Beehives on the roof of the Lancaster Hotel
The buzzing of thousands of bees is felt in the heart of London. More than 500,000 of these small insects produce kilos and kilos of honey a year on the roof of the hotel lancaster , a luxurious 4-star hotel that has recently been the scene of the first ** "London Honey Show".** It is the first time that an act of this nature has been held to recognize the achievements of the local beekeepers who, alarmed by the increasing disappearance of bees around the world, decided to contribute their own urban panels. A task shared by other accommodations in cities such as Paris, Berlin or San Francisco and that at the same time they use as a tourist attraction to sweeten the stay for their clients.
The Lancaster Hotel has a total of ten hives in which he produces 140 kilos of honey a year. “Five of the hives are full of bees and the other five will be in the spring of 2012,” explains Alison Hull, the hotel's communications manager. The initiative started in 2009, when this luxurious accommodation decided to install the first five hives. “It was a response to the worrying disappearance of the bee population globally,” explains Alison. The honey they obtain is used in the menus and breakfasts of the hotel's Island Grill restaurant and, among the details that the accommodation gives to the newlyweds, small jars of the honey from its panels are included. The hotel is very involved in the artisanal production of honey within its facilities and has created several spaces, such as the Bee Blog or Londonbees, where it is possible to follow the evolution of the hives and their production.
honey jars
One of the latest accommodations to sign up for urban honey production is the Westin Grand hotel in Berlin, whose four hives have rested on the rooftop since May 2011. Hotel manager Rainer Bangert personally takes care of these bees with the help of by beekeeper Marc-Wihlem Kohfink. The location of the hotel, located very close to the Unter den Linden boulevard and the Tiergarten, "offers these little creatures the opportunity to collect nectar in an environment of great biodiversity made up of a wide range of plants, unlike agricultural areas, where monocultures abound,” says Bangert.
In its first harvest, the hotel has obtained from its panels a production of 135 kilos of honey l used for buffet breakfast and the sale of small jars of honey 100 grams (price: 5 euros). "The greatest success among customers is our homemade honey ice cream, followed by our vinaigrettes and honey breads," says Andrea Bishara, a member of the hotel organization. As for sales, in 2011 they have already sold 200 little jars, the profits of which go to a German NGO that works in aid work in Africa.
From the same chain as the Berlin hotel, in the city of light is the ** Westin Paris – Vendôme hotel,** another luxurious accommodation that bets on making its own honey. Located next to the Tuileries Gardens, its roof can boast of having five hives installed within the program " 100% local ”, an initiative that seeks to ensure that food is produced locally and does not exceed the perimeter of 200 kilometers around Paris. Hotel chef Gilles Grasteau prepares in the hotel kitchen delicious dishes with local honey . Although the production of the five beehives is still very small, the hotel is supplied with honey produced on other Parisian rooftops. "We hope that the next harvest will bring us enough honey to offer it to customers," says Bénédicte Fages, a member of the hotel organization.
The hotel includes an irresistible offer for those with a sweet tooth: the honeynoon package (price: 148 euros) – a package that includes therapeutic treatments with honey and a tea with honey at the Tuileries Gourmet Bar - and a special honey menu (price: 69 euros). Looking ahead to next spring, the hotel plans to install new beehives to be able to offer its clients the possibility of taking pots of honey as an original souvenir of their stay.
Bees at the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco
In the state of California (USA), Chef jW Foster of the San Francisco fairmont hotel he is very passionate about bees. Concerned about the alarming death toll of these little critters in the United States since the 1980s, Foster has been promoting honey production at the hotel since 2010. Today, the lodge has four beehives in the outside garden located at the level of the Lobby with 20,000 bees each , which can be visited by customers. With the collaboration of Marshall's Farm, the annual production exceeds 270 kilos of honey. Soups, salads, sauces, cakes, ice cream, tea... Foster prepares a wide variety of dishes and drinks in the hotel's Laurel Court Restaurant with an irresistibly sweet touch. The Fairmont chain has expanded its passion for bees to other hotels that also have their own panels (Dallas, Toronto, St. Andrews, Vancouver, etc). In all of them, the stay becomes the most irresistible.