Graduate Hotels has opened its first hotel since the brand was acquired by Hilton earlier this year. The new Graduate Princeton is the first new hotel to open in Princeton in nearly 90 years—and the second hotel in the downtown area, nearly doubling the number of available hotel rooms in town.
Ben Weprin, founder of Graduate Hotels and founder and chief executive officer of AJ Capital Partners, restored and expanded the 1918-era Colonial Revival-style former dormitory in partnership with architecture firm Stonehill Taylor. The hotel has 6,000 square feet of public space, 180 guestrooms and a bar and restaurant.
Kevin Osterhaus, president of global lifestyle brands, Hilton, told Hotel Management that the “key” to any Graduate hotel is location and community. “We look for vibrant, university-anchored towns with lots of charm and a wealth of local history and tradition,” he said. “Princeton—both the town and the University—has all of this in spades.” The city has been on the team’s wish list since the brand first launched a decade ago, he added.
Adaptive Reuse
General Manager Michael Monarca noted that Princeton has an “iconic architectural identity” that the hotel team wanted to match while adding something new. “We decided on a hybrid adaptive reuse/new-build project, which merged a 100+ year-old structure with one that is brand new,” he said. The project involved a “significant” redesign of the old layout that still preserved many of the original details including the floors, key structural elements and the brick façade, which was restored and expanded with a custom pattern.
Graduate Princeton’s interior design includes references to the university and the town’s 275- year history throughout the public spaces and guestrooms. Nods to influential alumni, local architecture and traditions were implemented throughout design. “We spent a lot of time speaking with local residents and alumni to really understand the history and traditions that make the town and University special,” Monarca said.
The lobby has a hand-carved wooden reception desk flanked by four wooden statues of the school’s mascot, the Tiger. Floor tiles rendered in Princeton’s signature orange and black anchor the two-story library-like lobby, lined with thousands of books and a collection of colorfully embroidered vintage Reunion Jackets, received by Princeton alumni at their 25th reunion. A 30-foot carved wooden study table, a staple in every Graduate, is reminiscent of the historic libraries on campus and serves as a place for visitors and students to gather. The names of Princeton’s eating clubs are painted in gold leaf on the library bookcases that frame the space.
On the opposite end of the lobby is Ye Tavern, Graduate Princeton’s signature bar and restaurant, named after a 1930s-era bar that once occupied the site. Ye Tavern takes design cues from its namesake: A carved wooden bar—recalling the lancet windows found throughout campus—is a focal point of the space. The center of the space has stone-topped banquets punctuated by leather-top tables.
Guestrooms have references to the university’s color palette, with orange-and-white seersucker drapes complemented by an apricot-hued carpet. Bedside lamps inspired by the Revolutionary War-era cannon buried behind Nassau Hall are beside a bespoke, custom wood-carved bed frame with hand-drawn illustrations referencing the University’s annual Cane Spree—Princeton’s first organized intramural event dating back to the 1860s. Framed artwork above the desk in every guestroom references the traditions of the University. Guest bathrooms have custom wallpaper inspired by the campus’ arboretum paired with a framed sketch by Albert Einstein, a reference to his time working for Princeton’s Institute for Advanced Study.