Modern Hungarian folklore awaits at the Marcel Wanders-designed Kimpton BEM hotel in Budapest

Budapest’s District II, on the Buda side of the Hungarian capital, is leafy and residential, a serene contrast to the tourist-thronged streets of Pest. Here, overlooking the Danube, the Kimpton BEM Budapest has fittingly sprouted as a fashionable, urban reprieve. Part of the IHG Hotels & Resorts portfolio, the swank 127-key property was designed by the prolific Amsterdam-based Marcel Wanders as a mesmerising fairy tale on the former 19th-century Radetzky Barracks site.

Tour Kimpton BEM Budapest

When guests enter the lobby, they are welcomed with glasses of bubbly from Kreinbacher, one of Hungary’s most celebrated sparkling wine producers. This moment of pause blissfully allows for taking in the exuberant atmosphere. Planted underneath concave ceilings are reception desks embellished with purple and green floral motifs that draw from Hungarian folklore. They also call to mind the country’s famed Zsolnay porcelain designs and 19th- and 20th-century artist Miksa Róth’s vivid mosaic creations, revealing ‘a depth of detailing,’ points out Wanders, found throughout the hotel.

The lobby, strewn with cocooning seating, entices visitors to embark on a mythological journey; one that is heightened by the large-scale golden stag showcased in a stained-glass atrium. Fables and legends passed down through generations are an intriguingly important aspect of Hungarian culture, and Wanders spent ample time delving into this mystical heritage.

His research, for example, prompted him to adorn the moody blue Bar Huso with greenery and orb-shaped art installations depicting fantastical underwater creatures as a subtle homage to Huso Huso, the beluga sturgeon appearing in such tales. A statue of the mighty Turul bird, another storied symbol, presides over the courtyard. Revitalising these age-old traditions and imbuing them with contemporary relevance was key to Wanders’ design narrative, for ‘it connects to people, it connects to history, and it makes our lives bigger,’ he explains.

Whilst poring over Hungarian poetry and literature, Wanders also discovered ‘a subdued but always present melancholia. It’s so incredible and I had to find a way to put it in,’ he adds. ‘It’s difficult because it’s an emotional expression, but I think we did it through colour and storytelling.’

Find Kimpton BEM Budapest at Bem József tér 3, Budapest 1027, Hungary, ihg.com