Hotel - Corinthia London

J E TS E T

A Pillar Of LUXURY

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JAMES MCCARTHY’S ONGOING JOURNEY AROUND LONDON’S ICONIC HOTELS CONTINUES WITH A TWO-NIGHT STAY AT THE CORINTHIA.

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he Corinthian Order is listed as one of three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture, predominantly centred around the use of pillars, columns and plinths.

It is fitting, then, that one of London’s newest hotels, The Corinthia, is not only a sentinel of luxury living in the heart of London, but a modern tour de force of classic interior design.

From the immense, “Full Moon” Baccarat chandelier that dominates the atrium of the hotel to the pillar-lined, vaulted ceilings of the Massimo signature restaurant, you are left in little doubt that the century-old building that houses The Corinthia has been transformed into a truly grand hotel for the 21st century.

The 125-year old building has not only been revived and rejuvenated, but the tenancy of The Corinthia brings the monolithic Whitehall structure’s story full circle.

Originally, the corner building, which juts like a sandstone arrowhead aimed at the South Bank, was built to house the Hôtel Métropole, an opulent and ornate property built and designed very much in a Parisian style.

Boasting over 600 rooms, it was a beacon of high society, with its exquisite balls and lavish, aristocratic parties.

However, in 1936, in the shadow of looming war, the building was bought by the Ministry of Defence. Churchill listened to Big Ben strike on Armistice Day from one of its windows, while operatives of MI9 plotted and masterminded jailbreaks from prisoner of war camps all over Europe from within its porticos. Room 801, apparently, is where the government’s records of UFO sightings were housed.

After being put up for sale in 2007, within four years, in April 2011, an elegantly-attired footman in top hat and tails, opened the doors for the first time in three-quarters of a century to once again welcome hotel guests, this time to the Corinthia London.

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A greeting I sadly missed when I arrived through the back door of the hotel.

The Corinthia sits a mere three minute stroll from Embankment tube station, meaning that the underground journey from Heathrow’s terminal four is relatively painless with just a single change at South Kensington. However, as you approach the hotel from the station, it is easy to miss the sleepy Whitehall street which spears off the main road, which is where the front entrance is situated. The rear entrance is slightly less grandiose and sans doorman, but opens directly onto the main thoroughfare of Northumberland Avenue.

I waited for several minutes for the revolving door to rotate automatically, before realising I wasn’t in Qatar anymore. Eventually, I clambered my way through manually and set about subjecting the tea-taking masses to my bedraggled, tail-end-of-10-hours-travel visage as I lumbered through the dome-ceilinged, green-carpeted and marble-adorned atrium to the reception at the other side.

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In fact, it was the exact tonic to wash away the cobwebs of my long journey and to prepare for my evening’s repast at the Massimo Restaurant and Oyster Bar. After a refreshing shower, I lounged languidly in the tub, while watching the latest sports news on the Lowe LCD TV which was built in to the bathroom wall opposite - a perfect example of how GA Design, the company tasked with the interior renovations, has artfully blended many of the original fixtures and fittings like window frames, columns, banisters and ceiling decorations, with 21st century technology to create a truly contemporary hotel.

It gave me plenty of opportunity, while avoiding tables and ornate trays filled with delicate cakes, to admire Chifik Gamsi’s masterpiece, the afore-mentioned “Full Moon” chandelier.

It is the largest of its kind and consists of no less than 1,001 crystal baubles in varying sizes.

The signature red crystal of the Baccarat brand nestles in the heart of the imposing piece, which itself hangs in bosom of the domed glass ceiling.

I had little time to ponder the vast amount of Arabic symbolism of the piece, before a gentleman in a smart velvet-collared city coat happily took my bags and I was led to a grand marble reception desk overlooked by a massive bronze relief of the river Thames.

I was met by the elegant Marketing Coordinator, Henrietta Low, who cheerfully gave me a brief overview of the facilities, including the only Harrods concession you

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will find in any hotel in the world, before showing me to my well-appointed executive room on the fifth floor.

While it may have not been the most prestigious room in a hotel boasting 36 luxury suites and seven two-storey penthouse apartments (complete with turrets, rooftop terraces offering sweeping vistas of the Thames and private elevators), with many of the 600 guest rooms and offices from the old Métropole and MoD days combined to create 251 larger living spaces (excluding the suites and penthouses), it was nothing less than sumptuous. With a walk-in wardrobe, a Calcutta marble-adorned bathroom bigger than my Doha apartment, replete with stand alone tub and vast rain shower, as well as a bed that you could comfortably park at least two Humvees in, it was the perfect residence for my brief stay.

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Fully recharged after all of that, followed by a solid nap on the chaise lounge, it was time to get suited and booted for dinner. I headed down to the courtyard, an oasis of calm in the middle of a hectic city with a full open fireplace and rockeries sprouting trees, for a coffee and an aperitif while I awaited my guest for dinner. After exchanging the time of day with none other than international mega-star and founding member of The Black Eyed Peas, Will.I.Am, who was relaxing on one of the sofas with two of his entourage, my guest arrived and we made our way to dinner.

