One of the world’s trendiest hotel chains, Marriott-owned W, will be opening in Budapest next year at a prime location facing the Opera House on Andrássy út. Launched in Midtown Manhattan, the portfolio now features in 50+ key destinations around the world, including Soho, Barcelona and Miami.
The Budapest location is the Drechsler Palace, where a five-star, 151-room hotel is currently being created by the local DVM Group. Work has already started on the roof covering and beams. See more details about the plans in our previous article.
Designed by two architectural legends of the Golden Age, Ödön Lechner and
Gyula Pártos, the Drechsler Palace opened in 1886, at the same time as the Opera
House opposite.
Commissioned by the pensions office of state railway MÁV, it
quickly became famous for the coffeehouse on the ground floor, run by Béla Drechsler.
Historic photos exist of well-dressed patrons drinking on the terrace.
Referred to thereafter as the Drechsler Palace, in 1949 it was taken over by the state ballet company, which occupied it until 2002. The landmark building has lain empty ever since, the subject of much speculation.
