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Corinthia hotels

Grand city hotels carry a Maltese family’s dining origins into restored palaces and new towers.

Corinthia grew from a family restaurant in a villa in Attard, Malta, into an international collection of grand hotels. Alfred Pisani and his family began welcoming diners in 1962 and opened Corinthia Palace in 1968, establishing a tradition of hospitality that remains closely tied to the Pisani family.

15 Corinthia hotels in 12 countries on the Luxury Hotels Atlas (4 not open yet), each placed on the six LHA Tiers.

• Majority-owned by the Pisani family
• On the atlas: 4 Grand Luxury, 5 High Luxury, 6 Core Luxury

History

The Pisani brothers turned the family’s Villa Refalo into a restaurant after their father’s death, then developed the site into a hotel. That modest beginning grew into Corinthia Palace and an international collection. Alfred Pisani remained closely involved, with the ambition of giving each city a hotel that could become an important address in its own right.

Timeline

• 1962 — Alfred Pisani and family open a fine-dining restaurant at Villa Refalo, Attard, Malta, the founding act of the Corinthia Group.
• 1968 — Villa Refalo is developed into the Corinthia Palace Hotel, inaugurated by HRH the Duke of Edinburgh, the brand's spiritual home.
• 1995 — Corinthia St George's Bay, Malta opens on the waterfront at St Julian's Bay.
• 1998 — Corinthia Prague (formerly Panorama Hotel, 441 rooms) acquired; the group's first Central European property.
• 2000 — IHI formalises its holding structure; the Metropole Building and 10 Whitehall Place in London are targeted for future development; LAFICO and Nakheel Hotels invest alongside CPHCL.
• 2001 — Corinthia Lisbon acquired (518 rooms); refurbishment begins.
• 2003 — Corinthia Budapest (former Grand Hotel Royal, founded 1896) reopens after a €100 million reconstruction, inaugurated by the President of Hungary.
• 2003 — Corinthia Tripoli inaugurates in two concave towers in downtown Tripoli.
• 2004 — Corinthia Lisbon reopens after full upgrade to five-star status.
• 2007 — Metropole Building and 10 Whitehall Place in London sold by Crown Estate for £130 million to IHI-led consortium.
• 2009 — Corinthia St Petersburg inaugurates on Nevsky Prospekt after acquisition and major expansion.
• 2011 — Corinthia Hotel London opens, the brand's global flagship, in the former Metropole Hotel (built 1885), most recently a Ministry of Defence building.
• 2015 — IHI acquires Island Hotels Group Holdings, adding Radisson Blu properties in Malta; Reuben Brothers agree to develop the former Bank of Italy in Rome under Corinthia management.
• 2016 — IHI acquires the long-dormant Grand Hotel Astoria in Brussels; four-year restoration programme begins.
• 2017 — Corinthia St Petersburg completes a multi-year €multi-million renovation, adding 162 redesigned rooms.
• 2020 — Reuben Brothers acquire the former Surrey residential hotel (built 1926) on Manhattan's Upper East Side for Corinthia management; COVID pandemic halts several openings.
• 2020 — Management agreement signed with UDC for Corinthia Gewan Island Qatar.
• 2022 — IHI divests Moscow land holding; exits St Petersburg loan obligations triggered by Ukraine conflict.
• 2024 — The Surrey, A Corinthia Hotel opens in New York on 25 October, Corinthia's first North American property.
• 2024 — Corinthia Grand Hotel Astoria Brussels opens on 9 December after €150 million, four-year restoration.
• 2025 — Corinthia Grand Hotel du Boulevard Bucharest opens 24 March, all-suite boutique in landmark 1867 building.
• 2025 — International Hotel Investments agrees to sell a majority stake in Corinthia Lisbon to Orion Capital.
• 2026 — Corinthia Rome opens on Piazza del Parlamento in the former Bank of Italy (February/March 2026).
• 2026 — Lisbon sale closes (April 2026); IHI retains 28% and continues management under a 20-year agreement.
• 2026 — Biome by Corinthia London spa concept launches (February 2026).
• 2026 — Corinthia Lake Como announced, 58-key resort in Menaggio, targeted late 2028.

The houses to know

1. Corinthia Hotel London, London, United Kingdom — The brand's flagship: a Whitehall address with intelligence-service heritage, a four-storey spa, and two Michelin-starred dining partners.
2. The Surrey, A Corinthia Hotel, New York City, United States — A discreet Upper East Side address returned to prominence with Martin Brudnizki interiors, Central Park suite themes, and the first New York outpost of Casa Tua.
3. Corinthia Grand Hotel Astoria Brussels, Brussels, Belgium — The Belle Époque grand dame of Europe's capital, restored over 17 dormant years with a reconstructed glass Palm Court and two Michelin-starred kitchens.
4. Corinthia Palace Malta, Malta, Malta — The site of Villa Refalo gives Corinthia Palace a direct connection to the Pisani family’s founding story.
5. Corinthia Grand Hotel du Boulevard, Bucharest, Romania — Corinthia reopened Bucharest's 1873 Grand Hotel du Boulevard in 2025 after a heritage restoration of the Calea Victoriei palace.
6. Corinthia St George's Bay, St Julian's, Malta — A historic Maltese watchtower brings an older coastal story into this St Julian’s Bay hotel.
7. Corinthia Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal — The Sete Rios tower gives Corinthia a Lisbon base with far-reaching views from its upper floors.
8. Corinthia St Petersburg, St. Petersburg, Russia — Historic buildings near Nevsky Prospekt give Corinthia a substantial St Petersburg city setting.

