6 Grande Dame Hotels That Have Gotten Major Renovations, From New York to Lake Como

From New York to continental Europe, there are only a few true grande dame hotels. Even today, they are the temples of luxury, palaces that have withstood the test of time, which cannot be whipped into existence by venture capital. They are destinations unto themselves.

“Many travelers, I believe, seek out these grande dame hotels for the romance and history that these places embody and also for simple bragging rights,” says Caroline Wolfe of Cadence, a luxury travel agency. “It’s always fun to tell friends you’ve stayed at a hotel where, for instance, Coco Chanel lived or where the Queen would have tea.”

Of course, the risk of booking a room in a grande dame is that their amenities have been diminished by age. The key to picking one in its prime? Look for recent renovations.

Below is a selection of grande dames that have retained their grandeur through meticulous and recent upkeep.

Photo : Courtesy of The St. Regis, New York

The St. Regis, New York

There are several palace hotels in the Big Apple, but only the St. Regis has undergone a major renovation. Coinciding with the brand’s 120th year, it recently finished revamping the entire lobby of its Manhattan flagship, a 238-room Beaux Arts behemoth, alongside the King Cole Bar and two restaurants. The original owner, John Jacob Astor IV, modeled it off European grand hotels when he had it built in 1904. The new lobby shines with Waterford crystal chandeliers and original crown moldings, all emerald greens and ruby reds. The freshly designed lobby lounge and restaurant, the Drawing Room, exhibits for the first time Astor’s incredible book collection, and the new restaurant La Maisonette serves breakfast and afternoon tea.

Photo : Courtesy of Mandarin Oriental Palace

Mandarin Oriental Palace, Luzern

Surrounded by the snowy peaks of central Switzerland, Lake Lucerne is the country’s fourth biggest body of water. In 1903, Franz Josef Bucher, a Swiss businessman, purchased a plot of land on its north shore and built a Belle Époque icon of a hotel with Mediterranean-inspired touches such as dark-red scagliola marble columns. A five-year renovation for its new Mandarin Oriental ownership, finished in late 2022, transforming the ancient hotel into an oasis of calm and elegant design. With 136 rooms and suites, the property sits on the lakefront just outside of the touristy bustle of old town. It overflows with marble of all colors: staircases, bathrooms, columns, checkered black-and-white floors. Being a Mandarin property, it has its Asian touches, like the eight-seat omakase restaurant, Minamo. But it is decidedly Swiss in its re-design, led by local architects Iwan Bühler Architekten and the London-based interior design firm Jestico+Whiles.

Photo : Courtesy of Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni, Lake Como

Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni, Lake Como

Lake Como’s association with Hollywood is far reaching, with films ranging from Casino Royale to House of Gucci shot in the grand Italian villas on its shores (George Clooney owns one of them, of course). Particularly cinematic is the Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni, whose 181 years traces a lifetime worthy of a Ridley Scott epic. John F. Kennedy stayed here, as did Churchill. Tucked into the tourist-heavy village of Bellagio, renowned for its expansive views of the lake, the property is an oasis: large grounds, a calming garden, a sun-drenched pool, and a lakeside beach. Its 94 rooms and suites include the largest presidential suite on the lake at about 3,800 square feet (350 square meters). Last winter it renovated 41 of them, as well as the spa, the wellness center, and the downstairs La Goletta restaurant, a nautical themed eatery with Italian fare. The owners, the Bucher family, are known in Italian high society for their expansive private art collection and have decked out the property accordingly with exquisite sculptures, frescoes, and paintings. From the lakeside beach, you can watch ferries slide into Bellagio alongside many glossy, wooden pleasure boats. The recent renovations afford the noble hotel a more modern feel without clashing spoiling the grandeur worthy of a Roman baron.

Photo : Courtesy of Bayerischer Hof

Bayerischer Hof, Munich

Munich is awash in sprawling, grand buildings, from the National Theater to the Nymphenburg Palace. One of the best known is the Bayerischer Hof, built in 1839 for King Ludwig I of Bavaria. In 1897, hotelier Hermann Volkhardt purchases the property, and it has been run by that family ever since. As a hotel, it has hosted a smorgasbord of 20th-century icons, from Sigmund Freud to Michael Jackson (whose devoted fans maintain a shrine to him just outside the hotel in a small park). Its seven floors feature 337 rooms and suites, five restaurants, six bars—including a rooftop bar and nightclub—a private cinema, a pool, and a top-notch spa. In 2023, the hotel finished a two-year, nearly $15 million renovation that added 29 new rooms, including the massive, 3,700-square-foot Penthouse Garden Suite, all inspired by minimalist Japanese wabi-sabi characteristics (Robbie Williams was a recent guest.) The hotel also renovated its entryway atrium with a domed ceiling of stained glass. It is located right next to the Falk’s Bar, the hotel’s only room to survive World War II unscathed.

Photo : Courtesy of Beverly Wilshire, Four Seasons, Los Angeles

Beverly Wilshire, Four Seasons, Los Angeles

The essence of L.A. glamour is Beverly Hills, the setting for this 1928 grand dame. The massive, 395-room property was picked up by Four Seasons in 1992, after a $65 million revamp. Hollywood luxury is the inescapable motif (the Mediterranean-style pool was modeled after the one found at actress Sophia Loren’s Italian villa, for instance). In late 2022, it finished another major facelift, with a renovation of all its rooms and suites in both its Wilshire and Beverly wings. The spacious rooms were spruced up with a light color palette of cream and ivory, soft floor carpets, and lots of mirrors, including the Penthouse Suite, the largest in the city, at 5,000 square feet. The elegant steakhouse, Cut by Wolfgang Puck, remains superb and popular, as does the Blvd lounge, situated perfectly for people watching over Rodeo Drive.

Photo : Courtesy of The Conservatorium

The Conservatorium, Amsterdam

The Conservatorium is perhaps Amsterdam’s most surprising historical hotel. Built by a Dutch architect in the 19th century as the first national bank of the Netherlands, it later became a music school, hence the name. It re-opened in 2011 as the first member of the Set Collection, a hospitality group focused on historic properties. The lobby, once the exterior of the building, is encased in a massive complex of glass—there are still rain pipes inside. Located in the heart of the Museum Quarter, the uber-popular Van Gogh Museum is a two minute walk away. With 129 rooms and suites, it is a big hotel for little Amsterdam; by law, hotels there can only occupy pre-existing buildings, most of which are tiny canal houses. The decor is all brick walls, wrought iron, and soft brown stone (the mesmerizing tile flooring in its first-floor halls is over a century old). The property’s Milanese designer, Piero Lissoni, is known for combining wooden and stone textures. Interspersed throughout its monkish quarters are trippy art pieces, such as the cascade of hanging violins at the entryway. Taiko, the property’s fantastic Asian-inspired restaurant, means drum in Japanese because it is in the former drum room. Its Mediterranean restaurant, Barbounia, opened in 2023. Even more recently, the hotel revamped its Akasha Holistic Wellbeing Centre, including a pool, sauna, Jacuzzi, and hammam.