There’s nothing like a wave of new luxury coming on board in Europe to make any travel and hospitality executive feel optimistic, and we’re feeling might good right about now with lots of news this week on new hotels and massive refurbishments to existing properties.
Some of these have been planned all along, despite the pandemic, and others have simply taken the opportunity to upgrade their offerings while business is in a slowdown.
Here’s a roundup of things to look forward to.
The Rosewood Amsterdam is slated for a 2023 debut. It’s being crafted out of the former Palace of Justice, which was Amsterdam’s main courthouse for over 175 years and which opened in 1665. The building overlooks the Prinsengracht in the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Amsterdam Canal District. Top nearby attractions include the museum district, the high-end shopping district on P.C. Hooftstraat and the hip De Pijp neighborhood.
Rosewood Amsterdam joins three existing European properties: Hôtel de Crillon, A Rosewood Hotel, Rosewood London and Rosewood Castiglion del Bosco. Additional European locations with Rosewood developments in the pipeline include Edinburgh, London, Madrid, Munich, Porto Cervo, Vienna and Venice.
The Mandarin Oriental Ritz, Madrid has set an opening date of March 15, 2021. It was originally slated to open this summer following more than two years of extensive renovations, but the COVID-19 pandemic caused the additional delay. Greg Liddell has been named as general manager of Mandarin Oriental Ritz, Madrid and area vice president, operations, overseeing operations at Mandarin Oriental, Barcelona and Mandarin Oriental, Canouan. Liddell was previously GM of Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok and area vice president, operations with responsibility for Mandarin Oriental, Canouan and Mandarin Oriental, Taipei from June 2017.
Meanwhile, the Mandarin Oriental, Munich reopened just this month, following “the most extensive renovation in the hotel’s history” and just in time for its 20th anniversary. In keeping with the restoration of its public areas and the introduction of Matsuhisa Munich in 2015, the hotel has now unveiled all new guestrooms and suites. The hotel is led by General manager Dominik G. Reiner.
In London, the Curtain in Shoreditch is set to rebrand as a Mondrian Hotel, in collaboration with current owner Reuben Brothers.
The property will be converted to the Mondrian Shoreditch London after an update and restyling of the hotel, planned for completion next year.
Gaurav Bhushan, CEO, Accor’s Lifestyle division, said: “The return of Mondrian to London marks a key moment in the brand’s development and reinforces our commitment to establishing the leading lifestyle brand in the heart of the most exciting cultural cities in the world.”