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W Edinburgh’s sky-piercing, steel-clad Ribbon Building — a putting tribute to the Scottish capital’s publishing heritage — has not escaped controversy, drawing comparisons to all the things from peeled satsumas to emojis throughout its development. Yet because the five-star resort opened within the central St James Quarter final November, its critics have been noticeably silent.
Injecting a youthful twist into Edinburgh’s hospitality scene – historically dominated by tartan-wrapped icons like The Balmoral and The Scotsman – the W has swiftly grow to be a favorite amongst worldwide guests and locals alike, with its distinctive eating places (together with Scotland’s first SUSHISAMBA), unparalleled skyline views and stylish, understated rooms.
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The resort occupies a coveted nook of town, with handy practice connections only a few minutes’ stroll away from Waverley Station. Historical landmarks such because the Royal Mile and Edinburgh Castle are simply reachable on foot, whereas the adjoining procuring centre boasts a swathe of designer manufacturers, pop-up eating places and a luxurious cinema. For a extra conventional style of the Scottish capital, St Andrew Square may be discovered down an alley lined with designer boutiques, whereas fashionable Leith – one of many metropolis’s coolest neighbourhoods – is a brief Uber journey away.
Scottish resorts typically lean closely into stereotypes — tartan carpets, gold-framed work of stags surrounded by swirling mist and doormen in dramatic Highland apparel. While there’s definitely a allure to that (who doesn’t love a second of Outlander fantasy?), W Edinburgh’s strategy is way extra delicate. By rigorously infusing hints of heritage and tradition, the resort avoids the total shortbread-tin aesthetic to well showcase Scotland’s modern tradition and attraction past the normal.
Middle East Traveller checked in to a Wonderful Twin Room for glimpses of the Scottish skyline from one of many latest resorts on the block.
The Hotel
W Hotels, a part of the Marriott group, has lengthy been related to garish color schemes, quirky (and typically impractical) furnishings and a energetic party environment. Yet round 2021, the model underwent a radical transformation. Gone have been the gaudy disco balls and shiny purple rugs, changed with a classy, understated aesthetic emphasising high-quality supplies and delicate injections of native tradition and historical past.
Since then, new W resorts in cities like Budapest, Milan and Prague have embraced a extra mature design ethos. These “spontaneous, but staged” areas characteristic elevated supplies, surprising color palettes and sculptural particulars that will have been unimaginable within the model’s earlier days. Each new resort is designed from the bottom up, making certain no two are alike.
W Edinburgh exemplifies the brand new path. Locally rooted interiors by Jestico + Whiles juxtapose themes of fireplace and water towards darkish “charred wooden” panelling and putting copper touches all through heat and welcoming public areas. The foyer desk, for example, is hewn from volcanic rock, whereas the W Lounge bar incorporates tonal hues that pay homage to the thistle – Scotland’s nationwide flower – and woad blue, a conventional dye from a plant that grows throughout the nation.
The resort is designed as an area for dwelling, working and enjoying. In a UK first, the property boasts a Sound Suite studio — a inventive area for musicians, podcasters, DJs and artists to provide and file their work. The Away spa has 4 themed remedy rooms together with a quartz sand desk (mentioned to be the one one within the UK) and water mattress — plus a 24/7 gymnasium subsequent door with state-of-the-art Technogym gear for extra energetic visitors.
The Arrival
The resort is exceptionally handy. It’s only a few minutes’ stroll from Edinburgh’s Waverley Station, which may be reached from London by practice in roughly 4 and a half hours. The Royal Mile is a mere 10-minute stroll away, and a five-minute Uber journey will take you to the charming neighbourhoods of Stockbridge
On our method to examine in, we move by way of the galleria-style St James Quarter — town’s latest one-stop procuring and eating vacation spot full of dozens of designer manufacturers, a boutique cinema, bowling lane and road meals market full of world eating choices.
There’s a direct elevator all the way down to the resort, however we head for the stone staircase that winds across the constructing’s copper-coloured sides resulting in the principle entrance. Past the glow of a putting W signal, workers wearing ultra-modern black kilts greet us with glasses of champagne and whisk us by way of the brilliant and buzzy reception area to finish check-in formalities.
The Room
The rooms are divided amongst three areas — the Ribbon Building, the heritage-listed James Craig Walk terrace throughout St James Square and the modern Quarter House subsequent door, related to the foyer by a video artwork “cinematic tunnel.”
