What’s it like? Founded by pastry chef Julius Fritzner in 1874, the Grand Hotel is an Oslo icon with a great location. Inside, the décor is a mixed bag of traditional classical style and modern design. The weekends can get busy with families and leisure travellers, while during the week guests are 80 per cent business travellers. The hotel boasts a number of high-profile guests among its clientele, including Bill Clinton, Elton John and the Dalai Lama.
Where is it? On the city’s main thoroughfare, Karl Johans Gate, which stretches from the bottom of the Royal Gardens to the parliament building. It is five minutes’ walk from the National Theatre Station, from where the Airport Express train leaves every 15 minutes, with a journey time of 20 minutes.
How many rooms? 207 standard rooms, 31 superior rooms and 52 suites. The hotel recently opened a “ladies’ floor” with rooms and amenities designed specifically for female guests. The 13 individually designed rooms were inspired by 13 famous Norwegian women.
Room facilities Each room has a TV, telephone, trouser press, hairdryer, air-conditioning, free wifi internet access (available throughout the hotel) and minibar. Some suites have safes but if you don’t there is a safety deposit at reception. The en-suite bathrooms have showers and most have a bath as well. My room, 411, was on a split-level (in the lift it was 4/5) and I was facing the inner courtyard rather than the street. On entering the room there was a narrow hall with a small bathroom to the left. The room opened out to reveal a bed with a thin duvet, a large heavy wooden wardrobe and desk area with television. The space felt crowded, although it was comfortable. The TV was irritating because sometimes it did not recognise what I had chosen and would remain blank – it took me six minutes pressing buttons in an attempt to get the news before I gave up.
I found my room quite noisy at night and could hear my neighbours having a shower, walking around and talking, but luckily I had ear-plugs and so slept very well. (It’s worth noting that the ice machines in the corridors were next to my room so avoid 411, 511 etc because they are on all night.) The other quirky thing was that the door to my room opened outwards so when leaving the room you could potentially knock into someone walking down the corridor.
Due to the constant redevelopment and upgrading, the rooms on each floor and in different parts of the hotel vary in style and design. The suites are all individually styled and there is even a tower suite with three rooms on top of each other. Traditionally, the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize stays in the Nobel Suite and goes out onto the balcony to wave at the cheering crowds.
Restaurants and bars The hotel has three restaurants and three bars. Breakfast is served in the Grand Café and Palm Court, which are also open for lunch. The Grand Café was Ibsen’s regular haunt for a break while writing. He would arrive daily at exactly five minutes to noon and sit alone hiding behind a paper. There’s a fantastic painting on the far wall of him arriving while the customers continue chatting.
Restaurant Julius Fritzner offers modern Norwegian fare for evening meals. For breakfast there was a huge variety throughout the Grand Café with vast spreads of breads, cold cuts, cereals, fruit and a chef frying eggs to order.
For drinks, the Grand Café is open until 11pm, while on the eighth floor Etoile has a stunning setting and a terrace space (open 3pm-midnight, 1am Friday and Saturday, closed Sunday). The lobby bar, Limelight, is open until 1am but closed on Sundays and Mondays.
Meeting and business facilities The hotel is the regular venue for the Nobel Peace Prize dinner and as such has great prestige. In total there are 15 meeting rooms holding up to 400 people, including a conference centre on the sixth floor with nine rooms and a large break-out area. The banqueting section of the hotel, up a flight of stairs from the lobby, has two large banqueting halls: the Rococo Room, which is the hotel’s largest conference room holding up to 350 guests, and the Mirror Room. There are also seven “lounges”.
Leisure
facilities When I was there the spa and pool area on the eighth (top) floor were
being renovated and were expected to reopen in December. The
spa will have eight treatment rooms, a solarium, a beauty salon, sauna and
fitness room.
Verdict The Grand Hotel is a traditional place to stay with plenty of history, and ongoing development has given it some quirky style. The service was good and the location superb.
Price Internet rates for a midweek stay in November started from NOK2,360 (£215) for a double room with breakfast.
Contact Karl Johans Gate 31, Oslo, Norway; tel +47 23 21 20 00; grand.no.
Felicity Cousins
