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A top London hotel has scooped the ‘Best Suite’ award at the prestigious European Hotel Design Awards 2012.
Held on 20 November, at the Park Plaza, Westminster Bridge in London, and hosted by BBC World News’ presenter Mishal Husain, the ceremony commended nine of Europe’s leading hotels, which won awards for innovation and attention to detail and the Corinthia Hotel was the only UK-based winner.
Esteemed judges were garnered from all walks of the hospitality sector and featured chair of judges Simon Ford of Intercontinental Hotels Group; Jeremy Blake of Purcell Miller Tritton; Christoph Hoffman of 25Hours Hotel Group and Celia Geyer of Hilton Worldwide.
The London hotel won the award in a closely-fought category, but beat the competition because the judges felt the suite “exemplified the best use of quality finishes with a design that reflected an old English charm with a contemporary interpretation.”
“It has the feel of an exclusive private space in central London with a dynamic double height space, delicate balcony detail and breathtaking terrace,” they added.
The award was met with delight by general manager of the Corinthia Hotel Matthew Dixon, who said he was “thrilled” with the announcement. “The Whitehall Penthouse forms part of a collection of seven penthouse suites at Corinthia London, each two storeys, with their own distinct style and unique, hand-crafted bespoke finishes and furniture.
“We have already received numerous compliments from guests who have stayed in them, particularly for the magnificent views – whether towards Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament, Nelson’s Column or the 180 degree panorama from St Paul’s to the London Eye.
“GA Design created an outstanding collection which has allowed us to offer the most discerning guests a truly unique experience,” he added.
Big winner of the night, however, was the Superbude St Pauli in Hamburg stealing the show with three acclaimed awards in the ‘Lobby and Public Areas’; ‘Bedrooms and Bathrooms’; and the ‘Best of the Best’ award categories.
The hotel was lauded for “delivering a complete package” and“ exuding clever use of materials old and new, and spaces that appeal to the next generation of travellers, all delivered on a relatively tight budget.”
Other winners were: Hotel Valentinerhof, St Valentin, Italy, in the ‘Conversion And/Or Extension Of An Existing Hotel Building’ category; the Mirror Hotel, Barcelona, in ‘Conversion Of An Existing Non-Hotel Building To Hotel Use’; the Hotel Lone, Rovinj, Croatia, in ‘Newbuild’; Beau-Rivage Palace, BaR, Lausanne, Switzerland in the ‘Cafe, Bar Or All Day Dining’ category; Sur Mesure Par Thierry Marx , Mandarin Oriental, Paris, in ‘Restaurant’ category; the Spa, Mandarin Oriental, Paris for ‘Spa, Health & Leisure Facilities’; Starhotels E.c.h.o, Milan, in the ‘Sustainable Design Award’ category and winner of the ‘Outstanding Contribution Award’ was Claus Sendlinger, founder and CEO of Design Hotels.
