The Intercontinental Chengdu Global Center will open in the first quarter of 2014, and is housed in mega-structure New Century Global Center, in Chengdu's Tianfu New District.
The "indoor city" is one of the largest freestanding structures in the world, with 1.76 million sqm of indoor floor space. Inside there is a shopping mall, central business district, a "Paradise Island Water Park" complete with a 400-metre-long artificial beach, a Mediterranean-style village, a 14-screen cinema, ice rink and more. The Intercontinental hotel is located within the Paradise Island area, as pictured. This area also contains a seawater pool, wave machine, pirate ship and the largest LED screen in the world – 150 metres long and 40 metres high– which projects images of the ocean and sun corresponding to the time of day. For more information on the New Century Global Center and Chengdu, read Emerging Giant from Business Traveller Asia-Pacific's November issue.
The Intercontinental hotel features 990 rooms and suites, all offering panoramic views of Paradise Island Water Park. Club floor guests have private check-in and check-out in the Club Lounge, as well as standard benefits such as complimentary snacks and drinks.
For meetings there's four multi-purpose meeting rooms of varying sizes, and the Global Center Ballroom, which at 1,150 sqm can accommodate up to 700 people.
There's also a spa, a 24-hour fitness centre, swimming pool and hot spring pools. There are four food and beverage outlets: Paradise Island Cafe serves international buffet and a la carte dishes by the poolside; The Pier also offers international buffet; The Loft is ideal for afternoon tea or evening drinks and Phoenix Pavillion specialises in authentic Cantonese and Sichuan fare.
For more information, visit www.ihg.com/intercontinental
Alex Andersson