uca Virgilio, the general manager of The Dorchester, in London, has an interesting theory as to why Italians make such good GMs. It’ s a byproduct of geography and history, he suggests. Italy is known the world over for its cuisine and architecture. It’ s also been conquered many times: from the Ostrogoths and Lombards, to the Normans and Napoleon, Italy has a past of occupation. Naturally, Virgilio playfully submits, Italy had to be a good host to survive.“ There was always somebody living in our country. It’ s Darwin’ s law: We had to be good at welcoming whoever was coming to conquer us. We had to be; otherwise, they would kill us.”

Fortunately for Virgilio, his ancestors adhered to this rationale; had they not, he may not today be recognized as one of the best hotel general managers going and garnering distinction as HOTELS Magazine’ s 2025 GM Hotelier of the World.

His latest work is some of his finest, leading the

storied Dorchester through a multimillion-dollar renovation that began in 2022. There are few equals to The Dorchester, the luxury Park Lane hotel overlooking Hyde Park that opened in 1931. The actress Elizabeth Taylor was a frequent guest of the hotel, such a constant that, as the story goes, the hotel acquiesced to a request by her to install pink marble in the bathroom of her suite. It still exists in The Harlequin Penthouse. Other past luminaries include Marlene Dietrich and Alfred Hitchcock. Writer Ian Fleming was so ubiquitous at the hotel that the new Vesper Bar pays homage to the James Bond creator. In fact, when Roger Moore took over the mantle as the new 007 in 1972, the announcement was made at The Dorchester. Also,“ so many Bond girls have stayed with us,” Virgilio said.

USHERING IN A NEW ERA Somehow, the hotel is even better today. And it’ s in large part due to the steady leadership of Virgilio. He’ s had

practice. Prior to joining The Dorchester, Virgilio was GM of another famed hotel, Hotel Eden, in Rome.( Both The Dorchester and Hotel Eden are part of Dorchester Collection, a group of nine luxury hotels in the U. S., Italy, France and the U. K. Future properties are slated for Dubai and Japan.) At Hotel Eden, where Virgilio was GM for eight years, he helped lead an extensive 18-month renovation and restoration of the property. This time, at The Dorchester, it is different and on a grander scale. Now 240 rooms( taken down by 10 to allow for more commodious accommodations) and lavish public spaces,“ the mothership,” as Virgilio calls it, is being renovated in phases such that the hotel can remain open to guests.

Design was led by the renowned French interior designer Pierre-Yves Rochon and though he has a famous name, humility is what secured him the job.“ He was humble enough to put himself below the hotel,” Virgilio said.“ Many others saw this as

an opportunity to showcase themselves and put their stamp on it.”

The renovation began in earnest on the ground floor and worked its way up. This included the famous Promenade and the introduction of new areas, such as the Artists’ Bar, where guests are entertained each evening by a pianist tickling the ivories on a piano once owned by Liberace. At one point, the hotel only operated 60 rooms as floors were taken out of commission.“ I was running a boutique hotel,” Virgilio quipped.

A renovation of this magnitude has its challenges, exacerbated by the fact that at any time there could be as many as 400 workers on site— work boots amid Manolo Blahniks. The hotel’ s iconic entrance had to be moved to a side street, through an emergency entrance, that the hotel dolled up to try and make it as inviting as the original. Transparency around the renovation was key, Virgilio said— there was no sense trying to hide it. Most guests, meanwhile, were not

20 hotelsmag. com November 2025