Historical Hotel in Oslo - 1 :
Grand Hotel
(Oslo, Norway)
This would be a so-called formidable hotel ?
When going up the main street in Downtown Oslo, Karl Johan street from Oslo station to the royal palace, the Grand Hotel with the clock tower in the center appears on the right side soon. The front faces to a park leading to the royal palace and the parliament building is on the left side. It is an outstanding location in the city center.
The fame of the hotel is the tradition that the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize has stayed. Both in name and reality, it is the hotel representing Oslo and Norway.
I made a reservation of a room that remains the original atmosphere in the historical wing. The room into which I was led had a view of the park down below the balcony and the Oslo city hall was also seen beyond the buildings' skyline.
A staff told me that the hotel remained no atmosphere of the past except the Grand Cafe, the salon and the staircase room. Certainly, the room into which I was led had no special interior but a little reminded me of an apartment in Paris. To tell the truth, I had not stayed at an apartment in Paris, so that was only my image. But I didn’t dislike the slightly shabby atmosphere.
However, when I tried to turn on a heating in the late night, it didn’t run. I was patient but, when I would took a bath, it was a little cold ( since it was midwinter ), so I called the reception. But, despite having waited a long time, no one came, so, running out of patience, I called again. A staff who came didn’t solve and a specialist staff was called in. He also didn’t solve. So, I had to change a room in the night.
In the second room, a heating run and I realized that I would take a bath, but soon after I realized that there were strange things.
There was garbage in the trash can. When raising the toilet seat, the paper used by someone was floating in the water. And when I opened the kettle pot, about a third of the water was left. One of the two paintings beside the bed was hung diagonally and another picture was sliding down in the frame.
A trace that someone was there just a short time ago or a couple did in a secret meeting left everywhere. It was a strange and slightly disgusting room. But it was already 11 o'clock. I was tired to make a great fuss, so I sent an e-mail to the concierge. But in the end, the next day, no reply came and there was not even a single word when I checked out. I thought that it was something wrong, so I also sent an e-mail to the management company Rica Hotel, but I didn’t get a reply. Unless I would take the Nobel prize, they may not correspond to it.
I also had other complaints. As was common at hotels in Scandinavia, the breakfast buffet was poor. Specially, as a first-rate hotel, the variety of bread compares unfavorably with others. As the representative hotel in Norway, I wish them to give higher priority to it. However, the place for the breakfast was the famous Grand Cafe.
The only thing I recommend is a spa area overlooking the city. This atmosphere is rare in Downtown Oslo. Since the closing time was early in the weekend, I went there the most in the morning. The sauna was cool and the hot water of the shower did not come out.
Don’t you think it is a formidable hotel ?
Digression :
I later knew that the clock tower part was a three-stories suite. This seems to be interesting.
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Transportation
10 minutes walk from Oslo Central Station.
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Grand Hotel
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2018.01 Photos in English version, and photos and text in Japanese version
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