Premier Hospitality

Queens Hotel Cheltenham

Queens Hotel Cheltenham
Written by Roma Publications

Queens Hotel Cheltenham

Queens Hotel Cheltenham

The Queens Hotel Cheltenham, now a part of AccorHotel’s upscale brand MGallery, has undergone a stunning transformation carried out by Trevillion Interiors and Zenith Construction. The hotel, which operated throughout the refurbishment, held its launch on 4th November 2015 to reveal the finished product.

Laid out across four storeys, the hotel has 84 guest bedrooms available, all promising comfort and style. Work commenced on site early 2015 and ran in conjunction with the project on Castle Hotel Windsor – another project which Trevillion Interiors also produced the design aspects for.

Frances Blackham, Design Director at Trevillion Interiors, spoke to Premier Hospitality about the transformation:
“The project involved a refurbishment of Cheltenham’s iconic building the Queens Hotel – which is built on the Palladian style of architecture. It is a beautiful Georgian building with perfect symmetry.
“We had to work with an aged wallpaper by Pugin and we decided to make wallpaper a key element of the hotel by delivering it in the most unexpected places within the building, for example as a lining to the inside of the wardrobes. In the restaurant we also integrated a display of various wallpaper cuttings from different time periods such as early Victorian through to more modern times including the ‘60s!
“In the quiet lounge we took a curtain fabric and cut it into individual squares and framed them; and we also created a wallpaper of artwork across the wall. In another area we have an array of porcelain plates which have written script on them portraying elements of specific historic interests to the Queens Hotel.
“We also managed to work with a new waterproof material, designing our own wallpaper which illustrates the external facade of the building, presenting a nostalgic Georgian pattern into a clever wallpaper that goes into the shower.
“The building was built on the original site of the first spa introduced to Cheltenham, called the Sherborne Spa, and although the Queens Hotel hasn’t got a spa of its own, the hotel maintains influences from the original spa – for example the suites are named after the historic spas in Cheltenham.
“Looking at some of the key elements of the Queens Hotel, the Palladian style architecture delivers classic Georgian proportions (the perfect ratio) known as the “Golden Triangle” together with perfect symmetry – and thinking about the ideal spa experience when the intention is to achieve balance, harmony and an equilibrium to mind & body – we chose to consider and allow our design decisions to incorporate these qualities throughout almost everything we delivered. “

Queens Hotel Cheltenham

Walking through the hotel’s revolving doors, guests are greeted by the restored black and white flooring and four enormous chic platinum coloured planters. Looking through to the library area, the bibliotheca turnstile book cases are visible accompanied by individual intimate seating, & filled with books relative to this year’s Cheltenham Literary festival. A glimpse of the bar is visible at this point, including the stylishly restored bar front.
Positioned to the left hand side is the elegant lounge, decorated in a chalky Georgian blue palette and pale greens, and flaunting a great sense of gracefulness. Serving afternoon tea, the peaceful lounge can accommodate for guests wanting to spend the afternoon indulging on tempting treats.
Leading guests to their rooms, the magnificent stairwell is most definitely a prominent feature of the Queens Hotel. Bringing a sense of vibrancy and light to the space, the stairwell displays the sophisticated and historic Pugin wall covering, with eye-catching elements.

Frances commented:
“Pugin wallpaper features in the Houses of Parliament and Westminster so it is of significant historic importance; and there is a brass plate on the wall which explains that the wallpaper is by A W Pugin and that it dates back some 175 years. During the works we had to completely protect the Pugin wallpaper, which was challenging.
“One of the biggest challenges was working on a really old building, and ensuring that we integrated its personal story without making it heavily themed.
“The Queens Hotel restaurant is a lovely bright, light room that overlooks the garden with an orangey feel to it, and dressing the very deep window sills sit elegant Victorian bird cages planted out with miniature peppers so you see the lovely vibrant red and orange fruit against the dark charcoal backdrop.”

This room emanates the history of the wallpaper, in the form of a whole display of wallpaper cuttings and opposite this wall also hangs a striking copper wire feature, presenting the recipe for a giant pancake, indicative of the giant pancake competition held in Cheltenham.

These little bits of memorabilia and suggestions of history engage the guests and encourage them to ask the waiting staff about the story behind them, which therefore leads to communication between the guests and hospitality team within the hotel.

Frances added:
“We were also working on the Castle Hotel, Windsor project, and since a key requirement of the MGallery brief was to ensure that each property represented its own personality – we were well aware of the need to deliver something entirely different for the Queens Hotel. It was extremely important to us that we delivered two individual properties inspired & memorable for their own heritage, and we are delighted that they are both completely unique.
“Being involved with developing an upscale brand with the team at AccorHotels is very important to us – they invest heavily in delivering a very good end product – and are holistic in their approach ensuring that the interior design and operations work hand in hand. We have very much enjoyed the process.”

When asked if there are any more collaboration projects between Trevillion and AccorHotels in the pipeline, Frances replied:
“We do hope so!”

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Roma Publications