Major investment strengthens Grand Hôtel's leading position

The Grand Hôtel in Stockholm is pleased to announce the opening of 37 new rooms, including six newly constructed and remodeled suites, meeting the demands of international travelers from all over the world. All the new rooms are located on the beautiful first and second floors of the original hotel building. The aim of this endeavor is to strengthen the Grand Hôtel’s position as a leading hotel. The Grand Hôtel aspiration is to be among the top ten hotels in Europe by 2015.

ROYAL VIEWS
The Grand Hôtel has been home to celebrities, high-profile events and everyday bon-vivants since 1874. Situated in the best location imaginable, the hotel boasts fantastic waterfront views of the Royal Palace and Gamla Stan, Stockholm’s old town. The Grand is also home to the classic Swedish Veranda restaurant, renowned for its smorgasbords, Mathias Dahlgren’s Michelin Guide star restaurants and the grandiose Cadier Bar. For recreation, there is the Grand Hôtel’s Nordic Spa with exclusive, soothing treatments, saunas, dipping pools and a separate fitness area for guests with the highest of demands. A member of The Leading Hotels of the World, the Grand Hôtel offers 330 rooms, 39 of which are stately suites. In addition, the Grand Hôtel has 24 banquet rooms that are perfect for parties and conferences.

– The Grand Hôtel has always been at the forefront and we continue to lead development of the hotel industry in the Nordic region. Our new rooms provide us with the opportunity to welcome guests with the level of comfort and amenities that are expected of a leading hotel today, at the same time as we continue to carefully preserve historical features and further develop our exceptional service offering. The renovation of our flagship rooms on floor one and two of the hotel is a natural and important step in our endeavour to be among the best hotels in Europe, says Marie-Louise Kjellström, General Manager, Grand Hôtel.

In conjunction with the opening of the new rooms, a new central control system for heating, cooling and lighting is also being inaugurated to conserve energy more effectively, while enhancing guest comfort levels. Other new features include energy-efficient windows, pre-programmed floor heating and intelligent lighting in rooms and corridors, which reflect the time of day and can detect if the guest are in or out of their rooms.

DEDICATED ARCHITECTURE
Prior to carrying out the renovations, extensive research was carried out to identify an architectural company that was best suited for the job at hand. This resulted in a collaboration between the Tengbom architectural firm and the Wall to Wall interior designer architects.

Tengbom understands firsthand what it takes to preserve the Grand Hôtel’s history and atmosphere during renovation projects. Back in 1920, the company was commissioned to design the hotel’s magnificent Vapensalen banquet hall, adjacent to the Spegelsalen. Since then, Tengbom has continued to work in close collaboration with the Grand Hôtel and were a natural choice as a partner in the renovation process.

A key part of the remodeling of the new rooms was to streamline the architecture, so that the room size, interior design, natural light and views work together in harmony. To obtain brighter rooms, the architects added doors opening out onto existing balconies facing the Royal Palace. In addition, many of the new rooms facing the courtyard have French balconies. The bathrooms were designed in a collaboration between Tengbom and Wall to Wall and are crafted in high quality, durable material such as Carrara marble. To optimize the eco-friendly aspects of the room design, the project group included an environmental manager.

Some rooms were equipped with classically designed connecting doors, allowing a number of the rooms facing the Royal Palace to be connected, thereby enhancing flexibility of use. Three of the rooms are adapted for people with impaired vision and/or hearing problems.
– Working with the Grand Hôtel always evokes a special feeling. The job requires respect for the building’s history and tradition, while adding a new aspect. We have had the pleasure of working with the hotel for many years and know the requirements of a successful renovation, says Eva Ocklund, an architect at Tengbom.

PAST MEETS PRESENT
Behind the value-creating interior design are the Wall to Wall interior design architects, who have provided the hotel with interior design services for almost 25 years. Their room designs bring together the past and the present, creating a comfortable atmosphere of exclusivity. Inspired by celebrity guests such as Grace Kelly, as well as French interior design and the very best of the contemporary international hotel scene, the rooms offer the very latest in modern technology and functionality.

The interior design process is based on carefully selected colours and forms, characterized by timelessness. Opulent soft rugs on parquet floors of oak are in harmony with fabrics and tones in sophisticated gray, champagne, mother of pearl, dusty pink, gold and cream. The furniture has a strict design language, while softer lines are found in the lighting fixtures and other accents, resulting in an overall style that is more international than Swedish and more sophisticated than extravagant.

– In existence for almost 137 years, the hotel is a “Grand Dame” and our intention from the start has always been to get the inside to match the outside, in other words to ensure that the body is in harmony with the soul. We are proud to have worked on the renovation of the Grand Hôtel’s newly remodeled rooms and have carried out our work with sense and sensibility in order to achieve a more international and exclusive tone, says Sanna Nathanson, interior architect at Wall to Wall.