The London Marriott Hotel in Kensington opened last week after the discovery of a forgotten manhole into the Underground rail system delayed the launch for more than a month.
The £16m, four-star de luxe, new-build hotel features a 28m-high hanging glass atrium, encompassing a Costa Coffee Café and the hotel's restaurant, Fratelli. The atrium is said to be the largest in Europe.
Excavation work during the refurbishment of the 216-bedroom, former Swallow hotel revealed a manhole cover providing access to the District line previously unrecorded by London Underground.
A spokesman for Whitbread, which owns the franchise rights to Marriott in the UK, said the manhole was discovered by chance about five months ago, and plans for the front of the building had to be altered to accommodate the discovery.
The 93-cover restaurant, Fratelli, is led by executive chef David Britton, who formerly held an RAC rosette at the London Marriott Hotel in Maida Vale. Other facilities at the hotel include nine meeting rooms for up to 200 delegates, a pool and a 40-seat bar, Nabuco.
Whitbread is the UK's second-largest hotel group, and operates more than 350 hotels with 25,000 rooms.
- Whitbread has sold its 13 Swallow hotels to property investor Leo No‚ as part of a £57m deal.
Noé's REIT Group is buying the properties for £52m and will lease them to the London Inn Group, which has paid £5m for the hotel operating business. They will retain the Swallow name.
London Inn Groupchairman Alan Bowes said: "Swallow remains a recognised and well-respected brand, and these hotels are well located, with experienced management in place. We intend to build on this to develop the Swallow brand in the UK."
Christie & Co, the agent handling the deal, had been asking £65m for the properties.
Source: Caterer & Hotelkeeper magazine, 31 July - 6 August 2003