The two and half year renovation work was aimed at restoring the original splendour of the historic hotel. The colonnaded foyer at the grand entrance has been refurbished with Carrera marble and gold-leaf decoration. Layers of paint and pollution were removed from the exterior. The interior of the hotel featuring a roof that covered the six-domed Kubbeli Salon has been replaced with glass to enable natural sunlight to stream in. Murano chandeliers adorn the grand halls, with hand-woven Oushak carpets spread across guestroom floors.
Around 300 pieces of original furniture adorn the 115 rooms. The favorite chambers of Zsa Zsa Gabor, who frequented the hotel, have been transformed into a museum. The room is decorated throughout in pink colour. Workers also discovered a secret room during the restoration work that contained 5,000 pieces of Christofle silverware, some of which are expected to date back to the inaugural ball of 1895.
The five-star Pera, a protected site under Turkish law, features a mix of Oriental and Occidental styles in its design by Levantine architect Alexander Vallaury. When it first opened in 1892, the Pera was the Ottoman Empire’s first luxury hotel, boasting the only cast iron and wood elevator. It was also the first building other than the sultan’s palaces, with running hot water and electric lights.
