Page 31 - Sphere No.11 (Apr 2004)

T he Oriental Plaza development
along East Chang’an Avenue may
not be Beijing’s most famous
landmark but it is rapidly becoming one of
the most popular. Just a few minutes walk
from the Forbidden City, the prestigious
complex adds a physical dimension to this
historic capital that reflects China’s emer-
gence as an economic global powerhouse.
Developed by a Hutchison-led consor-
tium, Oriental Plaza is a modern retail,
office and residential complex of epic
proportions. In fact, it is the largest in
Mainland China, covering a million square
feet of land.
The development is made up of The
Malls, featuring five themed shopping
arcades with more than 200 brand-name
stores, a six-theatre multiplex, and a central
plaza with a musical fountain and land-
scaped gardens — all serviced by an enor-
mous indoor car park.The Towers consists
of eight commercial buildings that are the
Mainland headquarters of many global
companies, and four blocks of luxury ser-
viced apartments. The five-star Grand
Hyatt Beijing hotel is the resplendent cen-
trepiece.
When the developers of the Oriental
Plaza were looking for a company to man-
age their luxury hotel property, they
turned to the Grand Hyatt.
The Chicago-based Hyatt Hotels Group
needed a site in the Chinese capital to com-
plement its network of deluxe properties in
prestigious locations around the world.Talks
began in August 2001 and in October that
year the Grand Hyatt Beijing opened
to the public.
“It was an opportunity for both Hyatt and
the developers,” says Mr Foued EL Mabrouk,
Director of Marketing for the Grand Hyatt
Beijing.“It presented value on both sides.”
Hyatt now has seven hotels in Greater
China, with properties in Shanghai,Tianjin,
Xian,Taipei, Hong Kong and Macau.
The Grand Hyatt Beijing’s opening had its
challenges: doors opened within weeks of
the September 11 terrorist attacks in New
York, which brought business traffic out of
the United States and many other parts of
the world to a grinding halt. The SARS out-
break last year was another heavy blow for
the Asian hotel industry.Yet the Grand Hyatt
Beijing has already made an indelible mark
on the city’s budding hotel scene.
“We are positioned as the leading hotel in
the city,” says Mr EL Mabrouk.“We have had
a good start for a new hotel.”
Last year, Grand Hyatt Beijing achieved
the No.1 ranking in terms of revenue per
available room in the city. Corporate and
business travellers make up 90% of the guest
mix, mostly top-level executives from multi-
national companies.
The hotel is also known as the city’s
premier high-end meeting venue. It hosted
the World Economic Forum’s China
Summit last April and November, which
draws top-level decision-makers and strate-
gists from around the world.
S PHERE
1229
CAPITAL
COMFORT
Beijing’s newest luxury hotel offers the best of both worlds for discerning travellers.
By Gwyneth Roberts