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InterContinental Bucharest

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InterContinental Bucharest
Statuie Caragiale - Hotel Intercontinental.jpg
General information
StatusComplete
TypeHotel
Address4 Bulevardul Nicolae Bălcescu
Town or cityBucharest
CountryRomania
Coordinates44°26′14″N 26°06′08″E / 44.4371°N 26.1022°E / 44.4371; 26.1022Coordinates: 44°26′14″N 26°06′08″E / 44.4371°N 26.1022°E / 44.4371; 26.1022
Construction started1967[1]
Completed1970[1]
Opening23 May 1971[1]
Height
Roof87 metres (285 ft)[2]
Technical details
Floor count24[2]
Design and construction
Architect, , , and [1]

The InterContinental Bucharest is a high-rise five-star hotel situated near University Square, Bucharest, in Sector 1. A landmark of the city, it is 87 m (285 ft) tall and has 24 levels above ground.

History

Designed by , , Ion Moscu, and Romeo Belea, it was part of a bigger project which included the building of the Bucharest National Theatre.[1]

Construction began in 1967 and was finished in 3 years. With its height of almost 87 meters, when it was opened on 23 May 1971 it was the second tallest building in the city, after the House of the Free Press. Although no longer holding that title today, it is still the tallest hotel in Bucharest.

It became the hotel of choice for foreign press in Bucharest. Indeed, during the Romanian Revolution of 1989, the balconies of the InterContinental were a privileged point to report on the repression of the protests in University Square.

In 2007 the hotel transitioned from the long-standing franchise agreement to a management contract with the InterContinental Hotels Group. The hotel has announced that it will no longer be part of the InterContinental Hotels Group programme from the start of 2022.

The hotel has been a reference point for haute cuisine for fifty years from 1971 to 2021. Cristian Marino from Italy was the last renowned International Executive Chef[3] to head the hotel kitchens (from 2014 to 2018). Among the chef's other initiatives for the rejuvenation of the food offer of restaurants and congress halls, to highlight is the passage from vintage to modern[4], with the concept called simplicity.[5]

Description

The building is designed so that each room has a unique panorama of the city. The highest 2 floors (21 and 22) contain a club lounge, conference rooms and a health centre with an outdoor terrace, indoor swimming pool and fitness centre. The hotel complies with the triskaidekaphobic numbering system of the floors. The first 12 levels above ground are numbered from 1 to 12 and the next 12 levels are numbered from 14 to 25.[2]

The Imperial Apartment at the 19th floor has two bedrooms and a total area of 240 square meters. The apartment contains white Italian walnut furniture polished with gold and Murano glass light fixtures. In its living room there is a fully functioning Steinway & Sons white piano which was specially brought in for Nigel Kennedy's stay at the hotel in winter 2007.[6]

In culture

  • Some scenes of the Romanian movie Nea Mărin Miliardar were shot in the Imperial Apartment of the Intercontinental Hotel Bucharest.

External links

  • "Official Web Page".

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "History of the Intercontinental Hotel Bucharest (Romanian)".
  2. ^ a b c Nistor, Radu (May 23, 2019). "Se împlinesc 48 de ani de la inaugurarea Hotelului Intercontinental". newsteam.ro (in Romanian). Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  3. ^ "Cristian Marino, from Milano to Bucharest at InterContinental as new Executive Chef". The Romania Journal. Retrieved 2022-01-26.
  4. ^ "(P) Tips & Tricks for successful corporate meetings". Romania Insider. 2016-01-26. Retrieved 2022-01-26.
  5. ^ "Intercontinental Meetings" (PDF).
  6. ^ "The Imperial Apartment" (in Romanian).
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