From the beginning
Grand Hotel was founded in 1874 by the pastry chef Julius Fritzner. When it first opened, the block on Karl Johans gate consisted of three buildings: the Bardoe, the Fuhr and the Heiberg buildings.
The hotel continued to expand, and on December 15, 1886, Speilsalen (the Mirror Room) opened its doors. For the first time, people could dine to music played by the restaurant orchestra. The most elegant reception room in Norway opened in 1894 in the presence of playwright Henrik Ibsen. The Rococo Room extended over two floors and was elaborately decorated with murals by Krogh on the walls and ceiling.
Speilen and Rococo were among Oslo's most famous ballrooms. Tickets were sold to celebrate Roald Amundsen when he returned to Oslo after his successful expedition to the South Pole in 1912, writers, Oslo celebrations and afterski after the annual Holmenkolldagen, International Ski Jumping Competition.
From 1911 to 1913, the Grand Hotel was refurbished and given its present facade, with white granite from the Sognefjord area of western Norway, and the characteristic clock tower with its copper roof and beautiful view.
