars, Cafes und Lounges und läßt somit kulinarisch keine Wünsche offen. Abgerundet wird das vielfältige Angebot des Resorts durch Boutiqe Hotel Mina A´Salam, der herrschaftlichen Sommerpalast  “Al Qaser” und die freistehenden Sommerhäuser “Dar Al Masyaf”, 3 wunderschöne Anlagen die keine Wünsche offen lassen und für jeden Geschmack etwas bietet.

Mina A´Salam heißt übersetzt der Hafen des Friedens. Ganz in diesem Sinne liegt das schöne Hotel direkt am Meer und ist von Wasserstraßen umgeben. Die im traditionellen arabischen Stil eingerichteten Zimmer bieten Ihnen einen wunderschönen Blick auf das im Sonnenlicht türkis glitzernden Meer des arabischen Golfs.

Das Palasthotel Al Qasr liegt mitten im Zentrum des Resorts Madinat Jumeirah. Schon die Anreise zu diesem Palast ist einmalig. Eine grüne Allee und golden funkelnde, lebensgroße Statuen von Araber Pferden säumen die Auffahrt und vermittlen dem Besucher eine Hauch von märchenhaftem Luxus. Im Hotel geben große Fenster einen wunderschönen Blick auf den spektakulären Garten und die großzügige Poollandschaft frei.

The Mandeville Hotel, London

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The Mandeville Hotel
Mandeville Place,
London, West End
(Rates from 150 €)

Hotel Information: Emerging from the stuffy heat of Bond Street underground station onto rush-hour Oxford Street, London is typically abuzz with activity. But just a few streets from the bustle, tucked away off fashionable Marylebone High Street, a rather special hotel offers respite from the rush. Privately owned, The Mandeville has just had a £15 million refurbishment. Now everything has been given a bit more space, and each room has that touch of individualism that marks out the boutique hotel. At the top, the hotel’s split-level penthouse has the privacy of a townhouse and includes a small roof terrace overlooking Hinde Street Church and the rooftops of London. Throughout, the feel is that of a sophisticated and stylish, yet comfortable, property. The heart of the hotel is the supercool de Vigne Bar. Here vibrant colours of red, yellow, green and silver stand out, while the focal neon-lit bar changes through these tones sporadically, generating a lively and warm ambience throughout the room.The drinks are great too, with an imaginative cocktail list created by their in-house mixologist, the inventor of the bar’s signature cocktail, Honey Suckle – a mixture of honey vodka, rose petal liquor, elderflower, fresh raspberries and champagne.

Room Information: 142 rooms. Continental breakfast costs GBP 16.50 per person. Full English breakfast costs GBP 21.50 per person. .

Rates: from 150€

Next door, the equally modish de Ville restaurant is a secluded place in which to enjoy a traditional afternoon tea, or to settle in for a dinner based on the best of modern British fare – simple dishes based on great produce – so the potato soup tastes of potato and isn’t just warm comfort, while the rosemary rib steak served with sumptuous cherry tomatoes still on the vine and properly chunky chips leaves the most weary diner restored. It’s all dished up in surroundings that have as much attitude as the punchy flavours of the food – like much of the downstairs of the hotel, the restaurant reflects a certain tongue-in-cheek theatre. Modern, large patterned floral motif wallpaper and two imposing statues wearing Venetian masks dominate the room, between which hangs a digitally enhanced image of a slightly surreal white rabbit. It’s quirky, but sometimes we like it like that. Upstairs in the bedrooms, the colourful design remains – less theatrical, but no less charming for that. The beds are lined with pea-green bedspreads, the headboards are upholstered in white, panelled faux leather and a mirror board. At the foot of the bed fuchsia pink armchairs are nice for reclining in while watching the flat-screen LCD television that comes with each room. It has to be said, the marble-floored en suite bathroom in my deluxe room was a bit of a squeeze, but the particularly powerful shower made up for that, and had me wide awake the next morning, well able to weave my way once more through the thronging mass of London’s streets.

