Hotel Metropol owes its birth to the famous patron of art Savva Mamontov. To build a hotel of a European level, he gathered together young talented artists and architects: Walcott, Vrubel, Kekushev, and Chekhonin. The hotel building is an outstanding example of the modernist era, the Silver Age of Russia art (the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th centuries). Hotel Metropol was opened in 1901. The Muscovites would come in crowds to see the "Tower of Babel of the 20th century":that was how Hotel Metropol was called those days. None of the other hotels in Russia except the Metropol could boast of hot water, refrigerators, elevators, and telephones. The rooms and restaurants were occupied with sophisticated public. The Metropol would often see famous manufacturers (Morozov, Ryabushincky) and the people of art (Bryusov, Komissarzhevskaya, Shalyapin, Rakhmaninov). In 1917, the new masters came to Hotel Metropol - and the gun roar broke in. The Bolshevist government moved from Petrograd (former St. Petersburg) to Moscow, and Hotel Metropol turned into the residence of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee (RCEC). It was then called the Second House of Soviets. Chicherin, Sverdlov, and Bukharin lived and worked at the Metropol. In the 1930s the Metropol was given back its original status of a top-class hotel. If the Soviet government wished to win the favor of the foreign guests, among who were Bernard Shaw and Bertold Brecht, it would usually accommodete them in the Metropol. During the World War II correspondents of Western newspapers and magazines prevailed among the hotel's lodgers, a press center was organized at the hotel. In the mid-1950s "the Khrushchev Thaw" set in. More and more foreign tourists would come to Moscow and stay at the Metropol. The ordinary Soviet citizens would not stay at the hotel as a rule, although there was a 70-bed hostel for those coming on business trips. The payments in some hotel bars and restaurants were made in hard currency only, i.e. those places were mostly attended by foreigners. The years were passing by - and Hotel Metropol was growing old and ramshackle. In 1986, it was closed for renovation. After the long debate on the renovation concept the architects found the golden mean: it was decided to reconstruct Metropol using the old drawings while at the same time equipping it to the latest technological standards. Metropol owes its second birth to concerted efforts of Russian and Finnish architects, engineers, artists. The perestroika period in the USSR (1985-1991) coincided with the Metropol renovation period (1986-1991). The Hotel was closed for renovation back in the USSR, but opened in 1991 already in the new Russia. Foreign commissions were right in their high appraisal of the restored splendor of the hotel as well as of its highly-qualified staff. The Metropol received the highest hotel rank - five-star brand. In 2001, Hotel Metropol celebrates two significant dates: one hundredth anniversary since the opening day, and ten years after it has been fully renovated. The prominent Russian stage director Konstantin Stanislavsky used to say that "a theater starts with a cloakroom". To rephrase, it is possible to say that a city starts with a hotel. Hotel Metropol has rightfully become a symbol of Moscow for many foreign tourists and businessmen. Some of Moscow's old buildings indeed possess a magnetism of the kind. They attract events; within their precincts human fates have been intertwined; they become a part of the history One of such buildings is Hotel Metropol. Besides fulfilling the responsibilities of a hotel at large, the Metropol carries out a mission of a "historic hotel", a hotel-museum. Everyone who 1 visits the Metropol will have a glimpse of Russian history and culture, and the staff of the hotel will do their best to make the guests feel themselves at home. On October 22nd, 2001, in Geneva's Hotel Intercontinental the Business Initiative Directions (BID) company held a ceremony where the International Star Awards were presented. The BID'S Selection Board presented an International Star Award to Hotel Metropol for quality in the category Gold. The Metropol's prestige has been recognized worldwide by the diplomatic and business circles, economic experts, company quality and image specialists, cultural and artistic figures. The Metropol is the only Russian hotel presented with such a high award.
The Metropol Hotel building is an outstanding work of art nouveau style. Its construction lasted from 1899 to 1905. The idea of building a huge multifunctional cultural and hotel complex in this place originated from Savva Ivanovich Mamontov, a renowned businessman and patron of the arts. He engaged the best artistic forces of Moscow in the construction of the building. The birth of The Metropol The facades facing the Kitaigorodskaya wall were designed by architect Kekushev. They look simple and austere. To all appearances, their only decorative element are the vertical strips of brick-like ceramic tiles in spaces between the windows. However, the facades along Teatralny Proezd (Theater Lane) and Teatralnaya Ploshchad (Theater Square) are surprising in their abundance of decorative elements. It seems that the authors wanted to show all opportunities of art nouveau, fully translating the principle of the arts synthesis into life. These facades were designed by William Walkott, a young architect. The facades have a clear horizontal articulation. The first tier faces the street and once housed mostly shops, office premises, hairdressers, and also the Hotel`s restaurant and coffee shop which were open not only to the Hotel`s clients, but also to the outside visitors. In the architecture of the first tier they used the arcades motif, it is sectioned by wide glass-paned granit faced arches. They have something in common with the arches of neighbouring buildings facing Teatralny Proezd and Teatralnaya Ploshchad. The second and third tiers are extremely simple they have smooth wall planes sectioned by window apertures.
