The Hilton Hotel in Nottingham has finished its £6.5million transformation project, which has redesigned all 176 guest rooms. The refurbishment celebrates the history of the site, and on Wednesday, September 7, a blue plaque was placed on the hotel.
The changes to the hotel has included the refurbishment of bathrooms, corridors, and both noise insulation and air conditioning has been installed throughout. The refurbishment compliments the early work that was done to the hotel's lobby during the pandemic.
Sue Cave, general manager of the Hilton Nottingham, said “I feel honoured to have been a part of this amazing renovation project and thank all our local residents, team, and customers for their patience throughout. It has certainly been worth the wait and we look forward to welcoming guests to experience this brand new offering and continuing to deliver our signature, first class hospitality at Hilton Nottingham.
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"History is such an important part of our lives and we are thrilled to be able to recognize this magnificent building which has such a part to play in the cultural history of Nottingham City." During the renovation the Hilton Nottingham team have been able to find out more about the hotel's history thanks to local historian, Janine Turner.
The hotel was designed by Robert William Edis and originally built on the site next to the old Nottingham Victoria Station, which opened in 1900. It was decided in July 1899 by the Nottingham Joint Station Committee and Sir John Blundell Maple Bart MP that a hotel would be built attached to the new station.
The hotel opened in 1903, and was named the Victoria Station Hotel, before later becoming the Victoria Hotel. Following the demolition of the train station in 1967, the hotel opened a railway themed pub in the basement called the Whistle Stop.
Janine said: "It was a railway themed pub, and it had several different bars called the Platform Bar, the Carriage Bar and the Waiting Room Bar, and they used things like luggage trollies and milk churns as seats. Unfortunately that pub was short-lived, and now the basement of the hotel is a gym and swimming pool."
To honour the site's history, which became Hilton Nottingham in 2000, the hotel has embraced this theme throughout the hotel, and has featured Nottingham city artwork in the guest rooms. Due to the age and history of the building, Janine was able to organise a Blue Plaque for the hotel, which is attached to a public place to signify its historical importance.
Janine added: "A lot of people these days don't tend to take notice of what's around them or learn about the history of where they were born and brought up. It's important to remember that history, to remember where things come from, and how we got to where we are now."
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