Knightsbridge in 2012 had not seen a new luxury hotel built from scratch in a generation. Bulgari Hotel London, London, changed that in June of that year with a building of Portland stone at 171 Knightsbridge, across the road from Hyde Park and a few doors from the Mandarin Oriental.
History
Bulgari and Marriott chose London for the collection's third hotel, after Milan in 2004 and Bali in 2006, and the first designed as a new building in a city. The site, on the corner of Knightsbridge and Lancelot Place, had held an office block. Squire and Partners designed the architecture and Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel the interiors, the latter as for every Bulgari hotel. The opening in June 2012 was timed to the London Olympics that summer. The hotel's restaurant has changed hands over the years, which is unusual for the collection; Alain Ducasse ran Rivea there from 2014, and later concepts followed.
Architecture and design
The facade is Portland stone with bronze-framed windows and a silver-toned entrance canopy, a nod to Bulgari's silversmith origins in the 1880s. The interiors use the house's black marble, mahogany and silver, with silver leaf and the jeweller's archival drawings in the public rooms. The ballroom and the cinema are below ground, as is the spa, which takes two floors under the building. The Edward Sahakian cigar shop and sampling lounge on the ground floor is a London institution in its own right.
Rooms and suites
The 85 rooms and suites are among the largest in London for a hotel of this size, with silk-panelled walls, mahogany and marble bathrooms. The Bulgari Suite on the top floor has a terrace with views across Hyde Park. Suites have butler service and the top categories include private dining rooms.
Dining
Il Bar on the ground floor is the hotel's constant, serving cocktails and Italian small plates and drawing a Knightsbridge crowd in the evening. The restaurant on the lower ground floor has changed concept several times since opening and should be checked at the time of booking. The Lounge serves breakfast and afternoon tea, and the cigar lounge next to Edward Sahakian's shop serves spirits alongside the humidor.
Wellness
The Bulgari Spa covers about 2,000 square metres over two lower floors, with a 25-metre pool lined in gold and green mosaic, a vitality pool, a hammam, saunas, eleven treatment rooms and a fitness centre with personal trainers. It is one of the largest hotel spas in central London and is open to members as well as guests.
Weddings and events
The ballroom below ground takes weddings and large dinners, with a pre-function foyer and the 47-seat private cinema used for screenings and presentations. Meeting rooms on the lower floors serve corporate events, and the hotel's position near the fashion and jewellery houses of Knightsbridge and Sloane Street makes it a venue for brand launches and press days.
Location
171 Knightsbridge faces Hyde Park across the road, with Harrods about five minutes on foot and Harvey Nichols closer still. Knightsbridge Underground station on the Piccadilly line is beside the hotel, with direct trains to Heathrow in about 50 minutes. Paddington station, for the Heathrow Express and trains west, is about 15 minutes by car. As a luxury hotel in London it is the only one of its rank on this stretch built in the 21st century.
At a glance
What sets it apart
- 01Opened June 2012 at 171 Knightsbridge, facing Hyde Park
- 0285 rooms and suites with interiors by Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel
- 0325-metre pool in a 2,000-square-metre spa over two floors
- 0447-seat private cinema and a ballroom below ground
- 05Edward Sahakian cigar shop and lounge on the ground floor
Chronology
Dates that matter
2012
Bulgari Hotel London opens in June, timed to the London Olympics.
2014
Alain Ducasse opens Rivea in the hotel's lower-ground restaurant.
