Preserve and modernize

"Every five to seven years, chains have to renovate and upgrade their hotels to keep to international standards," says Dorota Latkowska of Knight Frank Nieruchomosci. In one sense the Hotel Polonia on Aleje Jerozolimskie in Warsaw, would seem to be a salient example of this, as it is currently undergoing renovation, which began in 2001. When BEA Hotels NV, (a subsidiary of the Israeli Elscint Ltd, itself part of Elbit Medical Imaging Ltd) acquired forty nine per cent of the shares in Syrena Immobilien, whose subsidiary in Poland Syrena runs five hotels in Warsaw, it and co-investor, the Austrian BAU Holding AG pledged to begin an extensive programme of renovation for the hotels. Many would argue that it this was long overdue. One of the five, The Metropol, situated on the crossroads of Jerozolimskie and ul Marszałkowska, is functional at best and before renovation, the Polonia, despite its rare heritage status, (it was built in 1913) attracted internet reviews suc