Our entry-level Wonderful Twin Room, in the principle resort, options floor-to-ceiling home windows and a spacious glass-walled terrace with views of town’s soot-stained sandstone skyline, together with the enduring Baronial clock tower of Edinburgh’s Balmoral Hotel (set three minutes quick for the previous century so visitors don’t miss their trains).
The interiors are daring but elegant, balancing modern, angular traces with deep, moody hues of navy and slate gray complemented by inviting, plush sofas, heat copper-pipe fixtures and mushy ambient lighting. There’s no particular workspace, however rooms of this class do embody a carved granite bar for crafting do-it-yourself cocktails, whereas complimentary garments steamers, illy coffee machines and illuminated mirrors add a contact of sophistication.
Rooms showcase putting pictures by Scottish artist Jodie Mann, who aimed to “look past” the standard stereotypes to create modern items reflecting the nation’s historical past and folklore. ‘Waiting At Ocean’s End’ blends pictures and acrylic to reimagine a 1700s Gaelic lament in gentle blues, deep purples, golds and silvers, whereas ‘Capercaillie’ evokes Scotland’s uncommon woodland birds by way of a dramatic Elizabethan-style feather ruff.
King variations of the Wonderful Room characteristic an open-plan rest room with floating mirrors, however our twin room has a separate enclosed area with a bathe cubicle (ebook the Fabulous class for a bath) and MOMO toiletries infused with yellow melon.
There are 13 room varieties in whole. Among one of the best choices are the Cool Corner terraces, loft-style Fantastic doubles, and wood-panelled Wow suites with tall sash home windows. The top-category Extreme Wow Suite, at 1,600 sq. ft, features a spacious eating room and a singular bar hewn from volcanic rock — plus a swivelling super-king mattress, sauna and sprawling non-public terrace with comfortable sofas looking over Edinburgh Castle.
The Service
The workers, predominantly Scottish, are largely drawn from long-standing luxurious resorts across the capital — and their expertise clearly exhibits. The hospitality is pleasant and polished all through, notably within the eating places, the place menu information shines. This turns out to be useful in SUSHISAMBA, the place navigating an in depth listing of anticuchos, mocequas and tiraditos may show tough with out professional steerage.
The Restaurants and Bars
On the resort’s tenth flooring, you’ll discover Scotland’s first SUSHISAMBA, an outpost of the stylish New York-born restaurant fusing influences from Japan, Brazil and Peru with intensive use of native Scottish produce — extremely prized Highland wagyu beef options all through the ever-evolving menu alongside Perthshire venison and squid from an area fishmonger.
Melt-in-your-mouth black cod miso, roasted over the charcoal robata grill, stands out among the many listing of signatures and simply rivals any model we’ve tried, whereas the teriyaki tofu tucked among the many aspect dishes provides a comforting, ultra-umami deal with for vegetarians.
Like its sister branches in London and Dubai, the restaurant is perched excessive above town with 360-degree views stretching far previous atmospheric silhouettes of Edinburgh Castle and Calton Hill from a terrace snaking across the constructing.
In stark distinction to the curved counter tiled in scalloped seafoam inexperienced, the area is anchored by a putting two-storey set up of 1,000 copper tubes in a gradient of reds and oranges. The artwork piece evokes conventional bamboo lanterns and encircles an autumn-hued tree draped with twinkling string lights, making a visually gorgeous centrepiece for the restaurant.
Upstairs on the club-style W Lounge, well-mixed cocktails just like the honeycomb and whisky Water Horse and zingy mint gin Seal Folk are paired with easy salads and sharing starters. At breakfast, dig right into a Full Scottish relatively than the normal Full English discovered south of the border — with hearty helpings of haggis, tattie scones, black pudding and Lorne sausage including to the standard morning unfold.
For one of the best vantage level over town sep out onto the open-air rooftop W Deck, the place heated igloos present a refuge from the rain and chilly throughout drizzlier months. The resort’s apartment-style speakeasy João’s Place in the meantime hosts sundown classes over cocktails impressed by the Liberdade neighbourhood of Brazil’s São Paulo.
Why Stay?
Edinburgh is stuffed with wonderful resorts, however none are fairly just like the W. Excellent eating places, stellar skyline views and ultra-trendy rooms make this a go-to spot for travellers trying to go to the Scottish capital in type.
The Essentials
- Rates: Rooms begin at GBP469 per night time
- Phone quantity: +44 131 388 8000
- Website: marriott.com
- Address: 1 St James Square, Edinburgh, United Kingdom, EH1 3AX
