President Hotel in Bielsko-Biała

The President Hotel at 3 Maja 12 is a neo-Renaissance brick building, built in 1892-1893 near the Sułkowski castle and the railway station. It has been entered in the heritage register since 1986.

The Kaiserhof on the street linking the castle with the station

The hotel was built by Heinrich Hochstimm on a street laid out a few years earlier, linking the centre with the castle and the new railway station. The designer and builder was Carl Korn. The original name Kaiserhof, that is, the Imperial Court, alluded to Emperor Franz Joseph I. In 1922 it was named Prezydent (President), in memory of Gabriel Narutowicz, and the present name was given in 2007. The building has five storeys and rests on foundations 12 metres deep.

Cinema, hospital and community centre

At the beginning of the 20th century the hotel had 50 rooms and salons, a restaurant and the Renaissance café, and a summer veranda. In 1896 the first cinema hall in Bielsko was opened here. In 1939 it housed the headquarters of the Operational Group “Bielsko”, and in 1942-1960 the building served in turn as a hospital, a bank and a municipal community centre. It returned to its role as a hotel in 1962.

In the neighbourhood

The hotel stands in the very centre, next to the Banialuka Puppet Theatre and the Bielska BWA Gallery. Within a few hundred metres you can walk to the Sułkowski Dukes' Castle and the Cathedral of St Nicholas.

Practical information

• Address: 3 Maja 12, Bielsko-Biała.
• This is a commercial building: you can view the façade from outside, and the availability of the interiors and services should be checked on the hotel's website before a visit.