Chateau Belá (source: Courtesy of Chateau Belá)
AS OF January 1 the Association of Historic Hotels of Slovakia became a member of the Historic Hotels of Europe group. This international network clusters more than 700 unique hotels in 20 countries, the TASR newswire wrote.
The motto of the European historic hoteliers is “a story to tell”. All these are stories of castles, manor houses and historical buildings, many of whose walls have been standing for centuries. The hotels aspire to be exceptional not only in terms of their history and architecture, but also their high-class services.
“The goal of the hoteliers is not only to provide accommodation, but also to mediate an unrepeatable experience,” Michal Čuridlo, the secretary general of the Slovak association told TASR.
Since entering the international organisation, the seven Slovak members have been allowed to display a plaque bearing the emblem of the Historic Hotels of Europe. The seven are: Chateau Belá near Štúrovo, Hotel Bankov in Košice, Hotel U Leva in Levoča, the Kaštieľ Péchy Lovecký Dom & Park manor house in Hermanovce, the Kaštieľ Villa Nečas manor house in Žilina, Hotel Sandor Pavillon in Piešťany and the Grand Castle Hotel in Liptovský Hrádok.
The basic conditions for a hotel to become a member is that it is housed in a building constructed before WWII and provides at least three-star services in the original building environment.
Hotels which are located in historical buildings but which are members of international chains are excluded from membership.
