Berners Hotel Refurbishment, Berners Street, London, United Kingdom

Berners Hotel is one of the best kept secrets in London. It is a first class comfortable and friendly five-star hotel situated in the heart of central London. The hotel has a history that stretches back to 1654 when Josias Berners, who lends his name to the hotel, purchased the land on which it stands for £970. The hotel itself was originally built in 1835 as five classic houses and the properties were converted to a hotel at the turn of the 20th century.

The original ceilings of the marble-clad reception area and the restaurant are Grade II listed attributes and the hotel is steeped in history. In recent times the facilities have been noted as worn and in need of upgrading, so since early 2006 the hotel has been undergoing a massive refurbishment program designed to bring it into the 21st century and equipping it to serve its guests for many years to come. Berners closed its doors in January 2006 and is scheduled to re-open in the first quarter of 2007.

FINANCE

The Berners Hotel is part of the JJW Hotels and Resorts group (purchased in 2001 for €81.4m). JJW Hotels and Resorts Group is controlled by the Saudi concern MBI International, who are seeking to launch a new trans-European hotel brand starting with the refurbished Berners Hotel and also including the Scotsman Hotel in Edinburgh, The Calls in Leeds and La Tremoille in Paris. The Berners refurbishment is requiring an estimated investment of £32m.

CONTRACTORS

The contract for project management and planning supervisor was awarded to Gardiner and Theobald, who have a proven track record for hotel refurbishments and conversions in the UK. Owen and Kimble are the principal architects for the project and Chorus Group are the construction contractors. Owen and Kimble have been involved in the development of the refurbishment plans for the past three years, planning the new fitness and spa areas as well as the new restaurant and bar.

CHANGES TO THE HOTEL

The refurbished hotel will open in the first quarter of 2007 with 176 fully refurbished luxury decorated bedrooms (previously the hotel was advertised with 217 bedrooms, so presumably rooms are being lost to produce more spacious accommodation, which is sorely needed). The older, dated room décor will be replaced and all rooms will have state-of-the art ensuite facilities.

There will no longer be any single rooms – all will either be standard twin doubles, family doubles or suites equipped with queen sized beds. The design of the rooms will include new bathroom fittings, wardrobe layouts and updated furniture configuration, as well as WiFi (provided by The Cloud) and internet connections in each room. The most spacious rooms and suites will receive walk-in showers next to their baths and handheld shower facilities on top, while others will have adjustable showers in the bath.

The two main guest lifts will be totally refurbished and a new lift to serve the new fitness centre and back building will be installed slightly away from the reception area towards the back of the hotel, possibly near one of the ground floor bars. The hotel will also inaugurate a new bar and hotel restaurant to rival any other across London. During the refurbishment the character of the hotel will be preserved by the retention of many well known features.

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