This week, Marriott’s Luxury Collection brand gained a new member and one with extensive history and fame. Once belonging to Westin, The Palace Hotel in Madrid underwent a major renovation to its façade and interiors and now belongs to Marriott’s esteemed group of renowned Luxury Collection hotels.
Having experienced its first few days following the grand reveal of its new image, these are our top five reasons why The Palace is looking better than ever and primed for attention.
The renovation
When the hotel was unveiled in 1912, it was purpose-built to be the city’s best. The massive undertaking in the past two years to restore it to that same elite tier has brought a lot of the building’s original functions back to life. This includes the original hue of the building itself, which had been painted over the years to appear white, but is now restored to its original beige hue.
The ornamental details on the façade as well as within the hotel itself were carefully restored to their original appearance. For example, the entrance foyer showcases replicas of the glass, marble and tilework that was part of the hotel’s opening more than a century ago. More than three dozen experts and designers were involved in the restoration work.
It seems that every time the hotel removed one layer of paint or flooring to refresh it, they discovered something new (well, original) underneath. This led designers to change things again to restore as much as possible to the way the hotel once was. In 2025, experiencing the hotel is more like 1912 than ever before, but with modern conveniences at the same time.
For even more history, many of the hotel’s current meeting, board and ballrooms are named for famous past guests. They include everyone from Ernest Hemingway to some of the spies that stayed here during both World Wars.
The Cúpula
The all-day dining restaurant, La Cúpula, sits beneath the stained glass cupola that is legendary among locals and perhaps the hotel’s most celebrated feature. During the renovation, its nearly 2,000 individual pieces were taken apart to be cleaned and polished. The hotel hired the same team that handles glass work in Barcelona’s famous Sagrada Familia cathedral.
The chandelier that now hangs beneath it is the same one from when the hotel opened although it had been moved to the front entrance during past renovations. It, like many other things around the hotel, is back in its original place.
Replacing velvet sofas in the center of the room, a glamorous new bar is now the showpiece of the space. Surrounding it are tables and booths where guests enjoy everything from buffet breakfast to elegant dinners under the aegis of Portuguese Executive Chef Nuno Matos. The chef is proud to return to the hotel as he fondly recalls staying here as a child (as did I).
The menu oozes with elegance including caviar, Spanish specialties like paella served tableside and fine cuts of beef or seafood grilled to perfection. Of course, there are traditional dishes like salads, burgers and every imaginable dessert to cater to the global palates that dine here.
Adjacent to the restaurant is 27 Club, the swanky cocktail bar lined with antiques, original guest books and drawings of past guests. Here, exquisite cocktails and mocktails are on offer, accompanied by an elegant presentation of olives, almonds and chips. The hotel’s chief sommelier can also recommend some of the best bottles of the house. You are literally tippling over drinks in the same space that legendary poets, authors and artists like Lorca and Dali did decades ago. Cue instant creativity with every sip.
The rooms
There are 420 rooms, the same number as before, and 50 suites in total. Many enjoy birdseye views of the Neptune Fountain in front of the hotel, the Prado and the bustling traffic circle that is one of the most famous in the city.
Marble-lined hallways feature beautiful new pieces and colorful carpeting, both containing optical illusions as you pass them. Using the nearby botanical gardens as inspiration, Spanish designer Lázaro Rosa-Violán instilled plenty of unique and bucolic touches into the guest rooms. This includes everything from the gorgeous wall coverings behind the bed and in sitting areas to the hardwood floors and soft area rugs that top them.
The bedding is completely new, sporting Frette linens and plush duvets atop pillowtop mattresses. Other impressive touches include all of the latest USB ports bedside and near the antique desks, ample bottled water with the hotel’s compliments and easy-to-use light fixtures that turn off and on at the touch of a button.
Bathrooms, too, sport all new amenities, which were swapped out overnight when the hotel switched from Westin to Luxury Collection. All rooms offer bespoke Byredo products in large pump bottles and enormous Frette towels and robes. Suites have Acqua di Parma goodies as a bonus including luxe bath soap and body wash. All of the trappings of luxury are here from walk-in closets to scales in bathrooms. Even the slippers placed at the foot of the bed during turndown service are from Frette.
The service
Befitting the finest luxury hotels in the world, the service here is on-point and begins from before you even enter. Doormen do all the heavy lifting from opening doors to transferring bags from car to guest room. On rainy days, they greet arrivals with open umbrellas to escort them from car to the front door without getting wet.
Inside, no one walks past without a greeting, and a subtle, new fragrance of the hotel now permeates the public areas. The staff is clearly proud of the recent face lift and is eager to share details on what has changed (and what from the original hotel a century ago has remained).
Housekeeping is impeccable, and no pillow or towel ever seems out of place. The service staff in the bar and restaurant are at the top of their game, and many of them have been here for decades.
The location
Madrid does not have a more central tourist location than this one. The hotel is within the Golden Triangle of Art, which includes the Prado National Museum, the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum, and the Reina Sofía Museum. Just across from the recently refurbished Neptune Fountain and across the street from the Prado, this hotel is also within walking distance of Puerta del Sol, Gran Via, Plaza Mayor, the Royal Palace, and for political junkies, the country’s most important government building, the Palacio del Senado.
This hotel performs well with both tourists as well as business travelers, and its historic ballrooms have hosted some of the country’s finest functions. For a hotel that was purpose-built to welcome royalty and dignitaries by King Alfonso XIII, its recent renovation repositions it back to its famed glory days as one of the top hotels in both Spain and Europe. It has welcomed the likes of Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí and Ernest Hemingway, but its Marriott Bonvoy membership means that it can welcome anyone that joins and wants to experience its historic past.
