Fairmont Palliser Hotel

The Fairmont Palliser, formerly known as the Palliser Hotel, is a hotel of the Canada-based Fairmont Hotels and Resorts chain. The historic hotel (1914) is located in downtown Calgary, Alberta at 133 9th Avenue Southwest adjacent to the Calgary Tower and Palliser Square. It is the city's oldest and most luxurious hotel and celebrated its centennial on June 1, 2014.

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Fairmont Palliser
General information
Location133 9th Avenue Southwest
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
OpeningJune 1, 1914
OwnerInnVest Hotels
ManagementFairmont Hotels and Resorts
Technical details
Floor count12
Design and construction
ArchitectE. and W.S. Maxwell
Other information
Number of rooms407
Website
www.fairmont.com/palliser

When the Canadian Pacific Railway pushed west in 1883, Calgary was essentially a mounted police post and trading centre. With an influx of tourists, mainly en route to Canadian Pacific's Banff Springs hotel, a hospitality spot in Calgary was an essential link.

Groundbreaking for the building was on May 12, 1911, on property owned by the Canadian Pacific Railway.[1] It was built by P. Lyall and Sons Construction Company with materials such as stone, steel, reinforced concrete and brick at a cost of $1,500,000.

The hotel opened on June 1, 1914.[2] Like all of the flagship Canadian hotels in the Fairmont chain, it was built by the Canadian Pacific Railway and was a property of Canadian Pacific Hotels and Resorts (CP Hotels) until the company purchased the Fairmont Hotel chain and changed its name to Fairmont Hotels and Resorts in 1999.

The hotel was named after Captain John Palliser, who was an explorer in the region during the 1850s. Architect Lawrence Gotch of E. and W.S. Maxwell of Montreal designed the Edwardian building with a characteristic Chicago school look. The building was originally eight stories high, with three stories added in 1929, making it Calgary's highest building until 1958.[3] It has been renovated and expanded a number of times throughout its history, including a $28 million renovation in 2000.[2] Further enhancements and renovations in recent years included an update to Fairmont Gold and many guest rooms.

The Palliser, and the Hotel Macdonald in Edmonton, received the first two liquor licenses from the Alberta Liquor Control Board when Alberta repealed Prohibition in 1924.

See also

References
  1. "Palliser Hotel". Calgary Public Library. July 2005. Archived from the original on 2007-02-03. Retrieved 2007-04-13.
  2. "The Fairmont Palliser". Emporis. Retrieved 2007-04-13.
  3. "Hotel History". Fairmont Palliser. Retrieved 2015-09-15.
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