The world's
highest hotel opens its doors in Hong Kong, housed in the city's tallest
skyscraper and offering unrivalled panoramic views of the world famous Victoria Harbour. Photo: AFP
The world's
highest hotel opened its doors in Hong Kong In March this year. It is housed in
the city's tallest skyscraper and offering unrivalled panoramic views of the
world famous Victoria
Harbour.
Towering
some 490 metres above the bustling, chaotic streets of the Southern Chinese
city, the Ritz-Carlton Hotel is making a grand comeback after temporarily
closing in 2008.
Visitors
peer out of the floor-to-ceiling windows of the 118th floor of the
International Commerce Centre, which houses the hotel, for a 360 degree view of
the glitzy financial hub and the South China Sea.
"We're
opening an iconic hotel which took us about 10 years to build," president
and chief operations officer Herve Humler told reporters. “We are taking luxury
to new heights in every sense."
The
Ritz-Carlton however will likely lose the world's highest hotel title in 2014
when the J-Hotel opens near the top of the over 600-metre Shanghai
Tower in mainland China.
"People
compete all around the world about everything -- I'm sure someone somewhere is
building an even taller building as we speak," Humler said. "We
emphasise service."
Inside the
Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong exudes a chic, modern vibe in the restaurants and lobby
areas, with a lot of sparkling decor and chandeliers, the main colour themes
being black, brown and beige.
Visitors
can find facilities that include the highest bar in the world, and a top-floor
pool that features a 19-metre ceiling-mounted LCD screen which swimmers can
watch while enjoying the warmth of the heated water. With 312
guest rooms, the hotel also has one of the largest ballrooms in the city at 930
square metres.
Humler said
mainland Chinese customers account for about 35 per cent of the hotel group's
market, up from just three to four percent 14 years ago. "This number is
expected to rise. Mainland China
is a key market for us. Asia as a region has
bounced back significantly in the past year, with business going up about 20
percent in 2010," said Humler. "In China, everything that is created
has to have the "wow" factor to attract the top echelons of society.
They want quality service and efficiency," the president added.
No comments:
Post a Comment