Shangri-La to manage new hotel in China

The largest luxury hotel company in mainland China, Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts, signs today a management agreement with China-based Zhongzhen Development Corporation to operate a Traders hotel in Shijiazhuang, capital of China's Hebei Province. Situated in the heart of the city in northern China, the first phase of the 528-room new hotel will open in early 2004 with 228 rooms. The second phase will open by 2005.

With 16 of its 38 properties in mainland China and a strong commitment to  further expansion, Shangri-La has also announced it will open a number of new hotels during the next few years including Fuzhou, Sanya, Shanghai, Zhengzhou and Zhongshan amongst others.

Traders Hotel, Shijiazhuang will feature a variety of restaurants and bars. The meeting facilities will include a 1,000-square-metre pillar-less ballroom that will be complemented by a full range of function rooms. The hotel will also have recreational facilities including an indoor swimming pool.

'The new property will be our third Traders hotel in China and will complement our existing portfolio of prestigious and well-located city properties. It will additionally reinforce our dominant brand position in the country, which is synonymous with award-winning service', says Shangri-La's chief executive officer and managing director, Giovanni Angelini.

The Traders brand offers quality business class accommodation, providing travellers with well-appointed guest rooms, comprehensive facilities, excellent service and genuine value for money. In 1989, the first Traders Hotel opened in Beijing and has since won broad appeal from a wide spectrum of business and leisure travellers. Today, there are five Traders Hotels in operation in Manila, Beijing, Shenyang, Singapore and Yangon, with a sixth one planned to open in Dubai in July 2003.