Unlike many of the fine station termini in London, Paddington does not boast a grandiose frontage for all to see and admire. Similar to St. Pancras a short distance away along Marylebone and Euston Roads Paddington is fronted by a hotel. Built in a classical and French-chateau style, the hotel was opened in the summer of 1854 by Prince Albert and was named The Great Western Hotel. It operated under this name until 1983 when it was sold off by BR to be comprehensively refurbished and opened as the Hilton London Paddington in 2001.
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