The historic Hilton Imperial hotel in Dubrovnik opened to public after five months of extensive renovations.

The prestigious five-star hotel was originally built in 1897 at the time when modern Croatia was part of Austria-Hungary and the hotel was designed to accommodate wealthy visitors from elsewhere in the empire.

Over the years, it became one of the best-known landmarks of the southern Croatian city, and is credited with revolutionising the tourist industry in Croatia, Poslovni Dnevnik reported on Wednesday.

“Hilton Imperial is a cultural landmark of this city, and thanks to its majestic facade it often appears in pictures snapped by tourists. The renovation aimed to retain its external appearance while at the same time updating its interior, which is meant to bring to life the hotel’s imperial past. By opening our hotel to guests, we are continuing a 120-year tradition of providing first class service to all of our guests,” said hotel’s General Manager, Mario Matkovic.

The renovation works include an overhaul of its hotel bar and gardens where tea was served in 1936 to King Edward VIII and his future wife Wallis Simpson. All the guest rooms have also been upgraded, and all the materials used, including floorings, furniture and light fixtures were Croatian-made.

Apart from the Imperial, the Hilton hotel chain runs one more hotel in Croatia’s capital Zagreb, where it plans to increase its presence by opening two more properties by the end of 2019.