Newest openings

• The Surrey, A Corinthia Hotel — New York, United States — opened October 25, 2024 — Corinthia's inaugural North American property. The 1926 residential hotel was completely transformed by designer Martin Brudnizki (MBDS) into 70 rooms, 30 suites, and 14 private residences. Casa Tua serves as the exclusive dining partner, its first New York outpost, bringing the Miami-Aspen-Paris members' club to the Upper East Side, and the Surrey Spa carries Sisley Paris as its treatment partner; owned by Reuben Brothers; awarded One MICHELIN Key (2025).
• Corinthia Grand Hotel Astoria Brussels — Brussels, Belgium — opened December 9, 2024 — the Grand Hotel Astoria (1910), commissioned by King Leopold II, closed 2007, dormant for 17 years before Corinthia acquired it in 2016 and undertook a four-year, €150 million restoration led by Belgian architect Francis Metzger; the restored 15-metre glass-roof Palm Court, two Michelin-starred dining concepts (Le Petit Bon Bon by Christophe Hardiquest, Palais Royal by David Martin), a pioneering underground spa, and a new sixth-floor penthouse collection added in September 2025; 126 rooms including 31 suites and five signature suites.
• Corinthia Grand Hotel du Boulevard Bucharest — Bucharest, Romania — opened March 24, 2025 — all-suite luxury boutique (30 suites) in a national-monument building dating to 1867, the first hotel in Bucharest to have electric lights and an elevator; restored by GA Design and managed by Corinthia on behalf of owner Niro Investment Group; dining by Sass' Restaurant & Lounge (Monaco-heritage concept), Boulevard 73, and Heritage Bar.
• Corinthia Rome — Rome, Italy — opened February/March 2026 — Corinthia's Italian debut; a 60-room, 21-suite hotel in the former Bank of Italy headquarters (built 1913–1921 by Marcello Piacentini) on Piazza del Parlamento, owned by Reuben Brothers; interiors by GA Design preserve original 1920s frescoes and marble; chef Carlo Cracco curates three dining venues (Viride, Piazzetta, Ocra Bar) in his first Rome presence; the spa occupies the original bank vault; rooms from €1,300.

Opening next

• Corinthia Gewan Island Qatar — Doha, Qatar — expected 2027 (revised from earlier projections) — 110 rooms and 18 villas on Gewan Island adjacent to a nine-hole golf course and beach club managed by Corinthia; 13,000 sqm development for owner UDC; GM appointed January 2026, confirmed.
• Corinthia Riyadh / Diriyah Gate — Riyadh, Saudi Arabia — expected 2027 — 85–90 rooms and 10 residential villas at the Diriyah Gate development; design inspired by the surrounding landscape with sustainable architecture; confirmed management agreement with the Diriyah Gate Development Authority, confirmed.
• Corinthia Maldives — Kaafu Atoll, Maldives — expected 2028 — 100 rooms on a two-island development; main hotel on the larger island; aquatic-inspired architecture by global firm HKS drawing on the form of the Manta Ray, confirmed, under development.
• Corinthia Lake Como — Menaggio, Italy — expected late 2028 — 58-key resort adjacent to Italy's second-oldest golf course on Lake Como's western shore; beach club on the lake; three heritage villas housing lobby, lounge, and golf club; owned by Putter Fund (Kervis SGR / RoundShield); Corinthia's second Italian property, confirmed, planning approvals pending.

Every Corinthia hotel on the atlas

Malta

• Corinthia Palace Malta — Malta · Grand Luxury
• Corinthia Oasis Malta — Malta · High Luxury · Opening soon
• Corinthia St George's Bay — St. Julian's · High Luxury

Italy

• Corinthia Lake Como — Lake Como · Core Luxury · Opening soon
• Corinthia Rome — Rome · Core Luxury

Belgium

• Corinthia Grand Hotel Astoria Brussels — Brussels · Grand Luxury

Hungary

• Corinthia Budapest — Budapest · Core Luxury

Libya

• Corinthia Hotel Tripoli — Tripoli · Core Luxury

Maldives

• Corinthia Maldives — Maldives · Core Luxury · Opening soon

Portugal

• Corinthia Lisbon — Lisbon · High Luxury

Qatar

• Corinthia Gewan Island Qatar — Doha · Core Luxury · Opening soon

Romania

• Corinthia Grand Hotel du Boulevard — Bucharest · High Luxury

Russia

• Corinthia St Petersburg — St. Petersburg · High Luxury

United Kingdom

• Corinthia Hotel London — London · Grand Luxury

United States

• The Surrey, A Corinthia Hotel — New York City · Grand Luxury

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