The fourth, fifth and sixth tiers of the building are extremely lavishly decorated. The fourth tier stands out for its coloured majolica and molded relief (the author is Nikolai Andreyev), the fourth one for its coloured brickwork. At the level of the fourth floor the building has a belt of balconies whose grills were made according to a design signed by M. Peretyatkovich. The sixth tier is probably the most important in the façade composition. It is represented by remarkable majolica panels. The biggest one facing Neglinnaya Ulitsa (Street) is modeled on a painting by Mikhail Vrubel. This is the famous The Faraway Princess. The other panels were made to the sketches by Alexander Golovin and Serghei Chekhonin. In little arches they placed majolica vases at the Abramtsevo factory. The drains are decorated with sculptures of boys. The vertical articulations passing through the two upper tiers culminate in Gothic pinnacles. They are echoed by the pinnacles of the lanternlights crowning the atriums which cut through the entire building. Later a huge dome was built over a part of the building, hiding both the restaurant dome and its surrounding indoor premises. Initially the building had a majolica belt with a quotation from Friedrich Nietzsche This is again the same old story, when you have built a house you understand that you have learned something. After the October Revolution a big part of the quotation disappeared from the Hotel walls and a quotation from another thinker appeared there: Only the dictatorship of proletariat can free the mankind from capitalist yoke. B.I.Lenin. Such architects as A. Erikhson, I.Zholtovsky, artists S. Chekhonin, I. Nivinsky, P. Kuznetsov took part in interior decoration of the Hotel.
A second birth of The Metropol In 1986 the Hotel was closed for restoration. It was necessary to strengthen the foundations and replace the wooden floors with concrete ones. Unique wall and ceiling murals, which in the Soviet times they preferred to simply cover with new layers of paint, needed clearing, and the famous façade with its remarkable majolica panels and bas-relief needed restoration, stained glass lost colour, bathroom equipment and supply lines became obsolete. An agreement was made with Perusyhtymja Company from Finland. A part of the restoration work was performed by the restorers of the Institute for Special Restoration Projects (Spetsproektrestavratsiya) and Mosproject 2. Before the reconstruction they performed a historical and cultural examination. It was decided to make the rooms, restaurant halls and lobbies finishing on that basis. In the course of the clearing work they found interesting murals and ancient plafonds under several layers of old paint and plaster. Thus, in Boyarskiy hall they had to remove seven layers of paint before the original murals of the beginning of XX century were restored. Unique restoration work on the Hotel interiors will later be described in the architectural monuments restoration manuals. Antique furniture, chandeliers, paintings, vases, were sent for treatment to St. Petersburg to the Hermitage restoration workshops. In the course of the reconstruction the old building accommodated a conference hall seating 300 persons, a fitness center with a swimming pool, a sauna, gym, business center; the state-of-the art supply lines and hotel service systems were laids. The central entrance was shifted and a new central hall was arranged instead of the old patio. In 1991 the grand opening of the renovated Metropol was held. As a result of colossal work a new hotel was created, which combines all splendour of antique luxury with the latest achievements in the field of comfort.
The "Metropol" is rightfully proud of its luxurious guest suites. With the best will in the world one cannot find any two alike among them. Their appointments and layout are different. The furniture of the early 20th century and bric-a-brac give individuality to each room.
All rooms are equipped as follows: - Bath and shower - 15 satellite channels, 7 Russian channels, Hotel pay-TV system - Mini-bar - Telephone with an answering device - Socket for modem plugging in (modem letout as an alternative) - Hair-drier - Central air-conditioning - Desk - Dressing-gown and slippers - Two bottels of mineral water
Metropol allows much room for making of a wide diversity of arrangements. Business talks, banquets, different conferences are being held here for more than 100 years. Metropol's interiors of an exceptional beauty, living in great comfort, a first-rate service and an effective security system, these combined always appeal to the business elite. Our highly experienced banquet service will make for your success and produce the most pleasant impressions on cooperating with us.
Business facilities. The banquet service offers a wide range of services on arrangement and management of the banquets, starting from the hall rant, preparation of the entertainment programs, composing the exquisite menu to the bouquet-maker services.
At guests service: 10 meeting rooms for banquets, weddings, business and corporate meetings and conferences. - Unique interior of halls, Art Nouveau style. - The Conference-hall equipped with audiovisual facilities, simultaneous - translation to 5 languages and can accommodate up to 300 delegates. - 3 restaurants with Russian and European cuisine. - The Banqueting Service provides any technical equipment. - Hi- Speed Internet access, Dial-Up Internet Access and WiFi Access Internet. - Support services available, including courier service, florist/decoration, and entertainment recommendations.
Exclusive servicing of guests include the following services: - Individual meeting and accommodation of guests will be arranged in the VIP floor lounge - From 7.00 a.m. to 10 p.m. in the VIP bar guests will be offered breakfast, drinks and light dinner. VIP floor guest may invite a colleague or friend (free of charge). - Two negotiation room with the appropriate equipment. - In rooms - a wide range of toilet articles, mineral water and fruits.
Each of the famous restaurants of the Metropol hotel is famed in its own way, and each one has its inimitable image, as well as traditions and habitués of its own. In these restaurants, over the period of one hundred years, Muscovites and Moscow guests ardently "attacked" the fascinating dishes with fork and knife, enjoying themselves, and admiring the fantasies of culinary wizards.
European hotels 
