Book Credits

Andreas Augustin
presents the history of the
Hotel Metropole, Hanoi
in the series
The Most Famous Hotels in the World™
Father of the project is Richard Kaldor, General Manager of the hotel between 1997 and 2000, who had the vision and enthusiasm to request a well researched history of his hotel. Support came from Mdm Nguyen Thuy Lan, then the deputy General Director of Hanoi Tourism and Chairman of the hotel’s Board of Directors. Mr Le Dai Tam, the current General Director of Hanoi Tourism and the Chairman of the joint venture gave his commitment to see the project through to completion. Throughout, Mr Pham Duc Hung, Deputy General Director of the joint-venture was there to help, supported by former board members Mdm Nguyen Thi Dao, Mr Tran Dinh Hoa, Mr Nguyen Tuan Nghia and current members Mr. Nguyen Khoa Binh and Mdm Vo Thi Hanh.
I am most indebted to Franck Lafourcade, the General Manager of the new millenium, who not only helped to update this book, but gave it a wonderful presentation during the year of the hotel’s centenary.
We are indebted to HE Susan Boyd, Ambassador of Australia to Vietnam, HE Serge Degallaix, Ambassador of France to Vietnam, to Tore and Vigdis Sund, Michael Rastrup Smith, Sam and Rosetta Miller, Patrick Antona, Robert Farnsworth and Yasmine Bombardier.
Credit must also go to Guy Poujoulat and his successor, Marc Bégassat, who – as resident managers – accompanied this project.
The deepest gratitude to the wonderful staff of the Metropole who makes each stay such a memorable one. Thanks to Sarah Grant who successfully set up the hotels PR office when so little was known about its past. The help of her successor Ms Nguyen Thanh Thuy and her assistant Nguyen Hai Au made work on this book so much easier.
Further thanks go to Ricardo Perran, the first general manager of the hotel after its extensive renovations, and to his former assistant Edouard George for his collection of old photographs of the hotel and Hanoi. A word of special thanks goes to Dr Stein Tonnesson of the Nordic Institute of Asian Studies who helped persuade Richard Kaldor that in fact the hotel’s story was within reach, and to Gerard Toupet, the general manager of the hotel Scribe in Paris for the story about the brothers Lumière.
Luong Ngoc Khanh, who was – between the first and the second edition – promoted from Front Office Manager to Business Development Manager, supplied the most important assistance. It was good to talk to Frederick Rech, Richard Eliot, Le Hong Hai, Duong Trung Quoc of the Revolutionary Museum and Vu Quoc Khanh of ‘Viet Nam Pictorial’, Jeanne Loubet, Le Van Phuc, Do Thi Duong Minh, Mike Fogata, Madam Nguyen Thi Xuan Phuong, Maitre Duong Van Dam, Pierre Schoendoerffer, Tiana Silliphant and James Compton. Greetings to Australia, where Beris L Gwynne and Sarah Hodgkinson recalled their days at the Metropole – then Thong Nhat Hotel – during the early 1970s. Thanks also to Pierre Marbote and to Jeanne Réau in Paris. Special thanks to all the others, who were not named before and deserve a deep bow for their every kind attitude and help.
Photographs, drawings, maps and other illustrations: Bill Lorenz, Imperial War Museum and British National Library, London; Famous Hotels Main Archives, Vienna; Archives Nationales, Paris; Centre des Archives d’Outre-Mer, Aix-en-Provence; Institute for information – Social & Science, Hanoi; National Library, Hanoi; Heimo Aga.
Collections Edouard George, Beris Gwynne, Peter Fleming and Sarah Hodgkinson, Archives of the Hotel Metropole.
Historic hotel labels: Collection Joao Mimoso
Production: Harrison Dolittle
Copy editor: Carola Augustin
There is a limited leather-bound edition available.

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