The Empress (hotel)

is located west of the hotel, on the other side of Government Street. The Fairmont Empress sits at 721 Government Street, at the southern end of Downtown Victoria, the central business district for Victoria, British Columbia. The hotel property is bounded by Humboldt Street to the north, Belleville Street to the south, and Government Street to the west. To the east of the hotel is the Victoria Conference Centre, a conference centre connected to the hotel via the conservatory in 1989. The hotel provides catering for the conference centre. The conference centre and hotel are bounded by Douglas Street on the east. Located at the southern end of Downtown Victoria on Government Street, the hotel is situated close to the British Columbia Parliament Buildings. The hotel is also situated closely to the city's Inner Harbour, a major tourist attraction located west of the hotel, across Government Street. Other major attractions located adjacent to the hotel include the Maritime Museum of British Columbia and the Victoria Bug Zoo, both located north of the hotel, across Humboldt Street. The hotel building was designated as a National Historic Site of Canada by Parks Canada on 15 January 1981 for its contribution to the development of the Chateauesque style of architecture. ==Design==

Architecture -style, the hotel features steep pitched roofs, gables, and polygonal turrets. Shortly after acquiring the property, Canadian Pacific Hotels, a division of Canadian Pacific Railway, announced its plan to construct a new hotel, similar to the company's other Chateauesque grand railway hotels. Designed by Francis Rattenbury, the hotel was built from 1904 to 1908. The building features an asymmetrical floor plan, with an interior featuring arcaded central loggia, and projecting pavilions accented by oriel windows. Facilities at the Lobby Lounge, one of several restaurants at the hotel The Empress includes 464 guest rooms and suites spread throughout the hotel building. A number of rooms at The Empress are also used by restaurants and other food-based services. Restaurants located within the restaurant include the Lobby Lounge, Q at the Empress Restaurant, and the Q Bar. The restaurants were all redesigned in 2017 by the Puccini Group, a San Francisco-based interior design firm. The restaurants features a purple, hardwood floor, and textured-fabric chandeliers. The hotel also operates a fitness centre with an indoor pools, and a hot tub. ==History==

The Chateauesque was designed by Francis Rattenbury for Canadian Pacific Hotels as a terminus hotel for Canadian Pacific's steamship line, whose main terminal was just a block away. The hotel was to serve business people and visitors to Victoria, but later as Canadian Pacific ceased its passenger services to the city, the hotel was successfully remarketed as a resort to tourists. Victoria emerged as a tourist destination beginning in the mid-to-late 1920s. The hotel was built between 1904 and 1908, opening for service in that year and named for Queen Victoria, who was also Empress of India. Additional wings were added between 1909 and 1914, and in 1928. In the 1930s, Shirley Temple arrived accompanied by her parents amid rumours that she had fled from California because of kidnapping threats, a story borne from the presence of two huge bodyguards who took the room opposite hers and always left their door open. On May 30, 1939, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth attended a luncheon at the Empress during their 1939 royal tour of Canada. Until 1960 the hotel did not have a sign above the front entrance. In 1965, debate to tear down The Empress to make room for a more modern, functional high-rise hotel surfaced. One local newspaper warned that, "Without this splendid relic of the Edwardian era, literally tens of thousands of tourists will never return. This is the Mecca, this is the heart and soul of the city." Guest rooms were renovated, and a health club, indoor swimming pool and guest reception were added. This led to a loud uproar and consternation by Victoria's newspapers and its citizens, a decision they viewed as sacrilege. Although the new name stuck, Fairmont made no changes to the hotel's original exterior signage, as a compromise to soothe local anxieties and respect its heritage. Fairmont later sold the hotel on October 31, 2000, to the Legacy Hotels REIT for CA$120 million. However, Fairmont has a long-term management agreement with Legacy Hotels, and as of August 2005, held an 11.14% ownership in this REIT. The hotel was sold again on June 27, 2014, to Vancouver-based owners, Nat and Flora Bosa. They invested more than $60 million in renovations. In May 2017, the first phase of restoration work and renovation was completed at the hotel. The renovations included redesigns of the guest rooms and suites, spa, dining facilities, and reception lobby. ==See also==