This was published 9 years ago
Six of the best: Literary hotels of the world
They provided relaxation and often inspiration to writers. Here are six top hotels with literary connections still open today.
Brown's Hotel, London
Rudyard Kipling honeymooned at Brown's in 1892 and frequently stayed thereafter, claiming it inspired his creativity. He wrote The Jungle Book (1894) here and was still installed in 1936 a few days before his death. Today's Kipling Suite, flooded with light, bears no resemblance to the original but is fabulously sleek. The Miss Marple mystery At Bertram's Hotel (1965) is also said to be inspired by Brown's; Agatha Christie was another regular. Sumptuous high teas or cocktails in the 60s-inspired Donovan Bar will get you in the mood, though hopefully not for murder.
Rooms from $880. See roccofortehotels.com
Le Montreux Palace, Montreux
Great Russian writer Vladimir Nabokov, best known for controversial tale best known for controversial tale Lolita (1955), breathed his last in 1959 at Le Montreux Palace in Switzerland and is buried in nearby Clarens cemetery. Though the hotel makes little of it, Nabokov lived at the hotel for 20 years in a warren of rooms where he played Scrabble with his wife, to whom he dictated his stories. Perhaps he was inspired by the hotel's glorious views across Lake Geneva to the French Alps; the cheerful yellow-and-white Belle Époque pile stands right on the lakefront of this chic resort town.
Rooms from $378. See fairmont.com/montreux/
Hotel Old Cataract, Aswan
The original part of this hotel was built for British Victorian travellers in Egypt; Howard Carter stayed after discovering Tutankhamun's tomb, and it featured in Death on the Nile (1937) by Agatha Christie, whose husband was an archaeologist. Stay in the author's now glammed-up suite, where she wrote much of the novel. The book was later made into a wonderful 1978 movie starring Peter Ustinov, David Niven, Bette Davis and Maggie Smith; many early scenes were shot at the hotel. Sunset tea on the terrace, with views down the Nile, is lovely.
Rooms from $155. See sofitel.com
Raffles Hotel, Singapore
William Somerset Maugham, highest-paid writer of the 1930s, wrote many short stories set in South-east Asia. Raffles Hotel, opened in 1887, was already legendary when Maugham commented that it "stands for all the fables of the exotic east". He was later invited back for his publicity value. Other writers who stayed, including Kipling, James Michener, Noel Coward and Andre Malraux, have suites named after them, though sadly the small museum has closed. Coward's tunes are still played in the Writer's Bar, and a distinctive old-world flavour survives despite the contemporary opulence.
Rooms from $692. See raffles.com
Mandarin-Oriental, Bangkok
The Oriental was the first hotel in Thailand, opened in 1876, and was once owned by Louis Leonowens, son of Anna the governess of The King and I fame. Coward, Maugham, Michener and Conrad each have a suite named after them in the hotel's heritage wing. The Authors' Lounge is colonial-inspired, and the seafood restaurant is named after Conrad novel Lord Jim (1899). Guests get quotations from famous authors on their pillows after turndown service, though "The horror! The horror!" is unlikely to be one of them: this is one of the world's top digs. "
Rooms from $483. See mandarinoriental.com
Metropole Hotel, Hanoi
Globetrotters Maugham and Coward checked in here too, as did French writer Marguerite Duras. More significantly, it featured in Graham Greene's novel The Quiet American (1955). The English writer stayed in the hotel on many occasions as a correspondent for Paris Match magazine, drinking with other newspapermen at the bar. Check into the classic French-style suite named for the writer, or just order Greene's favourite cocktail (gin, cassis and dry vermouth) at Le Club Bar. The hotel retains its colonial atmosphere behind green shutters, but with added opulence, two European restaurants and a fine spa.
Rooms from $103. See sofitel.com
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