Chinese latest hotel is an underground resort. Is this just another real estate innovation or a breakthrough for land-starved nations?
China’s latest hotel is not where you might think. It is in an old abandoned, disused quarry pit and that too underground. Intercontinental Shanghai Wonderland opened on Nov. 19 after 10 years of construction.
This ‘groundscraper’ structure has been attracting world interest for a while. The subterranean hotel is located about 32 kilometres from Shanghai and boasts of 336 rooms. It took an estimated an estimated US$500 million to complete the hotel.
Built on the side of a 289-foot pit, the hotel has 18 storeys with two storeys above ground, and 16 below ground level. Moreover, two storeys are underwater where people can actually see fishes through the glass wall.
The hotel has been planned and built in a way to include a cascading waterfall and exposed quarry rock. No wonder, each of the rooms has jaw-dropping views of the surrounding mine.
Apart from the unbelievable views, the hotel also has rock climbing, kayaking and walking across the glass-floor skywalk.
Intercontinental Shanghai Wonderland is designed by chief architect Martin Jochman, who is known for the sail-shaped Burj Al-Arab skyscraper in Dubai. This new Shanghai hotel is the 200th property under the Intercontinental Hotels Group’s flagship Intercontinental brand.