THE SHINE: Milan-based designer De Majo’s 30-metre-long glass light installation. Photo by Anand Holla. Right: THE GREAT LUXURY RUN: Marco Olivieri, GM, Excelsior Hotel Gallia, left, and Marco Piva, the quintessential architect.By Anand HollaSome say it’s impossible to overdo luxury. Most of us, though, would agree that often when overdone, luxury can be excessively putting off, suffocating even.Minutes after stepping inside the majestic Excelsior Hotel Gallia, a brand spanking new five-star luxury extravaganza in the fashion capital of the world, you discover exactly how a fine balance of knockout opulence and practised elegance can overdo luxury just right.Excelsior Hotel Gallia is a stately Milanese landmark. Standing tall and wide in the heart of the city in Piazza Duca d’Aosta, right next to the iconic Milano Centrale railway station, it has emerged from an extensive, multimillion-Euro restoration to script an inspired tale of resurgence, in line with its verve ever since it opened its doors on February 29, 1932, and lived through many decades of glory.Owned by Katara Hospitality — the Qatar-based global hotel owner, developer and operator having more than 40 years’ experience in the industry — the hotel is the latest to be unveiled by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. as part of a major investment with its owner partners to restore Europe’s most iconic hotels under The Luxury Collection brand.Given such a build-up, the befitting grand opening night, last month, was poised to present to its guests a taste of the futuristic, almost-space age, real-meets-surreal luxe that a stay here would immerse them in.Little surprise then that the affair was a spectacular, Great Gatsby-esque ode to the 1930s — the era in which the hotel was born. From the lobby to the ballrooms and the hallways and even the insides of the suites, every inch of the sprawling property flush with bright lights and thick wafts of perfumes, throbbed with uninhibited celebration.After walking through the shimmering gold carpet flanked by butlers and vintage Maseratis, hundreds of guests — men smartly turned up in black tie ensembles, women looking stunning in long sparkling dresses — walked through a series of events, indulging in the finest of dining to the choicest of electro swing music, catching up with friends, or enjoying live acts such as the one by Italian singer Mario Biondi at the Duomo ballroom, and later dancing to club music at the same venue.Even the suites underwent a transformation for the night. While the Folie Suite entertained guests with an in-suite private DJ set, the Romantic Suite featuring beds decked with rose petals, and strawberries and soft music to keep company, let couples enjoy some precious time alone — just so no-one felt out of place.Such free-spirited revelry isn’t new to the hotel that was formerly known as Palace Gallia. One of the most prestigious hotels in Italy since the ’30s and an architectural jewel, it has been the hotel of choice in Milan for Italy’s refined social elite — a role it appears to have already begun reprising.Comprising two main buildings and also two entrances, the Excelsior Hotel Gallia has the fully restored historic palace and a modern new wing with a facade that resembles a delicate steel and glass curtain.The passage of time has meant that this fascinating juxtaposition could glean inspiration from the hotel’s illustrious past and the emerging skyline of Porta Nuova, the up-and-coming city centre of Milan.Post-renovation, Excelsior Hotel Gallia features 235 luxurious guest rooms — including 53 suites of which the most magnificent is the 1,000sqm Katara Suite, which also happens to be one of the largest presidential suites in all of Italy. Housed on the seventh floor, the Katara Suite offers the epitome of luxury with two terraces, four bedrooms and a private spa.As for the suites, the two-bedroom Gallia Suite creates a sophisticated private residence with historical columns and statues, while the other 51 suites revolve around five distinct themes such as Design Suites, dedicated to a renowned Milanese designer or architect; Art Suites, which feature a large sliding panel with photos of the hotel’s historic facade; and Atelier Suites that evoke the ambiance of creative workshops.As Michael Wale, President, Starwood Hotels & Resorts — Europe, Africa and Middle East, rightly puts it: “This has been one of the most prestigious hotels in Milan since it opened in 1932. Today, the new Excelsior Hotel Gallia embodies the city’s rich history, sophisticated style and vibrant energy.”Sheikh Nawaf bin Jassim bin Jabor al-Thani, chairman of Katara Hospitality, which considers this Luxury Collection Hotel to be one of their flagship international investments, said, “Excelsior Hotel Gallia is a magnificent property that has undergone a meticulous renovation and strategic expansion that marries contemporary design with the hotel’s Belle Epoque architectural style, ensuring that this remains one of Milan’s historic landmarks.”Spearheaded by the award-winning Milan-based Studio Marco Piva, the ambitious architecture and interior design magnum opus has melded contemporary aesthetics with the hotel’s original architectural essence.Apart from curating the impressive collection of more than 500 art pieces, including paintings, sculptures and pictures, specifically for Excelsior Hotel Gallia, the design firm has channelled the classy Milanese élan and timeless elegance of the Art Deco era with the help of Italian designers and craftsmen.Piva told Community, “For decades, the Milanese people have gathered here for weddings, parties, hosting friends, big events, football auctions, you name it, and almost until the hotel shut down a few years ago due to its need to undergo restoration, it was an iconic venue.”“We have tried to recreate a sense of splendour,” Piva explained, of how he and his team of 20 worked through the 32,000 square metres of this landmark, “by retaining the facade of a historical building but changing the inside layouts and even rebuilding floors.”Ask Piva about having Milan-based designer De Majo’s resplendent, 30-meter-long glass light installation made of 180 light cylinders that lays suspended through the eight-storey stairwell or housing Shiseido Spa, Milan’s largest spa spanning 1000sqm over two floors topped with an indoor swimming pool and a fitness centre, and he chuckles.“It’s interesting, isn’t it,” he wonders aloud and says, “The idea is to create space that in some way delivers a sense of luxury without being pretentious. Using light play, for instance, to create a space between perception and reflection… a magical effect that can make one feel like they are in a different world.”While light is king in the hotel’s décor, art, too, is. The lobby is a scene of joyous coexistence as sleek mod chairs and Wacom tablets on reception desks rest in harmony with the tribute paid to notable Milanese architectures of the 1930s, such as La Scala Theatre, Vittorio Emanuele Gallery and Villa Necchi Campiglio.The public spaces have been fitted out by B&B Italia using aluminium, glass and marble, while the floors in the reception and lobby are paved with elegant brown antique granite with silver accent. “Nothing is extreme, nothing shouts out,” Piva points out, “You are in Milan, the city of fashion and design which has a style, which is a meeting point of history and modernity.”While the Gallia Restaurant on the ground floor takes care of breakfast and also smart business lunches and private dinners, seven floors up, the roof-top mixologist bar and signature restaurant Terrazza Gallia – managed with the advice of the Michelin-starred Cerea family – offers sweeping panoramic views of the city from its covered and heated outdoor terrace. Marco Olivieri, General Manager, Excelsior Hotel Gallia, told Community that the task was to mix design, architecture and operations with a common view of achieving excellence. “Ours is a hotel where you can actually touch the quality,” Olivieri said, referring to top brands such as Fendi and Bvlgari being part of the décor.The hotel has explored every opportunity to afford its guests exclusivity; like devising a key to enter a swish store in a unique way. “Cartier has a beautiful terrace on the rooftop of their private building in Via Montenapoleone here in Milan,” Olivieri explains, “If we call and tell them that we have an important client who would like to visit them, they will welcome him or her in a different way. It’s not about discount, it’s about privilege.”As a luxury collection brand, the pre-arrival experience is very important, feels Olivieri. “We get in touch with our guests before they arrive at our hotel and we introduce Milan and its hidden treasures to them. We propose the possibilities for them to discover Milan, off the beaten track,” he says.