The room, designed by David Collins Studio, is dominated by three imposing spherical chandeliers and dramatic striped columns, very much in the Corinthian Order style, that seemingly support the beautiful vaulted ceiling and form a colonnade through the room to the critically-acclaimed oyster bar. The polished hardwood floor beautifully sets off the colour-pallette of green and shades of tan, augmented by elements of pewter, nickel and brass - including the stylishly contemporary dinner service and cutlery.

Amidst a discussion about the merits of print media in the digital age, my dinner companion opted for four of the signature Irish Oysters as a starter, while I went down an oft-travelled route and selected the foie gras, all of which was paired with a fantastically complimentary wine choice, made personally by the sommelier.

The Massimo menu has a distinctly Italian flavour, though a better description of the diversity of dishes would be Mediterranean cuisine. The main course was a tough choice, with my guest settling on the rack of lamb, which was cooked and seasoned to perfection.

I went distinctly Azzuri, choosing a pasta dish with a rich and meaty rabbit ragu. Conversation waned as we both tucked in to our respectively delicious meals while, once again, the excellent choice of libation provided by the sommelier added warmth and body to the wonderful flavours of the food.

finally resigned myself to the fact that what I was looking for was out of stock and it was time to head back to the Corinthia.

Fortunately, the Corinthia is home to a flagship ESPA Life spa, an ideal place to work out some of the stress and strain of failing to achieve my consumerist goal. Spread over four floors of the hotel, the ESPA Life offers a full suite of services and facilities including customised massages, a thermal floor with vitality pool, amphitheatre sauna, ice fountains, marble heated loungers and private sleep pods, as well a full-size indoor swimming pool, hair salon and nail bar. It even has a healthy option cafe. A full, modern gymnasium is also included, though anyone who knows me will not be expecting an indepth review of that particular offering.

"You are left in little doubt that the century-old building that houses the Corinthia has been transformed into a truly grand hotel for the 21st century."

I had been booked in for a customised massage and, normally, I am not a massage kind of guy.

In very much the Mediterranean tradition, we were not left wanting. Satiated and satisfied, we retired, once more, to the courtyard for a post meal 18-year-old Macallan, a coffee and a cigarette, while we resumed our animated conversation about the future of the Fourth Estate. Convinced we weren’t going to reach a conclusion, we decided to leave the hotel and make the short walk to The Strand in search of a few late evening drinks.

The following morning, after a long lie-in and a lavish breakfast, I decided to take the most advantage of the hotel’s fantastic location and headed to the West End for a bit of shopping.

A few short tube stops later, and I was traversing the wide boulevard of Regent Street to Picadilly Circus. Two hours later, after wandering fruitlessly around Oxford Street, Tottenham Court Road and Carnaby Street, I

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mobile phone network capability when I needed it the most to organise, with militarystyle precision, the big surprise entrance to the 72nd floor of the The Shard, didn’t phase me. That much.

The idea of a stranger laying hands on my naked flesh is not one that relaxes me. However, Kirsty, an ESPA veteran who moved from the Gleneagles hotel to the Corinthia when it opened, calmed my fears with her lilting Scottish brogue and got to work on my knotted back.

As the warmth of the hot, polished volcanic stones penetrated deep into the muscle tissues of my shoulders, back, arms and hands I drifted in and out of a relaxed sleep, barely even flinching when she undertook the deep therapy scalp massage.

I was immediately supplicant, her small, but strong hands grinding and caressing my broken down body, as the scent of essential oils calmed my bedraggled mind. As I drifted in and out of a content consciousness, I could have sworn that my lovely Scottish therapist had either transmogrified into an octopus or had some strange superpower that could summon limbs at will, as it certainly felt like there were multiple hands kneading my my pallid skin. It was, however, just down to her expert dexterity and sleight of hand (and possibly some elbows), which not only covered the whole pinky expanse of my battered muscles, but also seemed to speed up time.

The hour seemed to melt into mere minutes and the treatment hardly seemed to have started before it was finished, such was the complete relaxation I was feeling. Before I floated back to my room with limbs and body feeling light and slightly floppy, Kirsty explained that, owing to my deskbound job, I would do well to see an osteopath, a service which, remarkably, the hotel can also provide.

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As members of my family gathered in reception to help fulfil the true purpose of my visit - a 70th birthday surprise for my mother - I was able to approach the evening free of stress and worry. Even losing all

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Returning back to the hotel that evening, I enquired about my check-out the following day, revealing perhaps the true depth of the service offered by the hotel. I was happily informed that I could check out any time I liked, meaning that I would not be rushed in the morning and, perhaps more importantly, I could head to the Famous Three Kings pub in West Kensington to meet my brother and his girlfriend for the crucial first rugby match between the British & Irish Lions and Australia without having to worry about the time. “We like to be flexible to fit our guests’ plans,” the receptionist beamed.

That next day, following a nail-biting victory in the rugby, my brother, his better half and I bade farewell to F3K and it’s affable landord, Lee, and joyously made our way back to the Corinthia to collect my belongings, enjoy one last iced latte and regale the eager doormen with a blow-by-blow account of the game.

Trading the Corinthia’s opulent embrace for my brother’s sofa in Basingstoke was tough, but I did so safe in the knowledge that, like the Corinthian Order itself, the eponymous hotel will stand as a pillar of the hospitality landscape in Britain’s great capital for many years to come - allowing me plenty of time to find the funds for a night in one of the penthouses.

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