Following its European Best Hotel Architecture Award last year, the Corinthia Grand Hotel Royal in Budapest, Hungary, this month received yet another major accolade, when it was selected to join the privileged list of The Most Famous Hotels in the World. Selection is made by an independent, Vienna based organisation, founded to identify notable historic and contemporary hotels with an impact on the history of their city and society.
For the past 17 years, The Most Famous Hotels in the World has been researching, recording and safeguarding the history of unique hotel properties worldwide and making them part of our global cultural heritage through the publication of fine books on each property. The list currently features 345 hotels in 238 cities in 74 countries.
Addressing a press conference together with hotel general manager Cornelia Kausch, president of the organisation Andreas Augustin said, “This title cannot be bought, it is an honour. The Most Famous Hotels in the World was founded specifically to ‘make walls talk’. Research shows that by 2006, the Corinthia Grand Hotel Royal will have been guarding Budapest’s Elizabeth Ring for 110 years and it is certainly the most luxurious among the oldest hotels of Budapest. It, therefore, fully deserves to join the ranks of its peers worldwide”. The Royal book will be released at the end of 2005.
Acknowledging the tribute, Corinthia Grand Hotel Royal general manager Cornelia Kausch stated, “Since opening in 2002, we have received numerous honours, including those of Best Five Star Hotel in Hungary in 2003 and Best Hotel Architecture in Europe in 2004. This month we have also been selected as Best Five Star Hotel, Best Conference Facilities Hotel and Best East-Asian Restaurant Hotel in Budapest. Joining the select list of Most Famous Hotels in the World is the culmination of these successes and a tribute to the dedicated management and staff of this hotel, who have worked incessantly to meet and exceed guests’ expectations and to deliver the warmth, colour and vitality which has become synonymous with the Corinthia name internationally”.
The Corinthia Grand Hotel Royal is a complete renovation of the 19th century Hotel Royal building, which first opened for Budapest’s Millennium exhibition in 1896 and which has now been restored to its original splendour. The hotel’s façade as well as the main ballroom are original while traditional architecture was blended with modern style to create a unique harmony in other parts of the building. The hotel has 414 luxurious rooms and the largest state-of-the-art conference and exhibition centre in any five-star hotel in Hungary. The most eye-catching feature of the conference centre is its beautifully restored Grand Ballroom, with a ceiling height of 10.9metres and 72 tons of inlaid marble. The ballroom features three chandeliers, each weighing over a ton, replicas of the originals. Nearly a mile of wrought iron railing decorates the staircase while the public area is laid with 384 tons of Spanish marble and Italian limestone.
Apart from its historical and architectural uniqueness, the hotel provides a wide selection of restaurants. Living up to its previous reputation for splendid cafés and dining facilities, the Royal offers four restaurants – each a different world in its own right.
The Corinthia Grand Hotel Royal is owned by International Hotel Investments Plc and managed by Corinthia Hotels International, operators of 20 four and five star city and resort hotels in Belgium, Czech Republic, Hungary, Libya, Malta, Portugal, Russia, The Gambia, Togo, Tunisia and Turkey.