Grosvenor House, A JW Marriott Hotel, London

-- Hotels, 9/19/2008 2:14:00 PM

The ReardonSmith architecture firm has completed a seven-year, multi-million pound rebuilding and refurbishment program at London’s Grosvenor House, A JW Marriott Hotel, encompassing virtually all areas of the hotel, front and back-of-house.

Grosvenor House stayed open throughout the work, posing significant management and logistical issues for the professional team, but now, in the words of Hotel Manager Simon Traynor: “The hotel has truly been restored to its former glory and is clearly positioned as the flagship property for Marriott in Europe, culminating in its re-branding to the first A JW Marriott in the region.”

The most striking architectural innovation is the upgrade of the main forecourt and entrance on Park Street. Here, ReardonSmith introduced two substantial cantilevered and lit-glass canopies rising over a newly ramped courtyard surfaced in Chinese granite. The effect is to lend the drama and gravitas of a world-leading hotel and, combined with a freshly cleaned façade, to restate the building’s Lutyens’ inspired inheritance.

Inside, all 446 guestrooms and suites have been refurbished and a further 48 rooms added, all designed to meet the luxury standards of JW Marriott. Both the ballroom and court suite have been refurbished, new meeting rooms created and all lounges and bars upgraded, as well as the reception lobby and the numerous corridors of the vast hotel.

In the course of the project, ReardonSmith, acting as project leader and coordinator, has
administered seven contracts, worked with two different hotel operators (Le
Méridien before Marriott International), collaborated with some 25 consultancies and provided more than  60 architects, technicians and administrators from its own office. Phasing, planning and management of all works on site were key to minimizing disruption for guests.