Hotel Warszawa - Revitalising A City Landmark

After World War I ended in 1918, the continent of Europe slowly rebuilt the cities and carefully restored the pre-war urban layout. This included the city of Warsaw in Poland, where renowned Polish architect Marcin Weinfeld decided to build the tallest skyscraper in the country for his client Prudential plc - a British multinational life insurance and financial services company.

Built between 1931 and 1933 in the Art Deco style, this magnificent building was designed as an office space on the lower floors and luxurious apartments above. Marcin Weinfeld worked with Stefan Bryla and Wenczeslaw Poniz to create an innovative design on the steel framework. With 18 storeys in total, this building that was known as The Prudential Building used over 2 million bricks, 2,000 tonnes of concrete and 1,500 tonnes of steel. Reaching a 66-metre height, this building was the third tallest European skyscraper during that era after the Telefonica Building in Madrid, Spain and Boerentoren in Antwerp, Belgium.

As a notable skyscraper in Warsaw, The Prudential quickly captured the attention of the emerging TV industry and in 1936, a large antenna was constructed on the roof by Januz Groszkowski, who started the first television broadcast in Europe from this building. With this addition, The Prudential became a symbol of modern Warsaw at that time. However, when the second world war happened, this building was one of the main targets of German artillery. On 28 August 1944, it was hit with a 2-tonne Karl-gerat mortar shell which tilted the building, but the strong steel and concrete construction remained intact, turning the Prudential Building into a symbol of the Warsaw Uprising.

After the second world war was over, the building was rebuilt in the 1950s and adopted the socialist realism style. The original designer of the building, Marcin Weinfeld was once again appointed to do this extensive renovation work and give this building a new role as a hotel. The first Hotel Warszawa was opened in 1954 with 375 rooms, a large restaurant, a cafe and a night club. Unfortunately, the hotel failed to bring the glory of the original building and closed its doors in 2003.

The formerly iconic symbol of the city was finally resurrected by Likus Hotels & Restaurants group

who decided to give this building another makeover to restore its former glory. As a proud Polish-owned company, Likus Group aims to open a series of topclass hotels in historic properties across Poland. They purchased these great architectural gems and transformed into one of the most memorable hotels in central Europe.

Connecting the past and the future, the new Hotel Warszawa opened in November 2018 took inspiration from the pre-war heyday back in the 1930s. Architect Michal Grzybek and his team were entrusted to do the renovation and bring the contemporary luxury feel into the design equation. Materials such as stone marble, wood, copper, concrete and glass are the main elements that were used all over the lobby, the rooms, the spa and restaurant.

The design journey of Hotel Warszawa starts when we enter the marble-clad hall with a glass-covered ceiling that combines that contemporary feel with a hint of minimalism. During the renovation, the concrete foundations were uncovered and they decided turn it into a design accent. The view of the gigantic concrete can be seen at the hotel restaurant on level two, where a great Polish style breakfast is served daily. In between the lobby and this restaurant lies Warszawa Bar with a gallery overlooking the restaurant. From here, you can see the view of the hotel’s magnificent concrete. On the same level also lies a Cigar Lounge.

The new Hotel Warszawa has 142 uniquely designed rooms and suites divided into seven categories including a penthouse that echo the building’s history. Following the main design concept, in each room we can find the natural elements such as wood, marble stone, copper and glass dominating the space. The original concrete ceilings are also featured in some of the rooms. In addition to the facilities, the hotel also has a spa and wellness area on level one featuring a stunning indoor marbled pool, and a scenic restaurant called Szostka on the sixth floor with a glass roof that features the beautiful Warsaw panorama as the background.

The Likus group has a great understanding of how to combine history and its landmarks into a new luxury playground. The way we see it, the glory of the Prudential building as Hotel Warszawa will last for a very long time as the great testament of Polish courage and determination towards life through design.