Standing mere moments away from Russell Square lies the impressive ‘Principal London’, a Grade II listed hallmark 334 room building, that is bursting with ‘oodles of character’. From the coral rooms of the ‘Neptune Bar’ famed for its seafood platters featuring lobster, crab and sea trout tartare to the 1920’s Gatsby themed ‘Fitz Bar’ renowned for their cocktails like ‘Spy Princess’, The Principal London was restored in the Spring, to elevate the profile and gravitas of London’s most literary neighborhood. Steeped in history, The Principal London was first opened in 1898, by the Frederick Hotels Company, who sought a ‘hotel space’ that was not only in London’s most prolific neighborhood of Bloomsbury but would also be home to glamour, indulgence and the odd tale of deliciously devilish debauchery. Featuring a strikingly beautiful terracotta interior, The Principal London’s contemporary designs were curated by Tara Bernerd & Partners and Russell Sage Studio, whose purpose was to not only pay homage to the building’s illustrious history and ‘famous guests’ but also to create a hub for the modern traveller seeking delicious food, tipples at its renowned bars and a memorable night in the big city of London.
But it’s not just ‘Neptune’ or ‘Fitz’ Bar that brings The Principal London to life; the newly opened Palm Court is a glorious tropical oasis in the heart of Bloomsbury that bears similarities to the envious interior designs of the Landmark Hotel, London with a difference. The heart and social hub of The Principal London, Palm Court is what I like to call a ‘multi-functional room’ which not only can be host to intimate brunches, breakfast mornings and after work cocktails, but is also an ideal venue for small but ‘innovative events’ in a venue that screams ‘instagrammable appeal. You are immediately struck by the clean light interior lines juxtaposed with swaying palm trees, in a medium sized white open plan venue that adds some much needed light and depth to the otherwise ‘dark interior’ colour scheme (with the exception of the coral leatherette sofas of the Neptune), while the double height glass ceiling is intertwined with an array of green plants such as palm fronds, a tranquil space in a city characterized as ‘never sitting still’. The rest of The Principal London is equally as stunning, accentuated by grand mirrors in hallways, swathed draped throws in bedrooms and an affable atmosphere that pays testament to the kind of hotel that The Principal London truly is.
Which is why a chance to experience breakfast in a newly approved Instagram Hotspot at Palm Court with event-venues.com, was a resounding yes, as I flicked through glossy images of orange-red exterior architectural design, contrasted with the ‘green and whites’ of the beautifully lit Palm Court. Awaited with copious amounts of smashed avocado and chilli flakes on rye bread, flaky pastries and much needed mimosa’s, even during the early hours of the morning I was struck by how ‘social and welcoming’ The Principal London’ was, when other hotels might have been a self acclaimed ‘ghost town’ at this time of day. There were patrons laughing and smiling in Neptune, legs tapping gently on coral sofas, while its very own coffee house ‘Burr and Co’ was host to dozens of early birds, tip tapping away on multi-purpose laptops with coffee to go. The Fitz Bar being a primary venue for ‘live music’ and cocktails lay dormant for now, but we enjoyed hearing about the cocktails that payed tribute to some of Fitz’s most glamorous and reputable patrons such as ‘Spy Princess’ Noor Inayat Khan and the French/Italian novelist Emile Zola. But for now we reveled in the ‘summer’ charm of Palm Court, who even in the heart of winter, with icy gale force winds outside could put a smile on its visitors faces. Even Grumpy Cat would feel at home here, weaving in and out of palm trees and leaping into plush sofas with printed cushions.
But The Principal London, as we were about to find out, was more than just an ordinary hotel, but an ideal location to host events, something which as an events co-founder appealed to me greatly. I could imagine hosting hundreds of bloggers in Principal’s ballroom, as they sipped on award winning cocktails and danced under the light of the full moon, while the music roared into the early hours of the morning. Their stomachs would be laden with fresh food and bar nibbles and the hotel beds would lay ready for its guests to arrive, tucked into warm blankets and a cup of nighttime cocoa to aid sweet dreams. It made sense therefore given The Principal London’s reputation as a ‘social hub’ that its bars and restaurants were designed with the ‘Instagrammer’ in mind, with its ‘bright lighting’ colourful colour schemes and contemporary art installations from artists like ‘2501’ that cast a watchful eye on its prestigious London home. Speaking of ‘prestige’, if there is anyone who could source the ‘best event spaces’ for large to medium scale events, it would be event-venues. com, who curated a ‘breakfast morning’ at The Principal London to demonstrate how even a ‘small breakfast meet up’ could facilitate media relations, promote a ‘new and upcoming’ venue to industry insiders and the general public, as well as showing their capacity to ascertain the discovery of inspiring spaces for creative brand events.
While The Principal London is one of event-venues.com’s newest clients, their portfolio does include other London and Dublin hotel venues such as the quirky ‘Swingers City’ based on a 1920’s golf course set, the stunning Mandrake in Fitzrovia as well as Fade Street Social and Cliff At Llyons in Dublin. Although ‘events’ in my experience tend to take place at luxury hotel resorts, it might be a unique experience to host ‘breakfast mornings’ or blogger events at quirky and unusual event spaces such as The Science Museum, The Barbican or even something a little out there like The Tower of London, for an event that will promise to keep all your guests talking for years to come. Although event-venues.com does specialize in hotel venues like The Principal London for ‘captivating events’ in London, because they are part of the wonderful Clive family, who help brands to Communicate: Live, no matter where you live in the world, if you’re looking for a venue with ‘razzle dazzle’ and sparkle, their team of venue specialists are ready to help. In fact, while our next blogger event will be a large ‘Christmas Party’ in East London, next year we will be looking at creating more intimate, smaller events at quirkier venues, to test out the locations that need to be given a chance to shine. And thanks to Events Venue.Com, we can have help with finding the best event spaces in London, with a free consultation to hand.
Have You Ever Been To The Principal London?
*Disclaimer
Please note I was given complimentary breakfast and a tour of The Principal London in exchange for this post with event-venues.com but all thoughts are my own and are not affected by complimentary services.
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