Rosewood Hotels & Resorts opened Rosewood London Wednesday.
The hotel occupies a 1914 Edwardian Belle Epoque building on High Holborn that was once the headquarters of the Pearl Assurance Company. Renovations have preserved some of the original details, including the street frontage and dome and a seven-story Pavonazzo marble staircase beneath a cupola.
Guests enter the hotel via a carriageway into a courtyard, to give the sense of arriving at a private manor house.
The hotel’s 262 guestrooms and 44 suites have a residential feel; Tony Chi and Associates designed the accommodations as well as event spaces and public areas. One suite, the Grand Manor House Wing, has a private elevator and street entrance leading to six bedrooms, a dressing room, library, dining room, and several sitting rooms. Rosewood says it’s the world’s only hotel suite to have its own postcode. Suite guests also have access to the Manor Club, which offers butler and concierge service as well as a menu of cocktails and light dishes.
Other food and beverage outlets include the Lobby Lounge and the Mirror Room, which serves afternoon tea and all-day dining options.
Martin Brudnizki designed the hotel’s bar, which includes a fireplace and wooden bar. Furniture is arranged to create intimate corners atop a wooden herringbone floor and hand-woven rugs.
Brudnizki also designed the Holborn Dining Room, which will open in February 2014. The brasserie will serve simple but sophisticated British fare in a space that includes reclaimed oak, antique mirrors, leather upholstery, aged copper and brass for a classic British look. Guests can also dine on The Terrace, in the hotel’s courtyard.
When it opens in February, Holborn Delicatessen will serve coffees, teas, and artisanal food products.
Rosewood London also offers a Sense spa, fitness suite, and 11 event spaces that include a grand ballroom, a three heritage boardrooms, a living room space and a dining room space with a show kitchen.
//
Editor’s note: Only guestroom photographs are available at this point.