Hotel Marienlyst is a seaside hotel located just north of

Kronborg Castle Kronborg is a castle and stronghold in the town of Helsingør, Denmark. Immortalized as Elsinore in William Shakespeare's play ''Hamlet'', Kronborg is one of the most important Renaissance castles in Northern Europe and was inscribed on the UNE ...

Helsingør Helsingør ( , ; sv, Helsingör), classically known in English as Elsinore ( ), is a city in eastern Denmark. Helsingør Municipality had a population of 62,686 on 1 January 2018. Helsingør and Helsingborg in Sweden together form the northe ...

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. It takes its name after Marienlyst House, a neighboring former royal summer retreat, which was part of it from its foundation in 1859 until 1896. Facilities include a restaurant, bar, wellness area and a casino. The

Danish national football team The Denmark men's national football team ( da, Danmarks herre-fodboldlandshold or ''herrelandsholdet'') represents Denmark in men's international football competitions. It is controlled by the Danish Football Association (DBU), the governing bo ...

stays at the hotel in connection with home matches and training sessions.

History

In the second half of the 19th century, the

Øresund Øresund or Öresund (, ; da, Øresund ; sv, Öresund ), commonly known in English as the Sound, is a strait which forms the Danish–Swedish border, separating Zealand (Denmark) from Scania (Sweden). The strait has a length of ; its width ...

coast became a popular summer destination for wealthy citizens from Copenhagen. J. S. Nathanson, a broker from Helsingør, rented Marienlyst House from Helsingør Municipality with the intention of opening a spa hotel. His inspiration came from visits to

spa town A spa town is a resort town based on a mineral spa (a developed mineral spring). Patrons visit spas to "take the waters" for their purported health benefits. Thomas Guidott set up a medical practice in the English town of Bath in 1668. He ...

s in Germany. As a publicity stunt, to profit from nearby

's reputation as the home of

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

, he renamed a natural spring in the cliff behind the house Ophelia's Spring and constructed Hamlet's Grave nearby. Marienlyst Spa (Marienlyst Kur- og Søbadeanstalt) opened on 1 June 1858. Nathansen also charged the architect

Niels Peder Christian Holsøe Niels Peder Christian Holsøe (27 November 1826 – 1 January 1895) was a Danish architect, known for the numerous railway stations he designed across Denmark in his capacity of head architect of the Danish State Railways. Biography Holsøe ...

with the design of a new hotel building but went bankrupt before it had been completed and the project was there taken over by Helsingør Municipality. The new hotel building was inaugurated on 22 June 1861 with J. W. Briggs as operator. When Sarah Benhard was in Copenhagen in the summer of 1880 to perform in ''

Adrienne Lecouvreur Adrienne Lecouvreur (5 April 1692 – 20 March 1730), born Adrienne Couvreur, was a French actress, considered by many as the greatest of her time. Born in Damery, she first appeared professionally on the stage in Lille. After her Paris debut ...

'' at the Royal Theatre, she visuted Hotel Marienlyst to see the Tomb of Hamlet and Ophelia's Spring. Marienlyst Hotel 1891

The hotel was acquired by a private consortium in 1883. The hotel was expanded with a new hotel and restaurant building as well as a building used for theatre and concerts. Rge spa hotel was frequented by both Danish and international high society. King Christian IV's brother, Prince Hans, stayed in the hotel's room 15 in the summer time several years in a row and the king visited it at several occasions.

Alexander III of Russia Alexander III ( rus, Алекса́ндр III Алекса́ндрович, r=Aleksandr III Aleksandrovich; 10 March 18451 November 1894) was Emperor of Russia, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Finland from 13 March 1881 until his death in 18 ...

visited it for lunch. Hotel Marienlyst advertisement

The connection between the hotel and the former royal residence ended in 1896. The spa hotel was acquired by master butcher Anders Jensen in 1897. He became alderman of the butchers' guild in Copenhagen in 1906 where he would expand his hotel business with the construction of Palace Hotel in 1908. In 1898, Jensen launched an invited architectural competition for the expansion of his new spa hotel. The competition was won by Richard Bergmanns and the extension was built in 1898-1900. A new residence was built in 1915 yp design by the architect Poul Holsøe. The hotel was acquired by C.C. Klestrup in 1929. It was later purchased by

Aage Stentoft Aage Stentoft (1 May 1914 – 8 July 1990) was a Danish composer, film score composer and theatre director. He composed over 700 melodies during his lifetime. Biography Stentoft was born in Holbæk, where he graduated from the Stenhus Kostsko ...

and reopened after a comprehensive refurbishment on 12 May 1943. Stentoft had to flee the country due to his involvement with the resistance movement. Stig Lommer's Hornbæk Eevue used the theatre building in the summer of 1844. The German occupying forces confiscated the building in April 1945. After the liberation on 5 May, the hotel was used for housing German refugees until 1947. The hotel went through several crises in the 1980s and 1990s. Since 2008, the

has stayed at Hotel Marienlyst in connection with home matches and during training sessions. The hotel was damaged in the storm Bodil in 2013. It was acquired by an investor group led by Borris Tangaa Nielsen in 2014 and a plan for a comprehensive refurbishment and extension of the hotel was presented shortly thereafter. A new residential wing was inaugurated on New Year's Eve 2017. Artha, a private equity fund, acquired 49.9% of the hotel in August 2017. ESS Group acquired Hotel Marienlyst in 2019.

Facilities

Hotel Marienlyst has 227 rooms, including suites. Facilities include two restaurants, two bars, a lounge, cafés and a shop, 19 conference rooms, a spa with swimming pool, a yoga and wellness section, a beach sauna and a sun terrace. Casino Marienlyst, the first opened in Denmark, is situated in the same building.

References

External links

* {{Helsingør Hotels in Denmark 1859 establishments in Denmark Buildings and structures in Helsingør Municipality Casino hotels Casinos in Denmark