Edinburgh to see five 'under-used' historic buildings transformed into luxury hotel suites and tearoom

A series of “under-used” buildings in the heart of Edinburgh city centre could be transformed into luxury hotel accommodation, retail space and see the return of an historic city tearoom under ambitious new plans.

An overview showing the series of buildings that face onto Hanover Street, Princes Street, Rose Street and Rose Street Lane in Edinburgh city centre.

Property developer RRH Hanover said it had submitted a planning application for the site at the corner of Hanover Street and Princes Street. It is looking to “carefully repurpose” five buildings into a luxury hotel, with associated guest amenities and ancillary accommodation.

The hotel is designed to operate as a “bespoke apartment style destination”, with each room and suite unique and individually styled. The 60 bedrooms have been designed to be accommodated within the existing and proposed buildings which “carefully knit together the fabric of the site, respecting the historical context”, developers insisted.

Edinburgh has seen a flurry of hotel development in recent years though concerns have been raised that the upper end of the market may be reaching saturation point.

Developers want to return the historic Crawford’s Tea Rooms to their former glory.

The latest proposed development aims to consolidate the unused space above several commercial units into a series of interlinked properties, with ground floor units reorganised to make the most of their central location. It is hoped that it will provide opportunities to businesses leasing the ground floor retail units.

The key concept of adaptive re-use of existing properties is to be reinforced by new build additions at Rose Street and Rose Street Lane. These elements are designed to knit together the five blocks of accommodation while improving “neglected” rear portions of the site.

The development also includes the reintroduction of a tearoom on Hanover Street. This was once occupied by Crawford’s Tearooms, and the development would “return the site to its former glory, reviving the building’s historical charm”. Other elements include rooftop terraces, providing “dramatic” skyline views, a fitness studio and a guest lounge overlooking the Mound and Princes Street Gardens.

Plans for the area would complement the 27 luxury serviced apartments units which are currently being developed by RRH in a refurbished category-A listed at 71 George Street and will be operated under the RÌGH Properties brand. The company also plans to refurbish 73-75 George Street into luxury managed serviced apartments.

David Grieve from RRH said: “We are incredibly excited to be submitting a planning application for this development, which includes the delivery of 60 unique and individually styled flexible stay hotel suites and luxury bedrooms, as well as returning the fabulous Crawford’s Tearooms to their former glory. It is anticipated that guests will be discerning and experienced travellers, looking for a boutique stay in a prime location, but without the fuss of a busy city centre hotel. Offering a calm, flexible and luxurious stay, they will have the opportunity to enjoy unique views across the New and Old Towns of Edinburgh and the Firth of Forth beyond the capital’s skyline.

“Delivering a highly sustainable development, this will consolidate unused space above the retail units into a series of linked properties, and conscious of its location, we have been highly sensitive to retaining all buildings and features considered to be of architectural and historic merit,” he added.

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