ANA Hotels, owned by local businessman George Copos, completed the rebranding of the Athénée Palace Hotel in Bucharest into InterContinental Athénée Palace. The iconic hotel in George Enescu Square is currently the only hotel in Romania operated under the InterContinental brand.

The rebranding process evolved gradually over the last year, in conjunction with the modernization and restoration investment carried out over the last two years by the owner company ANA Hotels. The company previously said that the refurbishment process was worth more than EUR 40 million.

“IHG Hotels & Resorts is one of the most important players in the global hotel industry. […] Choosing the new partner to take over the hotel management proved to be an elaborate process that started in 2021. The decision to operate under the InterContinental Hotels & Resorts brand umbrella complements an earlier collaboration between ANA Hotels and IHG Hotels & Resorts, which began in 1998, based on a management contract and subsequently on the franchise contract for the hotel Crowne Plaza Bucharest, also owned by ANA Hotels in Bucharest,” said George Copos, owner of ANA Hotels.

The design of InterContinental Athénée Palace Bucharest went through a series of changes elaborated by Alexander James Interiors Architects, a British architectural company, in collaboration with local architects and artists such as local architecture company Inegal Design, Prof. Valeriu Mladin, Ioan Nemțoi and others.

The modernization process was carried out in two stages. While the first phase targeted changes focused on the renovation of the 132 rooms in the newly built wing of the hotel, in the second part, the efforts were directed towards the refurbishment of the façade, the common areas and the 151 rooms in the hotel’s historic building, built in 1914.

The local accents, which the InterContinental brand supports in each hotel, have been integrated through the artworks on display, which bear the signatures of established Romanian artists.

“During this rebranding period, we have discovered many interesting things about Romania, especially the unique place that Athénée Palace hotel had in society throughout its history. Precisely because we wanted to integrate these aspects of the local culture, we collaborated with artists who perfectly translated our vision of the hotel. Starting with 2023, guests can discover a completely new, up-to-date experience that highlights the authenticity and history of the well-known building next to the Athenaeum, enhancing in return the urban landscape and the community that it is part of,” said Nicolaas Houwert, General Manager InterContinental Athénée Palace Bucharest.

InterContinental Athénée Palace Bucharest is part of the largest Romanian private hotel group, ANA Hotels. The company also owns and operates Crowne Plaza Bucharest, three hotels in Poiana Brașov (Sport, Bradul, and Poiana Ana Hotels), and Ana Hotels Europa, which includes the ANA Aslan Health Spa in Eforie Nord. It is also the operator of the ski facilities in Poiana Brașov - ANA Teleferic, which recently added to its portfolio the Panoramic Restaurant on Tâmpa Mountain in Brașov.

irina.marica@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: the company)