[slideshow_deploy id=’34372′]
Celebrating its 10-year anniversary, the Radisson Blu Edwardian is a renowned five-star hotel located in the historic Free Trade Hall building just moments from Manchester Piccadilly Station. A rather recent addition to the list of places to stay in the city, it’s obvious that if there’s one thing that the brand knows how to do it’s how to give their guests a memorable experience. Smiles and polite exchanges of conversation always contribute to the feeling of hospitality we all enjoy when visiting a hotel, but when the staff see you walking through the lobby and greets you by your name only a few minutes after check-in, you know you’ve walked into a place where the guest is treated as someone special. It’s those details which help create memories and really stick in your mind; it’s these details which make the guest want to come back. Of course, the quality of the room doesn’t hurt.
There are plenty of different types of travellers – adventurers, business-folk, honeymooners, luxury-seekers, etc – but if there’s one thing that they all have in common it’s that no matter what you’re in town for, our eyes can’t help but sparkle in excitement as the concierge tells us we’re in one of the higher floors. The Radisson Blu Edwardian certainly didn’t disappoint. From way up high on the 14th floor, I look out in front of me through a curtain glass facade, and see Manchester city centre in all its industrial, historic and yet dynamic, changing splendour.
Immediately, the decor inside the room begins making sense in relation to the context: the bed is the room’s main feature, and its grey fabrics borrow the city’s colour palette, while decorative accents in metals and warm oranges help the room come alive and shimmer. This in turn contrasts to the hard, brick exterior of the surrounding buildings. A mixture of finely blended textures and patterns – vertical lines, frivolous swirls and tight geometric grids – give the room a playfully elegant character perfect for the kind of visitor who wants to feel modern and cosmopolitan – as well as on top of the world.
Once you get over the view and are ready to browse through the amenities the hotel offers – gym, spa, swimming pool – you’ll undoubtedly want to visit its restaurants and bars. Choosing its more up-scale option, I walk inside Opus One, the Radisson Blu Edwardian’s fine-dining restaurant. In keeping with the aesthetic tone of the rest of the hotel, there is something old-worldly, almost parlour-like about it, while still being fiercely modern: its neoclassical, patterned high ceilings are outlined in warm orange light, while statues and oversized chess pieces decorate the main space, making Opus One as playful and flirty as its signature drink – the Hallé Berry.
The experience of eating at Opus One takes a couple of hours, especially if you’re taking upon yourself the arduous task of trying its creative cocktails and enjoying its eclectic four-course meal, including its divine deserts. But if you’re looking for a luxurious yet contemporary hotel in a historic city, with its stunning views of Manchester city centre, enviable amenities and variety of dining options, look no further than the Radisson Blu Edwardian.
by Regner Ramos
Free Trade Hall, Peter Street, Manchester M2 5GP
(800) 333-3333 (US Toll Free)
0800 37 44 11 (UK Toll Free)
Tel: +44 (0)161 835 9929 Fax: + 44 (0)161 835 9979
Email: resmanc@radisson.com