Grand Hotel Bucharest
General information
StatusCompleted
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; 26.1022
Construction started1967[1]
Completed1970[1]
Opening23 May 1971[1]
Height
Roof87 metres (285 ft)[2]
Technical details
Floor count24[2]
Design and construction
Architect(s)Dinu Hariton, Gheorghe Nădrag, Ion Moscu, and Romeo Belea[1]

The Grand Hotel Bucharest is a 24-story 87 m (285 ft) high-rise five-star hotel situated near University Square, Bucharest, in Sector 1. Opened in 1971 as the Inter-Continental Bucharest, it is a city landmark.

History

Designed by Dinu Hariton, Gheorghe Nădrag, Ion Moscu, and Romeo Belea, the hotel was part of a larger development that included the Bucharest National Theatre.[1] Construction began in 1967, and the hotel opened on 23 May 1971 as the Inter-Continental Bucharest. At the time, it was the second tallest building in the city, after the House of the Free Press. Although it no longer holds that title today, it is still the tallest hotel in Bucharest.

It became the hotel of choice for members of the foreign press in Bucharest. During the Romanian Revolution of 1989, the balconies of the Inter-Continental were used to report on the protests in the adjacent University Square.

The hotel was renamed slightly in 2003, becoming the InterContinental Bucharest, when the chain was reorganized and dropped the hyphen from its name. In 2007 the hotel transitioned from a long-standing franchise agreement to a management contract with the InterContinental Hotels Group. The hotel ceased to be managed by IHG on January 1, 2022, and was renamed Grand Hotel Bucharest.[3] It is set for an EUR 21 million renovation, scheduled for completion in 2024.[4]

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.[5]

In culture

  • Some scenes of the Romanian movie Nea Mărin Miliardar were shot in the Imperial Apartment of the Intercontinental Hotel Bucharest.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Intercontinental Hotel, Bucharest.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "History of the Intercontinental Hotel Bucharest (Romanian)".
  2. 1 2 3 Nistor, Radu (May 23, 2019). "Se împlinesc 48 de ani de la inaugurarea Hotelului Intercontinental". newsteam.ro (in Romanian). Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  3. ↑ "End of an era as Bucharest says goodbye to InterContinental, and Budapest's Gellért closes its doors". 11 December 2021.
  4. ↑ "Landmark hotel in downtown Bucharest to undergo name change, refurbishment". 9 December 2021.
  5. ↑ "The Imperial Apartment" (in Romanian).
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