Hotels in old police stations
TAI O HERITAGE HOTEL, LANTAU ISLAND, HONG KONG
Shek Tsai Po Street, Tai O, Lantau Island, tel: 00-852-2985 8383, taioheritagehotel.com
It was the pirates around these parts that led to the building of this police station in 1902 in the fishing village of Tai O. This canal-side, stilt-house village (where salt is also farmed) is two hours from Hong Kong centre, and far more peaceful. While keeping an eye out for uncouth sea activity – patrols were done by sampan (flat-bottomed wooden boat) – this building also housed administration and its staff mediated in family and villager disputes. It closed in 2002 and was restored in 2009 – under state conservation and heritage auspices – into a nine-room hotel, now a Grade II historic building (run on a non-profit basis). It retains its early 20th-century colonial feel, with its pitched Chinese tiled roof, wooden casement windows, granite steps, French windows, arched façade and fireplaces. You’ll sleep soundly here (so long as you stay out of crime) as the law-enforcing hardware that has been restored includes cannons, a searchlight, turrets and cells.
Rooms: there are nine rooms with dark wood floors, brick fireplaces and French doors. Some are named after local landmarks, or a ship, in the case of Sea Tiger. The rooms’ previous uses are given: Sea Tiger was the sub-divisional inspector’s office (he got a sea view and so will you). Eagle’s Point was the canteen, for instance, while General’s Rock was the briefing room and Treasure Pond was the night duty quarters, which also has a sea view – to keep an eye out for those pirates. Doubles from HK$1380 (€136.50).
THE BACK BAY HOTEL, BOSTON
350 Stuart Street, Back Bay, Boston, tel: 001-617-266 7200, doylecollection.com
The Cuff bar is one of the links, in this hotel, to its history as a police headquarters. And the Boston police force is historic in itself, having been the first paid force in the US, set up in 1854, following the lead of Robert Peele’s London brigade.
It was charged with “the care of the streets, the care of the common sewers . . . and whatever else affects the health, security, and comfort of the city”.
They began life in city hall and moved to this then-new building in 1925 from where they tackled key Boston events such as the St Valentine’s Day blizzard in 1940, the Great Blizzard of 1971 and the deadly fire at the Coconut Grove speakeasy in 1942 that killed 490 people.
The police left this grand, imposing limestone and brick building in 1997 and it was converted to an elegant but edgy hotel that is part of the Irish Doyle Collection. It is in Boston’s captivating Back Bay area.
Rooms: there are 225 rooms ranging from superior and deluxe doubles to luxury and presidential suites, all decorated in calm colours, with oak and marble bathrooms. Doubles from $329 (€252).
LE MÉRIDIEN, BUDAPEST
Erzsebet Ter 9-10, Budapest, tekL 00-361-4295500, lemeridienbudapest.com
This was built in the first World War for an Italian insurance company and was damaged by a bomb during the second World War – we trust there was a good insurance policy in place.
Its early 20th-century construction, Roman ownership and need to convince investors of its solidity, make it a stone-clad pre-Modern/classical structure that must have been an attraction to the Budapest police who set up their headquarters in the building after the war. But they also got some arresting architectural details such as wrought-iron railings and a blue, yellow, green and white stained-glass dome. These remain, as does the austere façade, as this has now been declared a historic monument (of which there are many in this city). The police departed in 1997 and the building was converted into a five-star hotel that opened in 2000. It is part of the Starwood Hotels group which gives it its international-style interior.
Rooms: Le Méridien Budapest has 192 rooms and 26 suites, many of them overlooking Erzsébet square and the St Stephen’s Basilica. Doubles from €151.