The Vibe: The Grande Dame of Warsaw with an impressive art collection.
The Area: Right in the heart of Warsaw, with one side overlooking the Royal Route, the Presidential Palace and the 17th-century, Rococo, Visitationist Church. The other side faces the city’s largest square where the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier lies, its eternal flame guarded by soldiers with the leafy Saski Gardens beyond.
The DNA: When it first opened in 1857, Warsaw’s Hotel Europejski, a neo-renaissance palace designed by Henryk Marconi, was the grandest of its time. Enduring – for better or mainly worse – the many political upheavals that followed, the property has emerged from a painstaking renovation. Original details from cornicing to ceiling roses have been restored and updated with contemporary décor. Local craftsmen have etched the city’s skyline into the polished grey marble bathroom walls, which create a backdrop for silver-clad bathtubs; bedheads have been carved in richly grained burl; and Warsaw’s first humidor has been created. A carefully curated collection of modern and contemporary artwork, by leading Polish artists, such as Tadeusz Kantor and Jarosław Fliciński, runs throughout the 106 rooms, the spa, the lobby an the sleek Lázaro Rosa-Violán-designed Long Bar, where Warsaw honours the Raffles cocktail tradition which started with the Singapore Sling.
Suite-Me-Up: The 106 rooms include 24 Junior suites, six Signature suites, six Grand suites and two beautiful, very spacious Corner suites; a Presidential Suite and a Raffles Suite, both of which have wonderful views over the city. Colours are turquoise and cream in some rooms; warm reds and muted golds in others. All guestrooms contain a catalog of the collection for guests’ enjoyment and enrichment.
Seen: Wallpaper*
Accolades: Historic Hotels Worldwide
✅ free Wi-Fi • size matters: 106 rooms & suites (40-283m2) (431-3,046 sq ft) • hotel opened: 1857, hotel renovated: 2018 • architecture: Sud Architectes • interior design: WWAA, Lázaro Rosa-Violán • bathroom amenities: Blaise Mautin • on-site parking (charged) • pets allowed • 24-hour front desk • wheelchair accessible
