The Westin Excelsior, Rome, is a
luxury hotel on the
Via Veneto in
Rome,
Italy. It opened in 1906.
History
The Hotel Excelsior opened on January 17, 1906. It was constructed by the Actiengesellschaft für Hotelunternehmungen, based in
Lucerne
Lucerne ( , ; High Alemannic German, High Alemannic: ''Lozärn'') or Luzern ()Other languages: gsw, Lozärn, label=Lucerne German; it, Lucerna ; rm, Lucerna . is a city in central Switzerland, in the Languages of Switzerland, German-speaking po ...
, Switzerland.
[http://famoushotels.org/index.php/includes/hotel_info/213/historic_data] They sold the hotel in 1920 to CIGA, the Compagnia Italiana Grandi Alberghi, or Italian Grand Hotels Company, an Italian luxury chain. In 1944, the hotel became the temporary headquarters of
General Mark Clark after the
US Army entered Rome.
The
Aga Khan IV bought CIGA in 1985, then sold it to
Sheraton Hotels
Sheraton Hotels and Resorts is an international semi-luxury hotel chain owned by Marriott International. As of June 30, 2020, Sheraton operates 446 hotels with 155,617 rooms globally, including locations in North America, Africa, Asia Pacific, Ce ...
in 1994, which placed the Excelsior in its Luxury Collection. His senior hospitality advisor, Paul Ruffino advised the Aga Khan to maintain ownership of the Meurice in Paris and The Excelsior. Following the financial turmoil he was experiencing in hospitality Khan's decision was to only hold on to the Meurice. In 1998 Sheraton was sold to
Starwood, and the Excelsior was transferred to its
Westin Hotels & Resorts division and renamed The Westin Excelsior, Rome. The hotel was fully renovated in 2000.
Starwood sold the hotel to
Qatar-based
Katara Hospitality in 2015 for €222 Million.
In popular culture
The hotel hosted the cast and crew of ''
Ben-Hur Ben-Hur or Ben Hur may refer to:
Fiction
*'' Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ'', an 1880 novel by American general and author Lew Wallace
** ''Ben-Hur'' (play), a play that debuted on Broadway in 1899
** ''Ben Hur'' (1907 film), a one-reel silent ...
'' in 1959. ''
La Dolce Vita
''La Dolce Vita'' (; Italian for "the sweet life" or "the good life"Kezich, 203) is a 1960 satirical comedy-drama film directed and co-written (with Ennio Flaiano, Tullio Pinelli and Brunello Rondi) by Federico Fellini. The film stars Marcell ...
'' was filmed around the hotel in 1960 and ''
Two Weeks in Another Town'' was filmed in the hotel in 1962. Portions of the 1983 miniseries ''
The Winds of War'' were filmed in the hotel, as was a scene in the 2009 period musical ''
Nine''. In the 1973 film
The Exorcist, Chris MacNeil (played by
Ellen Burstyn) can be heard asking to be connected to the Hotel Excelsior in Rome when she is trying to reach Regan's (played by
Linda Blair
Linda Denise Blair (born January 22, 1959) is an American actress and activist. She played Regan MacNeil in the horror film ''The Exorcist'' (1973), for which she won a Golden Globe Award and received a nomination for an Academy Award. The film ...
) father.
On March 3, 1994, singer
Kurt Cobain
Kurt Donald Cobain (February 20, 1967 – April 5, 1994) was an American musician who served as the lead vocalist, guitarist and primary songwriter of the rock band Nirvana. Through his angst-fueled songwriting and anti-establishment persona ...
overdosed in one of the hotel suites.
The hotel is marked by its distinctive
cupola, and for the two-story "Villa la Cupola" suite located on the fifth and sixth stories beneath it. This suite is noted as one of the most expensive hotel rooms in the world, and includes hand-painted frescoes, up to seven bedrooms, and a private cinema.
"The World's Most Expensive Hotel Rooms"
'' Forbes'', March 7, 2002.
References
External links
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Westin Excelsior, Rome
Italian companies established in 1906
Hotel buildings completed in 1906
Hotels established in 1906
Hotels in Rome
Westin hotels