Hôtel Métropole, Brussels
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“Rooms at Hôtel Métropole have been redecorated in styles varying from art deco to ‘Venetian Baroque’ – slightly overcolourful for some tastes. Much of the furniture is restored from 1930s originals.”
“The Hotel Métropole, close to Place Ste-Catherine and Grand Place, is perhaps the most celebrated of the Brussels grand hotels, full of glamour and elegance, marbled halls, glittering chandeliers and polished brass. The public areas are palatial, there’s a lively café/bar and the gourmet restaurant is excellent.”
What guests liked
- Large rooms
- Friendly staff
- Boutique style
- Top location
- Free Wifi
All you need to know
The Hotel Métropole in Brussels is an absolute masterpiece of Belle Époque architecture that feels like stepping directly into a time machine. Originally opened in 1895, it was born out of a brilliant marketing move by the Wielemans-Ceuppens family of brewers. They initially opened a café to sell their beer, and it became such a massive hit that they bought the bank building next door and transformed it into a luxury hotel.
To bring their grand vision to life, they hired French architect Alban Chambon. He completely revolutionized the space by bringing in the best craftsmen of the era to construct an eclectic wonderland. The reception desk you see today is actually the former bank’s original counter, and the hotel even featured an elevator commissioned from the Edoux company—the very same engineering firm that built the elevators for the Eiffel Tower.
The hotel is also famous for hosting the legendary 1911 Solvay Conference on Physics. This momentous gathering brought together the world’s greatest minds, including Albert Einstein and Marie Curie, to debate the newly emerging theories of quantum mechanics right in the hotel’s meeting rooms.
If that isn’t enough history for you, the Métropole’s bar is also the official birthplace of the Black Russian cocktail, invented in 1949 by bartender Gustave Tops. After closing its doors during the pandemic, the iconic building is currently undergoing a massive restoration project to breathe new life into its historic rooms and reopen its doors as a modern luxury destination.
Location
Recent guest reviews
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