Grosvenor House & Le Royal Meridien

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Big, Brash and on a seemingly unstoppable drive to become the Middle East’s principal tourist hub, Dubai has ‘bling’ written all over it. The Dubai Marina area by Jumeirah Beach is developing as rapidly as the rest of this twenty-first century city. At its heart stands yet another dramatic tower building,the shiny 45-storey Grosvenor House, overlooking the Marina. It was the first hotel in that particular spot when it opened in 2005, not that you’d know that looking at the surroundings just a few years on. As is customary in this rapidly growing Emirate, countless high-rise blocks have sprung up all around the hotel, each in various stages of completion.

Out by the Marina, building work is likely to continue for the foreseeable future as the hotel is itself constructing a second tower next door called The Residence, which will offer swish apartments and will be joined to the existing tower by a glass bridge. For, once inside, the drilling and hammering disappears and you finally have chanceto fully appreciate the hotel’s five-star quality. A grand marble floored reception hall lined with glass vases of fresh-cut roses sets the tone for a hotel that just exudes chic Off the lobby lie smart restaurants and conference facilities, while in the centre local businessmen in Arabic dress lounge in cushioned chairs and talk over coffee with suited Western counterparts. Upstairs, and decorated in tones of creamand chocolate brown, the hotel’s bedroomsand suites – many of which are sea facing –are just as sleek. They’re also soundproofagainst the surrounding mayhem and blissfully comfortable. With supremely cosybeds, 42in flat screen TVs, substantial ensuite bathrooms and butlers on call 24-hours-a-day, you’d be forgiven for pullingdown the blinds and not coming out fora day or two.Although you may well be tempted toventure out to the hotel spa, The Retreat.Here, you can be as pummelled or pampered as you wish with assorted body wraps, massages and other treatments.

One of the best features, however, is Bar 44 (on the 44th floor of course), an elegant champagne and cocktail bar which hosts live jazz and blues, and serves 44 different kinds of champagne. The views from here are good too, despite the building work that I saw on my visit – although given the pace of development in Dubai these are probably fully-fledged skyscrapers by now.But the view of the Marina is probably as impressive as you’ll find anywhere in the city and it’s also fascinating to peer out to sea through the heat haze and witness the progress of the Jumeirah Palm, the smallest of the city’s three enormous palm islands, which is being created in the bath-warm waters of the Arabian Gulf.

On the ground floor is the hotel’s signature venue, the Buddha Bar, a concept brought over from Paris, and known throughout the city for its fine Asian food, cool ambience and chilled sounds, at the centre of which looms a giant statue of Buddha, who looks on approvingly as guests tuck into squid tempura, salmon sashimi, or any of their other superb Asian dishes. It’s the most popular of the hotel’s 12restaurants and bars. Meanwhile, the Grosvenor’s sister hotel across the road, Le Royal Meridien, has a further 14 dining and drinking venues. Fresh locally caught fish forms the basis of a delicious menu at the Mi Vida seafood restaurant, while a choice cut of steak at Prime Rib is another good option.

While Le Royal Meridien and Grosvenor House are just a few hundred metres apart, you’ll need to take a free shuttle bus, as walking is a no go on account of the nearby construction work, which can be a little frustrating when you feel like a stroll. Le Royal Meridien itself allows room to roam, with direct access to a sizeable section of Jumeirah Beach and private grounds with green lawns and several swimming pools among palm trees. So there’s plenty of space to find some solitude on a sun lounger.Also five-stars, but a more traditional resort hotel than it’s glitzier bigger sister, Le Royal Meridien certainly makes the most of its position on the Jumeirah beachfront, which makes it far more suitable for families. It’s also a great place to simply relax by the pool with a good book and an ice-cold drink. Or alternatively, to get married on the hotel’s private beach, as some guests have done – no doubt confident that the attention to detail that makes these hotels notable in a city where five-star hotels are two-a-penny, will be applied to their special big day.