Krakow was the ancient capital of Poland, a centre for nationalism under the rule of the Austro Hungarian Empire, and location of the second oldest University in Europe, the oldest being in Prague. With Ryan Air due to add Krakow to their list of destinations in the spring of 2004, the city is set to emulate its Czech counterpart and to experience a tourism boom – although the airport, currently being extended, will need to speed up passenger processing procedures to cope with an influx of visitors to this UNESCO World Heritage site.

The city is beautiful, with reputedly the largest town square in Europe. The bugler sounds the alarm from the church tower every morning, in memory of the bugler centuries before when the Mongol invaders cut short his warning with an arrow in the throat. The call still ends abruptly, and this call to arms was used during the opening ceremony for the new Radisson SAS hotel, one of the first of a wave of new hotels being built around this picturesque town. Actually to call Krakow picturesque is to malign it. It is a very beautiful city, dominated by the Royal Palace, with harmonious architecture spared the destruction that savaged many towns in the last century, whether from war or overdevelopment. The hotel enjoys unobstructed views of the palace from many of its rooms, and occupies a site adjacent to the Krakow concert hall minutes walk from Castle and town centre.

Individual reception desks give Reception staff work stations, their arc leading first (rollover) to the entrance to the Restaurant then to the lifts

Both the Milk Bar and the (rollover to see)Lobby seating area are lined with panels of rock salt. Servicing these areas from the kitchen is made easy by an access route which forms a spine through rear of the restaurant, milk bar and to the bar.

Radisson SAS have a reputation for building fine new hotels dating back to the first SAS hotel built to express the jet age in 1958 in Copenhagen. They won an award for the new hotel recently opened in Glasgow, Scotland. Whilst externally this hotel lacks the drama of the Glasgow building the design’s restraint fits well into the street elevations, whilst the designers approach to the interior has produced an harmonious environment for guests. The colouring and clever design details throughout have created a style within the building that is comfortable for the guest while the designer has succeeded in making a clear functional modernist statement, a statement that does not force itself into your notice but accommodates, welcomes and cossets.

Throughout the interior treatment hints at the artistic and cultural inheritance of the city, with the carpet weave based on the music of Polish composer Chopin, and the artwork chosen from local artists and printmakers. The design is gently understated, leaving it to the guest to notice and question, making it a delight to see unfolding. The local touch is neatly shown by the use of rock salt panels in the wall to the Lobby Bar – stone sourced locally in the Salt Mines – which don’t shout their existence, but work easily as another contemporary element in the interior scheme.