Columbia Hillen
While located along one of Bucharest’s biggest boulevards, the five-star Radisson Blu Hotel is, in fact, a luxury resort in the heart of the Romanian capital city.
Behind its multi-storey facade in a spacious area surrounded by buildings is a multi-faceted property including an outdoor swimming pool, with a large jacuzzi, two long bars, a terrace restaurant, Aristocool, with a collection of padded chaise longues and umbrellas for guest relaxation.
Columbia Hillen
Guests can even enjoy shoulder and back massages where they lie courtesy of therapists who work in the THAIco spa, a partnership with the hotel. Waiters and waitresses provide efficient, friendly service.
The only thing missing is a sandy beach.
The complex, in effect, is divided in two parts, the Radisson Blu with 462 rooms and suites with a contemporary design at one end and the Park Inn at the other offering longer term rental apartments.
Columbia Hillen
The resort offers several choices of restaurants including Ginger Sushi Bar & Lounge, and Sharkia, serving eastern Mediterranean cuisine. Breakfast buffet with a la carte options is served in the Dacia Felix Restaurant on the ground floor.
Columbia Hillen
The hotel’s lobby is spacious, with sweeping staircases either side, an abundance of velvety armchairs, deep red, ash gray and turquoise in color, with decorative art deco columns of metal and glass and a dizzying high central atrium stretching many floors, as well as a long bar at the far end from the main Calea Victoriei Boulevard entrance.
Columbia Hillen
There were many highlights to my stay at this hotel, perhaps too many to mention. But some included relaxing on the eighth-floor Executive Lounge with complimentary tasty foods and refreshing drinks and panoramic views over the Bucharest skyline, including the impressive Palace of Parliament building, as well as dining alfresco in the poolside area.
Columbia Hillen
Dining at the Ginger Sushi Bar allowed us to indulge in an exotic array of Far Eastern dishes such as its ‘Imperial Platter,’ a selection of sushi, maki and sashimi, which can be shared, and moriawase, black cod served with harissa miso sauce, green asparagus, shimeji mushrooms and hajikami.
On another evening, we dined at Sharkia, located within the Park Inn building, and this gave us the opportunity to sample such popular Mediterranean dishes as eggplant babaganoush, lentil soup, labneh yogurt with cucumber and garlic and crispy falafal with tahini salad, a healthy combo of foods indeed.
Columbia Hillen
The THALco spa also provided memorable moments for us. Asian in style, I noted nineteen (19) different kinds of massages on the menu including shiatsu, anti-cellulite, Balinese, Thai and Swedish, and others using hot stones and herbs. There were also ‘rituals’ such as the ‘Honeymoon’ treatment which features a pre-massage milk bath with rose petals and refreshing drinks and fruit. Mini and Radna, therapists for my companion and I, were simply superb, precise and patient in their exploration of aching knotty tissues and muscle. Charmingly, all treatment rooms are named after herbs and flowers such as lotus and lavender.
Columbia Hillen
The hotel also has an indoor pool and fitness facilities at its World Class Health Club, featuring a 22-meter swimming pool, hot tub, saunas, and a fully equipped fitness center offering aerobic and spinning classes.
Valet Parking is available on-site in a monitored secure parking lot that is completely sheltered.
As for its role as an events venue in Bucharest, the hotel offers eleven (11) meeting places, each with state-of-the-art equipment, the largest suitable for up to 650 guests in reception style. Each room boasts floor-to-ceiling windows providing abundant energising natural light.
Columbia Hillen
Our room was spacious, complete with free Wi-Fi and in-room coffee and tea facilities with plenty of clothing storage and excellent, well-lighted bathroom facilities. Facing west, we enjoyed spectacular sunsets over the city from our bedroom window.
Columbia Hillen
A strong plus for Bucharest’s Radisson Blu is its central location, with art and history a mere five minute walk away. The hotel stands near the Atheneum, the city’s national, Baroque-style classical music concert hall; the famous Revolution Square; and National Museum of Art. Bucharest Old Town, or Lipscani, is a leisurely 15-minutes away, with its many lively restaurants, bars and cafes. Those with a passion for the outdoors will enjoy strolling through the beautiful gardens of Cismigiu Park, adjacent to the hotel.
Columbia Hillen
A little further away you can find the beautiful churches Biserica Sfantul Anton, also known as the Old Court, and Biserica Sfantul Nicolae, St. Nicolas Church. In the same area is one of Bucharest’s most noteworthy architectural feats, the National Bank of Romania, a 19th-century building designed in French neoclassical style. When you’re done sightseeing, you can enjoy shopping sprees in Piata Unirii, one of the largest squares in central Bucharest. Henri Coanda International Airport (OTP) is just 18 kilometers away along a major thoroughfare.
