Hospitality Design - December 2011 - 55

places: edinburgh

perspectives

Far left: The exterior of Quartermile. Left, from top: Two views of Hotel Indigo’s guestroom; and the Caledonian’s façade.

makes its city debut in earnest with not one, but two of its international brands. Winter 2012 is the slated opening date for extended stay property Staybridge Suites, operated by BDL Management; in the meantime a 60-room Hotel Indigo launches in March on to Victorian era. As the master planners, local architectural ﬁrm Morgan McDonnell had their work cut out, persuading city planners that overtly contemporary extensions should be added to restore historic scale and height. “We had to dispel the myth that the Old Town is a medieval world in need of protection,” says director Guy Morgan. “This site exempliﬁes the area’s organic, ever-evolving architectural style so our contemporary terraces and roof sections provide purposeful contrast and continue the storytelling into the 21st century.” York Place under an ownership agreement with Sojourn Hotels. Tasked with converting four Grade II-listed sandstone buildings, previously the premises of the tired Osborne Hotel, into a contemporary boutique injected with vibrancy, Essex, England-based Design Coalition has revamped and created new rooms beneﬁting from modern Chelsom lighting, engineered timber ﬂooring, walnut ﬁnishes, and hi-tech media hubs. Director Chas Prance explains the city itself is represented in an understated way through

Old Meets New
Another major city development weaving new construction into the grain of the old—in this case, nine listed buildings—Quartermile is located on the site of the former Edinburgh Royal Inﬁrmary within walking distance of the Castle. Designed by Foster and Partners, the $721 million mixed-use regeneration scheme is home to the ﬁrst Residence Inn in the UK, recently opened under a management agreement between Marriott International and developer Gladedale Capital. Pitched ﬁrmly at the corporate market, the extended stay brand here takes residence in one of the contemporary curtain wall façade structures, offering 107 spacious suites. For Ica Interiors associate director Dawn Campbell, the challenge has been to “introduce warmth and welcome” into the highly glazed internal spaces, drawing on soft furnishings and accent tones of yellow and silver evolved from a sample of tartan fabric. These, in combination with subtly patterned wallcoverings, abstract prints, and geometric ﬂoral carpeting, lend visual interest to rooms characterized by laminate cabinetry and bamboo ﬂooring. Clues to the Scottish locality come in the form of black and white photography dotted around the hotel’s airy reception, where Foscarini lamps ﬂoat above distinct seating banks including communal tables and a bar topped with off-white engineered stone. While Edinburgh, Marriott the is not a newcomer Hotels to InterContinental Group

artwork, from historic images translated into a feature wall mural to paintings by local artists hung in the restaurant and abstract photographic references to Edinburgh’s famed festivals in the corridors. Other highlights in the public spaces include a faceted mirror offering a series of fragmented visuals of the low-key, banquette-style restaurant, a freestanding black Corian reception desk illuminated through a “shattered” glass inlay, and Kundalini’s Pluto pendant light ﬁxtures suspended in the intimate bar where burnt orange panels add a pop of color.

Lap of Luxury
As other international brands scout for suitable locations, the Rezidor Hotel Group will join the midscale fray (it already opened its ﬁrst luxury Hotel Missoni two years ago in Edinburgh) with its Park Inn by Radisson brand in 2013. Luxury travelers won’t, however, have to wait long for a new Edinburgh address to call home—Hilton Worldwide is due to complete the conversion of the legendary Caledonian into a Waldorf Astoria by summer. In addition to the $16 million that has already been spent in enhancing the historic 100-year-old hotel, a further $22 million has been earmarked for the rebranding.

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Hospitality Design - December 2011
