The hotel boom in China continues into the new year, with two international-brand properties opening – Langham Place Ningbo on January 2, and Four Points by Sheraton, scheduled to soft open January 17.
Langham Place Ningbo Culture Plaza
The property comprises 143 guestrooms including 13 suites, all of them with views of the city or river. Each room has free wifi, a 42-inch TV, coffee and tea-making facilities, and a spacious bathroom with separate bath and walk-in shower. The hotel also provides facilities for meetings and events – a 1,180sqm area that can host conferences, trade events or meetings of any size; a 820sqm ballroom that can welcome up to 900 guests; and three function rooms from 100 to 300sqm that can hold between 40 and 110 guests.
For dining, there is a two-Michelin-starred restaurant – Ming Court – serving Cantonese and local specialties. It also features a spacious wine room and 14 private dining rooms – the largest of which measures 330sqm and caters for up to 100 guests. There is also an all-day dining restaurant, The Place, where an international buffet is available for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Table One, meanwhile, offers fresh sashimi and sushi, tempura and teppanyaki.
Set within two architecturally distinctive towers, the hotel is linked to the cultural, retail and fashion centre Ningbo Culture Plaza. The property is located about 18km from Ningbo Lishe International Airport – about a 30 minutes drive.
Air connectivity to Ningbo has been increasing recently, with low-cost carrier Tigerair starting its first flights to the city last week – see here for more about the service and city.
Four Points by Sheraton Bijie
The 287-room hotel will soft open on January 17 and is scheduled to have its grand opening in March. There is a total of 1,193sqm of meeting and event space, including a pillar-free ballroom and four multi-functional meeting rooms. Free wifi is available in all guestrooms, and business services such as a business centre, computer rental and translation services are also provided by the hotel. It has two restaurants – The Eatery serves international and local breakfast, while China Spice restaurant offers fusion lunch and dinner.
Situated on Dongsheng Road, at the intersection of Baili Azalea and Kaihang roads, the hotel is directly opposite the Qixingguan district government offices, right in the city’s business centre. It is part of a mixed-use complex that contains the city’s largest shopping mall. Bijie Feixiong Airport is 18km, or a 25 minute drive, from the property, while Guiyang Longdongbao International Airport is 200km away. The city bus terminus is about five minutes away by car.
Bijie city is in the northwest part of China’s Guizhou province, and the region's population is about 6.5 million. At the moment, Bijie is without rail connectivity, but 2015 will see the opening of the Leshan (Sichuan)−Guiyang Railway. Other upcoming rail lines connecting Bijie include Bijie−Shuicheng−Xingyi and Zhaotong (Yunnan)−Weining−Bijie−Jinsha−Zunyi.
Visit www.langhamplacehotels.com and www.starwoodhotels.com
Valerian Ho
