Frommer's Review
This landmark luxury hotel launched Bermuda's tourist industry and, thanks to a healthy demand from business travelers, is still going strong. Following a multimillion-dollar renovation in 2002, with additional upgrades and improvements to 113 of its rooms in 2007 and 2008, with more renovations planned, it's brighter and better than ever. Its younger but bigger sibling, the Fairmont Southampton, has better dining, grander and more comprehensive facilities, and the advantage of being on a beach, but it's somewhat remote; the more "urban" Fairmont Hamilton earns fans and devotees because it is more conveniently positioned for shopping and sightseeing. The hotel, whose pink walls and gingerbread trim evoke a wedding cake, is a short walk from downtown Hamilton, on the edge of Hamilton Harbour. Elbow Beach (the closest beach) is a 20-minute taxi ride or 45-minute bicycle ride from the hotel. The easily accessible ferry delivers guests to the Fairmont Southampton, and sun lovers can get their fill at the sandy stretch there. The lack of a beach here doesn't keep the glitterati away: This is the hotel of choice for movie stars and the yachting set. Past visitors have included everyone from Mark Twain to Michael Jackson (quite a range!).
Opened in 1884 and named for Princess Louise (Queen Victoria's daughter), this princess is far more staid than the Fairmont Southampton, and with a higher percentage of clients involved in the fastest growing sector of the Bermudian economy, the re-insurance business. It doesn't even attempt to offer the roster of activities available at Elbow Beach, so the young and the restless might want to book elsewhere. This is the oldest and one of the most deeply entrenched members of the Fairmont hotel chain, and it's certainly the one with the most history: British intelligence officers stationed here during World War II worked to crack secret Nazi codes.
Modern wings, pierced with row upon row of balconied loggias, surround the hotel's colonial core. The property was designed around a concrete pier that extends into the harbor, near a Japanese-style floating garden. Many of the spacious rooms have private balconies, which were designed "to create the feeling that you'd choose the same kind of bedroom if you owned a home here." Most of the tiled bathrooms are generous in size. Some 40% of the guests are repeat visitors.
The hotel has a wide array of bars and restaurants, including Harley's.
Facilities: 2 restaurants; 2 bars; heated freshwater pool, unheated saltwater pool; access to golf, tennis, horseback riding, sailing, and white-sand beaches at the Fairmont Southampton; health club; saunas; moped rentals; watersports equipment/rentals; business center; salon; room service; massage area; babysitting; laundry service; dry cleaning; nonsmoking rooms; rooms for those w/limited mobility; executive suites
Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without
notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before
planning your trip.
