Living in a luxury hotel, not in a house: the dream of the decade

More than forty years after the construction of a skyscraper hotel in one of the world’s capitals, a novel about life in a hotel arrives: “The dream of the decade: the London novels” by Afshin Rattansi, producer of the BBC program Today.

The novel’s location is the London Hilton skyscraper on Park Lane, completed in 1963 and designed by William B. Tabler Architects. The protagonist, a repaired working-class man from the 1980s, is a millionaire, but what about others who have chosen to live in hotels rather than buy property?

In New York: The Carlyle – “Although hotel residents come in all shapes, sizes and ages, the population tends to be older and into a higher tax bracket,” said Marcie Lieberman, hotel manager at The Carlyle. “It’s usually an upper echelon person. People who have gotten used to some comfort and who like to live in an environment where those things are available,” she said.

Combine that with the right amount of pampering, and you’ve got a hotel denizens’ prayers answered, all ending in amenity. The Ritz-Carlton on Central Park South, for example, offers included and a la carte services for everything from wanting a massage to needing diamonds at any time.” (Daniel Bubbeo, Newsday)

In London: “John Petch, Sales Director of the boutique hotel group, GLA Hotels (owners of the Lancaster in Paris and the Cadogan Hotel in London) began his career with the Savoy group in the early 1980s. At the time, the fifth floor of Claridges was reserved for long-term guests. But by the early 1990s, he says, the hotel residence was disappearing. Even the wealthy considered extended stays uneconomical and turned their attention to affordable investment opportunities in a second home.

But the tide is turning; both the Lancaster and the Cadogan have three long-stay residents who use the hotels as their city bases. “People are moving back to hotels because of security and service,” says Petch. Boutique hotels are also noted for providing a home-like atmosphere backed by personalized service. “If you have a flat, you might have someone to look after you,” she says. “Here you have all our guard staff.” (Tracy Hoffmann, Financial Times)

Hotel accommodation names:

Geri Halliwell – The Lanesborough, London

Bobby Hashemi, Founder of Coffee Republic – Claridge’s, London

Ruud Gullit – Malmaison, London

Chris Evans – Langham Hilton, London

Richard Harris – Savoy, London

Rupert Murdoch’s courtship with Wendi Deng – The Mercer Hotel, New York

Ken Hom – The Dorchester, London

Peter Sellers and Britt Ekland; Richard Burton and Liz Taylor – The
Dorchester, London.

Coco Chanel – Ritz, Paris

Marlene Dietrich – Hotel Lancaster, Paris

Greta Garbo, – Fairmont Miramar, Los Angeles

Howard Hughes – Desert Inn, Las Vegas

Salvador Dali – Hotel Meurice, Paris

Peter Bogdanovich – Hotel Stanhope, New York

Claude Monet – Savoy, London

Cate Blanchett – Covent Garden Hotel, London

Christina Ricci – Covent Garden Hotel, London

Diane Von Furstenberg – Carlyle, New York

Frank Sinatra – The Waldorf Towers, New York

Cole Porter – The Waldorf Towers, New York

Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald – Lowell Hotel, New York

Madonna – Carlyle, New York

Madonna – Home House, London

William Burroughs – Beat Hotel, Paris

William Burroughs – Chelsea Hotel, New York

Sid Vicious – Chelsea Hotel, New York

Dylan Thomas – Chelsea Hotel, New York

Arthur C Clarke – Chelsea Hotel, New York

Bob Dylan – Chelsea Hotel, New York

Tim Burton – Portobello Hotel, London

Francis Ford Coppola – Portobello Hotel, London

John Lennon – Hilton, Amsterdam

The title novel of the quartet, The Dream of the Decade, may end in disturbing circumstances, but one only has to look at the tragedies of celebrities who have died in hotels to know that it is not uncommon. ends