The Empress Hotel, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

The Empress Hotel, Victoria, British Columbia (Explored), originally uploaded by Brandon Godfrey.

The Fairmont Empress (most commonly known as The Empress) is one of the oldest and most famous hotels in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Located on Government Street facing the Inner Harbour, the Empress has become an iconic symbol for the city itself.

The Edwardian, château-style hotel was designed by Francis Rattenbury for Canadian Pacific Hotels as a terminus hotel for Canadian Pacific's steamship line, whose main terminal was just a block away. The hotel was to serve businesspeople and visitors to Victoria, but later as Canadian Pacific ceased its passenger services to the city, the hotel was successfully remarketed as a resort to tourists. Victoria emerged as a tourist destination beginning in the mid-to-late 1920s

The hotel has 477 rooms, with most either overlooking the Inner Harbour or the hotel's rear courtyard gardens. It has four restaurants, including The Bengal Lounge, which is decorated in Victorian-era, Colonial Indian style (when Queen Victoria was the Empress of India) or Kipling's, which is named after its once frequent guest and visitor, author Rudyard Kipling. In 2005, Kipling's closed its doors to the public in order for the hotel to gain more space for private functions. The hotel has gym facilities, a whirlpool bath and an indoor swimming pool.

What some people may not know, is that The Empress was actually built on a bog. And as a result, is sinking into the ground about a quarter of an inch each year. If you're ever taking photos of it, you'll notice that the building is never straight with the horizon.

Source: Wikipedia

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