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Frommer's Exceptional
CITY: Oslo
COUNTRY: Norway
POSTCODE: N-0159
PHONE 1: 800/223-5652 in the U.S.
PHONE 2: 23-21-20-00
FAX: 23-21-21-00
WEBSITE: www.grand.no
Famous guests still arrive at Norway's premier hotel, and you are likely to see CEOs, Nobel Prize winners, and movie stars. Tradition and style reign supreme here, as they did when the Grand opened its doors in 1874 in a Louis XVI revival-style building imbued with touches of Art Nouveau. Constant modernization has not managed to erase the original character of the hotel, which stands on the wide boulevard leading to the Royal Palace. In fact, the stone-walled hotel with its mansard gables and copper tower is now one of the most distinctive landmarks of Oslo. Guest rooms are in the 19th-century core or in one of the tasteful modern additions. Newer rooms contain plush facilities and electronic extras, and the older ones have been completely modernized. Most of the old-fashioned bathrooms are done in marble or tile and have tub/shower combinations. An eight-story extension contains larger, brighter doubles.
The Hotel Bristol and Hotel Continental are less pretentious than the Grand, lacking such stiff formality and ritualized service. In spite of its formality, many well-heeled families check into the Grand. Children enjoy the indoor pool, and the reception staff keeps a list of activities going on in Oslo that will amuse kids. The hotel has several restaurants that serve international and Scandinavian food. The Palmen, the Julius Fritzner, and the Grand Café, the most famous cafe in Oslo, all offer live entertainment.
Copyright: Excerpted from Frommer's Norway, 3rd Edition, (c) 2008, Wiley Publishing, Inc.
Oslo
, Norway
