Member Article

The Principal York Opens To Guests

The Principal York, formerly The Royal York Hotel, opens to guests on 1st November 2016, just outside the Roman walls that enclose the heart of one of the country’s most historic cities. The hotel has been sensitively restored by Goddard Littlefair to create a hotel that combines historic architectural detail with all the comforts of the modern day.

Originally The Station Hotel, The Principal York opened on its current site in 1878 and features an impressive Italianate façade of Scarborough brick and Tadcaster stone. Situated adjacent to York station, The Principal York can be accessed straight from the platform as well as by a short driveway to the front of the building. The hotel, once a stopover for Queen Victoria en route to Balmoral Castle, can now be reached in less than two hours by train from London’s King’s Cross Station.

The Refectory Kitchen & Terrace, the hotel’s restaurant, is housed in a conservatory-style dining room, and uses regional ingredients such as Whitby crab and Harrogate Blue cheese. Adjacent to the restaurant, the lively Chapter House Bar serves craft beers and cocktails including a wide variety of local gins and York Brewery beers. The Principal York’s elegant Garden Room, next to the main lobby and its sweeping grand staircase, is where guests can enjoy traditional British afternoon tea whilst looking out across manicured lawns to York Minster in the distance.

The guest bedrooms and suites, each decorated in a muted soft cream palette, feature polished marble bathrooms with freestanding sinks, large walk-in showers and Victorian roll-top baths by Villeroy & Boch. Accommodation at the front of the main building boasts uninterrupted views of the gothic York Minster towers, with generous double-height sash windows opening onto three acres of manicured gardens and a secluded water fountain. Quirky homely touches for guests of the hotel include the in-room Tuck Box, with complimentary fresh coffee, tea, crisps and biscuits, which can be restocked at the Corner Shop in the downstairs Lobby, located in a trunk-style leather armoire.

A paean to Victorian grandeur, architectural features that have been restored include the cantilevered ironwork stairwell that sweeps down into the lobby lounge. There are nods to the city’s rich history throughout the hotel, including antique-style cartography hanging on the walls, which maps out York’s bygone era as a Viking and Roman capital.

With a purpose built events centre, The Principal York offers ten meeting and event spaces as well as a gym and indoor pool.

Richard Mansell, General Manager of The Principal York, says: “The launch of the Principal York is an exciting time for our team and the wider York community. We are proud to have preserved and maintained the beautiful architecture and design of the building and look forward to welcoming guests into a jewel in the city’s crown.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Louise Greenwell .