with the Fairmont Palliser Hotel Walking Through Time
Written by Rennay Craats | Published by Brittany FouquetteTo walk the same halls as British royalty, Hollywood superstars and political heavyweights, Calgarians need only venture as far as the iconic Fairmont Palliser. For 110 years, this historic hotel has acted as the backdrop of the city, marking its evolution from within the hotel’s luxurious lobby, grand ballrooms and stunning guest rooms.
Built in 1914, Fairmont Palliser helped transform the perception of Calgary from country to cosmopolitan and, in the process, open up the west to tourism and commercial destination in its own right. Canadian Pacific Railway pushed
across Canada and created a rail stop complete with a hotel before it reached its picturesque destination of Banff.
“Everything revolved around rail travellers and Palliser was put here to satisfy the needs of travellers with luxury accommodation,” says Ken Flores, general manager of the Fairmont Palliser. “There was nothing like it in the city when it was built and for more than 50 years it was the tallest building not only in Calgary but across the prairies.”
The Palliser became a beacon on the Calgary landscape, drawing discerning travellers in with its palatial
Photo by Riverwood Photography
Pioneers holding monthly luncheons there for the past 100-plus years, and thousands of couples saying “I do” in the beautiful Crystal and Alberta Ballrooms. The Palliser also provided a place for salespeople from across the country to sell their wares, inviting Calgarians to tour the trunk rooms and place orders for the latest national and international products.
The city grew significantly, and the Palliser mirrored that growth with expansion and growth of its own. In 1929, the hotel added four floors to bring it to 12 storeys and stayed abreast of advancements and technology to ensure they were providing the best possible experience for guests.
“The rooms are renovated about every 10 years, so across that 110 years the rooms have changed time and time again to keep up with the trends – adding electrical outlets, televisions, telephones and Wi-Fi to the rooms, and we’ve offered valet service since the 1940s when automobiles opened up a different type of travel. You have to keep up with the times and Palliser has done exactly that,” Flores says.
To continue to match the pace of technology, the Palliser performed a complete renovation of its 20,000 square feet of meeting spaces last year. The hotel provides the stateof-the-art capabilities that modern conferences require while staying true to the classic, traditional aesthetic of the Palliser that attendees desire.
The evolving times also led the hotel to elevate its luxury accommodations in 1999 when two floors were converted to Fairmont Gold. This boutique hotel within a hotel offers 57 beautifully appointed rooms and suites accessed through a separate reception with a dedicated concierge team, and it features an exclusive private lounge on the penthouse level with breathtaking mountains views.
The remainder of the hotel’s 407 total guest rooms are nothing to sneeze at either, with various sizes and compositions available that range from gorgeous standard rooms to a spectacular 900-square-foot suite featuring a kitchenette, dining and living rooms and a spacious bedroom and bathroom. While these lush, sun-drenched rooms are an inner-city oasis that are a vacation in themselves, the hotel’s amenities are enough to draw guests out.
Ken Flores, general manager.
The concierge team tailors incredible packages to guests’ interests to help them explore this amazing city and its surrounding areas. After a day of adventure, guests can return for a relaxing treatment at the onsite spa and wellness centre, operated by rNr Wellness, take a dip in the pool or hot tub or workout in the 24-hour fitness centre. And after working up an appetite, the Hawthorn Dining Room and Bar is waiting. Guests can take advantage of the comprehensive menu available for 24-hour room service, but at the Palliser, dining is an occasion to experience. The Hawthorn invites guests to come in for delicious brunch, elegant Afternoon Tea and a varied dinner menu to fit every taste. To improve that experience, the restaurant was renovated in 2019 and the hotel relaunched it with its new prairie modern menu this spring.
“It’s about products that come from as close as possible to Calgary. Meats and cuts of the prairies, so beef being primary here but also wild game,” says Flores. “And it’s flavours of the diversity of the cultures that settled across the prairies that really define the prairie experience.”
Chef Rupert Garcia is passionately leading the charge with the innovative menu, tipping his hat to the past while presenting the dishes in a completely modern way. His signature offering is the Hawthorn Crown Roast Experience. Served family style, this experience
offers a tour of the prairie cultural experience, from ginger beef bites and foie gras and confit beef tongue pate to bourbon and birch syrup glazed pork roast and vegetables, capped off with decadent desserts.
Guests and Calgarians alike enjoy the creativity not only in the restaurant but also in the bar with its selection of exciting signature experiences and specialty cocktails. Guests are eager to socialize or listen to live music as they try out the new creations, which include a Prairie Caesar celebrating Calgary’s role in its invention, a dressed-up version of Afternoon Tea with High Tea, an Earl Greyinfused Vodka and Amaro Montenegro cocktail and the
Fireside Reverie that is the Palliser’s grand fireplace in a glass of Glenmorangie Signet, Reifel Rye and coffee cigar syrup. Like everything else at the Fairmont Palliser, the cocktails are luxurious and one-of-a-kind.
The hotel’s impressive story will be on full display throughout the year as it celebrates its 110th anniversary. Local historian Harry Sanders created a book highlighting the extensive history of the Palliser – and by extension Calgary – that contains incredible stories and photos to commemorate the milestone. After all, photos are a great way to tell a story, and there will be rotating photo exhibits featuring different aspects of the hotel over the years: the employees as the heart of the hotel, the exterior as the backdrop to the city, Stampede celebrations through the years, film and music connections to the hotel and finally celebrating the guests of the hotel, both famous faces and citizens who held fairytale weddings, milestone birthdays and major life events there.
These archival photos show the impact Fairmont Palliser has had on Calgary and how much of the city’s history is connected to this iconic place. But the hotel isn’t finished being the backdrop of Calgary.
“It’s not just about the past, it’s the fact that Palliser is in a great position as the standalone luxury property in Calgary that has managed to last through the downturns of the economy and changes in the Calgary life,” Ken Flores says. “It provides fabulous experiences and it’s a place that Calgarians should feel very proud of. And Fairmont Palliser is here to stay.”
by Riverwood Photography
