Strand Palace Hotel

The Strand Palace Hotel is a large hotel on the north side of the Strand, London, England, positioned close to Covent Garden, Aldwych, Trafalgar Square and the River Thames.HistoryThe hotel was built after Exeter Hall was demolished in 1907. It opened in 1909 and was refurbished in the Art Deco style during the 1930s, but has now been modernised.Strand Hotel Limited was incorporated on 31 October 1907, with some 4,000 shareholders. Created by the Salmon & Gluckstein families, it was established to fund the building of the Strand Palace Hotel. J. Lyons & Co. acquired shares in this enterprise in 1922, and also bought the adjoining Haxells family hotel in order to expand and improve the Strand Hotel.After extensive redevelopment, the hotel became an art deco showcase, and re-opened in 1928, with 980 bedrooms. The same year, some not-so-prominent changes were being made behind the scenes. Two secondhand coal-fired steam boilers, salvaged from World War I battleships, were installed in the boiler house. The rear of the property was occupied by the Winter Garden Restaurant. The Winter Garden Restaurant had a large domed ceiling and could seat over 500 guests, which were served by over one hundred staff. Due to its large number of bedrooms, the hotel became popular with American forces before they were sent into action in World War II. Indeed, the hotel was, in fact, commissioned as an official U.S. rest and recuperation residence.