HAPPY 50TH BIRTHDAY HOTEL CIPRIANI

05-20-2008

 

Legendary hotel celebrates with 1958 room rates

 

May 2008 (Venice, Italy) – The famed Hotel Cipriani, on the lagoon island of Guidecca in Venice, is celebrating its 50^th anniversary this year with exclusive and enticing new programs and events, commemorating the hotel’s milestone. From single-digit rates to 24k spa treatments, guests are invited to celebrate along with Hotel Cipriani.

 

To mark its golden year on May 26, 2008, Hotel Cipriani is offering a double-room rate of US$6** to the FIRST FIVE guests booking directly through the hotel’s Web site (www.hotelcipriani.com)¹. The $6 rate is the Euro equivalent of the going double-room rate on opening night in 1958.

 

Hotel Cipriani opened on May 26, 1958, when Giuseppe Cipriani, the famous patron of Harry’s Bar in Venice, cut the ribbon and welcomed the first guest to the hotel. In 1976, James B. Sherwood, a regular guest at the hotel, bought the Cipriani, which was to become the first of the Orient-Express Hotels. The hotel has seen many famous guests pass through its doors, including Pablo Picasso, President Ronald Regan, Sir Elton John, George Clooney and Gwyneth Paltrow. Over the past 50 years, more than 1,000,000 Bellinis have been served at the Cipriani and about the same number of its signature Beef Carpaccio dishes.

 

Celebrated lover Giacomo Casanova – the namesake of Cipriani’s Casanova Spa – would have indulged in the spa’s new “Luxe 24 Karat Gold Facial,” which incorporates real gold into the treatment ingredients, making the skin feel firmer, lighter and brighter, while diminishing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Gold remains in the skin for up to 28 days after treatment, fighting off damaging free radicals to prevent premature aging. The 80-minute treatment is US$560**.

 

Hotel Cipriani’s 50^th anniversary celebrations will reach beyond Venice, when the UK-based Orient-Express British Pullman train serves up a special “Cipriani Dinner” onboard, prepared by the Hotel Cipriani’s Executive Chef Renato Piccolotto. Cipriani Restaurants located at other Orient-Express Hotels, including the Copacabana Palace in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Lapa Palace in Lisbon, Portugal, and Reid’s Palace in Madeira, Portugal, will also offer a special 50^th anniversary menu to their guests, as well. Guests can enjoy these special menus on May 24, 2008.

 

Hotel Cipriani is also celebrating the phase-one completion of a three-year long renovation project. Phase one includes 10 fully refurbished rooms and suites located in the “Redentore” and “San Giorgio” wings, all offering breathtaking views of the Lagoon. The new rooms – six luxury doubles and four exclusive suites – include beautiful bathrooms with large walk-in showers, double basins, and Carrara marble and mosaics depicting a Byzantine-Venetian tradition.  Extra lavish touches, like cashmere and silk blankets, decorate guestrooms to make each guest’s stay at Hotel Cipriani even more comfortable.

 

To create the luxurious look of the new rooms, Parisian interior designer Michel Jouannet used Venetian artwork, hand-made stuccos, Murano glass, antique mirrors and fabrics by Fortuny and Rubelli. For a special touch, the same Venetian design expert who decorated a number of Cipriani’s suites in 1958, Franco Fogliata, has been appointed to create precious hand-made stuccos, following 17^th Century designs and methods. Fogliata’s new design elements will help maintain a connection with the hotel’s past.

 

Additional refurbishments will commence in November 2008 and continue through the hotel’s down season. During this phase, each room will be equipped with complimentary broadband internet, high definition satellite TV and the latest technological equipment.

 

For more information and to book a reservation, please visit www.hotelcipriani.com or call +1 (800) 237-1236.

 

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**The sterling price guide is based on the exchange rate at the time of going to press, but the final price will depend on the exchange rate at the time of booking.

 

¹ Hotel Cipriani’s discounted rate will be offered to the first five guests who successfully book a reservation (at the regular room rate), starting at 00:01 hrs (Italian time) on May 26, 2008. Soon after booking, these five guests will be notified by the hotel that they have secured the special rate.

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