The Intercontinental Shanghai Wonderland (), also known as the Tianma Pit Hotel, Shimao Quarry Hotel, Songjiang,
''Click on the "+" sign to read the data''. or Pit Pegasus Hotel () is a
hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...
and
earthscraper
An earthscraper is a building that provides multiple stories of permanent space below ground where people may live: the inverse of very tall high-rise buildings. Though humans have been building structures underground for centuries, such dwellin ...
in
Songjiang,
Shanghai
Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
, China, from city center.
The hotel, which started operations on 20 November 2018, is managed by
InterContinental
InterContinental Hotels & Resorts by IHG is a British-American luxury hotel brand created in 1946 by Pan Am founder Juan Trippe. It has been part of UK-based InterContinental Hotels Group since 1998. As of January 2023, there were 208 InterC ...
and was built on the site of an abandoned
quarry
A quarry is a type of open-pit mining, open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock (geology), rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some juri ...
and, notably, features some rooms underwater.
The design and construction process of the hotel was fraught with many delays prior to 2013. Since 2013, however, the design optimization and onsite construction progressed at a fairly swift pace. The fit-out work carried out in 2017 and finally opened on 20 November 2018.
History
The
InterContinental Hotels Group
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), marketed as IHG Hotels & Resorts, is a British multinational hospitality company headquartered in Windsor, Berkshire, England. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange. It ...
is behind the project as one of its
flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of navy, naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically ...
hotels in the country under the banner of Shimao Wonderland InterContinental. The design was shortlisted for an award at the
World Architecture Festival
The World Architecture Festival (WAF) is an Architecture, architectural and design event held annually and considered to be one of the most prestigious events dedicated to the architecture and development industries. It was founded by Paul Fin ...
in 2009.
According to ''
Shanghaiist'', the Shanghai Shimao Property Group has an investment of US$555 million in the project.
It opened on 20 November 2018.
Construction
The concept and facade design firm for this project is JADE+QA, led by
Martin Jochman, who designed the concept while working with ATKINS and in 2013 set up his own practice in Shanghai and continued working on this project directly for the developer Shimao with his own studio JADE+QA.
The local architectural firm is ECADI (East China Architectural Design & Research Institute Co., Ltd.), which is responsible for design development, construction documents, structural design and MEP. The interior design firms are CCD (Cheng Chung Design) and AB Concept. The lighting design consultant is Illuminate Lighting Design.
The hotel is 18 stories,
16 of which are below ground level including two projected underwater floors; two of the floors are above the 88m deep quarry.
The abandoned quarry is partially filled with water to create an artificial lake. The hotel is designed in an "S" shape utilizing a convex to concave form. The architects' vision is one of sequential hanging gardens that will produce the effect of a green hill extending down the face of the quarry. Both the quarry's rock face and the wings of the blocks of guest rooms are projected to surround an atrium within the hotel. The vertical atrium made of glass will (above the hotel) is intended to symbolise an artificial "waterfall."
''
Gizmag'' called the waterfall the "