Century-old Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi emerges from two-year refurbishment

The century-old Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi is located in the heart of the old city and is a recognised landmark owing to its heritage status in the ancient Vietnamese capital.

Host to film stars, celebrities, ambassadors and royalty over its much-storied, 123-year history – Charlie Chaplin spent his honeymoon here and Francois Mitterand, Jacques Chirac, Catherine Deneuve and Angelina Jolie are just some of the many famous faces to have graced the hotel over the years – the colonial property now has its sights set on many more years as Hanoi’s premier destination thanks to a sympathetic upgrade of its historic Heritage Wing.

The Metropole has two wings, the original Heritage Wing first opened in 1901, and a modern annexe that was added in the 1990s. The Heritage Wing has 103 guest rooms and suites which have now been meticulously renovated as part of the 21-month construction project. Original fixtures and fittings have been carefully retained whilst 21st technology has been incorporated into the dynamic. 

According to the project’s interior design team, Singapore-based David Grace Designs International, the goal was to create a “memorable experience” that captured the charm of bygone days.

Hanoi was once the capital of French Indochina, which incorporated Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Sofitel Metropole elegantly melds romantic French Indochina with Asian elegance; guests are welcomed by staff in chic, velvet ao dai beneath whirring wooden fans, while guests enjoy Vietnamese coffees and French pastries in the hotel’s Parisian-style street cafe.

“Our aim was to transcend mere design and create a timeless sanctuary of luxury and understated elegance,” said Grace Soh, managing director of David Grace. “To offer an experience that captures the essence of refined living and evokes the charm of days gone by.”

Around 60% of the Indochine-style hardwood floors in guest rooms were refurbished or replaced. Hand-tufted, exclusively designed carpets were laid in rooms and corridors. The wooden bannisters and handrails of the hotel’s original 1901 staircase that winds its way from the ground floor to the top (third) floor has been carefully preserved. 

Taking the hotel into the 21st century, bathrooms have been updated with Italian marble surfaces, new tubs and showers and contemporary artwork has been added to guest rooms along with new beds, upholstery and curtains. Sound bars, mood lighting and WiFi routers in each room also bring the historical accommodation bang up to date. Having ‘work’, ‘relax’ or ‘full’ lighting modes at the touch of a button rather than fiddling with many lighting switches was an entirely useful addition. 

Six new suites have been created from pairs of connecting rooms. They feature a master bedroom and sofa bed in the parlour area which is a useful addition for family groups.

Thoughtful additions include a welcome glass of champagne and tray of pastries on arrival and a nightly turn-down service with a weather forecast for your onward destination left on the nightstand on your final night. Suite guests can also call on the services of a 24-hour butler service.

Facilities are as opulent as the guest rooms. Le Club overlooks the outdoor pool and pool terrace (sadly my visit coincided with a wet and windy spell) and offers an a la carte menu and a sweet afternoon tea. But the piece de resistance is French restaurant Le Beaulieu. The a la carte breakfast served with champagne is superb – if you have just one night at the Metropole, this is the restaurant in which to break your fast.  

Also worth including during a stay is the nightly ‘Bunker Tour’. During the Vietnamese War, a series of bunkers were built under the hotel for the safety of guests during the frequent and heavy bombing raids. Each evening a hotel guide talks guests through the rich history of the hotel with the tour culminating with guests clambering down the hidden steps by the side of the pool to experience the bunkers for themselves. It was a sobering feeling of claustrophobia to find oneself in the cramped concrete confines of the space, even with the heavy, bomb proof doors left open. But even these stifling bunkers designated for hotel guests (predominantly journalists and politicians at the time) were luxury compared to the tiny makeshift bomb shelters hastily constructed on the streets for the local population. 

My visit concluded with a chauffeur-driven Mercedes ride back to Hanoi airport at dawn, a breakfast box and coffee packed by the kindly hotel staff nestled next to me on the soft leather seats. Nothing, it seems, is too much trouble when it comes to guest comfort for the staff of this incredible hotel. If you’re visiting Hanoi, this really is the only place to stay.

Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi, 15 P. Ngô Quyền, Street, Hoàn Kiếm, Hà Nội 100000, Vietnam