Looking for a trendy, upscale, Birmingham wedding venue? What about a place to stay with your new hubby on wedding night? In early July, the original 1909 Empire Building reopened as the grand Elyton Hotel, a 111-room luxury establishment and one of the Marriott’s newest Autograph Collection hotels, and we couldn’t be more excited! This is the Magic City’s second Autograph Collection hotel, after the Grand Bohemian.

The new hotel’s website explains the history behind the name, which was to be called the Empire Hotel before it was renamed the Elyton Hotel:

“Elyton” references one of the city’s earliest entrepreneurs, who named the town Elyton a good 50 years before it became Birmingham in 1871. The name harks back to those heady days when all that lay before Birmingham – little more than a railroad junction at the time – were the potential for growth, blue skies, and the optimism of a new century. “Elyton” celebrates our earliest beginnings, our rich history of prosperity and entrepreneurialism.

Standing 16 floors high at the corner of First Avenue North and 20th Street North, the building underwent a massive $45 million renovation to be restored to its former glory and features a Southern-inspired restaurant called The Yard, as well as a fabulous rooftop bar, Moon Shine.

Each individual room, decorated with accents of canary yellow and grey against an all-white palate, will offer a 49-inch high-definition flatscreen TV and free Wi-Fi, in addition to an energy-efficient “smart fridge,” which powers up only when a guest puts something inside of it. The hotel will also feature a large exercise room and a 4,000-square-foot private event space.

No matter your celebration, get over to the Elyton for a drink or yummy appetizer, and to check out what we consider one of Birmingham’s newest gems! We can’t wait to explore it, either.

Feeling lucky? Enter our gift card giveaway!
To get our readers just as excited as we are, we’re giving away one $50 gift card to Moonshine, the hotel’s chic rooftop bar. With cooler, fall nights on the way and loads of football, we can’t think of a better spot to hang out! To enter the giveaway, “like” our Elyton Hotel post on Instagram, and tag a friend you’d like to bring with you. Winner to be announced Friday, Sept. 1. Cheers!