Hotel Urban, Madrid
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Hotel Urban, Madrid
The exquisite downtown Hotel Urban offers an art museum experience. Not only does this hotel have a museum of ancient Egyptian art onsite, each guestroom is its own gallery for a single work, which even includes curator’s notes. The objects belong to the private collection of owner Jordi Clos.
In truth, this hotel would most likely blend with its counterparts were it not for the striking contrast of curvilinear furnishings and rudimentary Papua New Guinean totems in the lobby, or modern contours and 19th-century Hindu statues in the small, shades-of-leather bedrooms. A tiny pool sits atop the roof, the al fresco restaurant offers great views and the clientele tends toward European business folk with panache.
From the glowing white-granite reception desk to the stairwells mosaiced in 24-karat gold-foil tiles, the 96 rooms are sleekly outfitted with leather headboards, dark-wood floors, flat-screen TVs, and gallery-quality lighting. The restaurant and bar is overseen by chef Joaquin de Felipe, formerly of the city's much loved Chaflan.
The street side can be noisy, so courtyard rooms are preferable. A glittering column of gold falls like a solid ray of sunshine through the heart of the hotel. Follow it to the basement and find a museum of Egyptian antiquity, from the private collection of the Clos Archaeologic Foundation. Among the heritage of the collection of Egyptian art pieces integrated in the museum, there are also chinese portraits from the XVII and XIX century, Hindu figures from the XIX century and Papua New Guinea art from the XIX and XX century.
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