Balmoral Hotel
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| The Balmoral | |
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| Hotel facts and statistics | |
|---|---|
| Location | 1 Princes Street, Edinburgh, Scotland |
| Opening date | 1902 |
| Management | The Rocco Forte Collection |
| Owner | The Rocco Forte Collection |
| No. of restaurants | 2 |
| No. of rooms | 188 |
| Number of suites | 20 |
| Parking | Valet parking |
| Website | thebalmoralhotel.com |
The Balmoral is a luxury five-star hotel and landmark in Edinburgh, Scotland, known as the North British Hotel until the late 1980s. It is located in the heart of the city at the east end of Princes Street, the main shopping street beneath the Edinburgh Castle rock, and the southern edge of the New Town. It is said to be one of most luxurious hotel in the world.
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[edit] History
Originally opened in 1902, it was designed by architect W. Hamilton Beattie and for most of the twentieth century was known as the North British Hotel or simply the NB, a traditional railway hotel built for the North British Railway adjacent to their Waverley Station. It kept the same name until the late 1980s when it was renamed the Balmoral Hotel after refurbishment,[1] despite being located over 100 miles south of Balmoral Castle. Edinburgh residents managed to retain the "NB" nickname by the popular but entirely colloquial suggestion that this stood for "New Balmoral".
For travellers arriving by train, the hotel provided comfortable and elegant lodgings, before they continued their journeys. To assist passengers in reaching their train on time, the hotel tower's clock, visible from a considerable distance away, is traditionally set to be two minutes fast. The building’s architecture is Victorian, influenced by the traditional Scottish baronial style.
Its traditional rival has always been the Caledonian Hotel at the west end of Princes Street; this was once the station hotel for the now-demolished Princes Street Station, on the Caledonian Railway.
The Balmoral is now part of The Rocco Forte Collection owned by Sir Rocco Forte.
[edit] Trivia
In February 2007 it was confirmed that author J.K. Rowling finished the last book in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows at this hotel. Rowling left a signed statement written on a marble bust of Hermes in her room saying; "JK Rowling finished writing Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows in this room (652) on 11th Jan 2007".[2]
The hotel is the setting for a large portion of the Scottish film Hallam Foe.
The hotel was the finishing point for the Top Gear 1949 themed race from London to Edinburgh in May 2009. Jeremy Clarkson travelled on an A1 Peppercorn 'Tornado' steam train, James May in a Jaguar XK120 and Richard Hammond on a Vincent Black Shadow motorbike. May won the race, with Clarkson coming second.
[edit] References
- ^ Brewer's Britain & Ireland - Page 816 by John Ayto, Ian Crofton, Paul Cavill
- ^ "BOOK 7 completed". The Scotsman. http://news.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=3&id=181062007. Retrieved 2007-02-03.
[edit] External links
Coordinates: 55°57′10.33″N 3°11′22.23″W / 55.9528694°N 3.1895083°W
