Say Hello to the First Underground Hotel in the World – Intercontinental Shanghai Wonderland

Soon, some of the best hotel-room photos will be coming from the Intercontinental Shanghai Wonderland. This unique 5-star hotel—considered to be an architectural marvel, is located in Songjiang, around 35 km from Shanghai. The top reason to consider this hotel to be a feat of engineering is that 18 out of its 20 stories will be underground!

Intercontinental Shanghai Wonderland:

Built-in the side of the abandoned Shenkeng Quarry in Songjiang, the building plunges 300 feet down to a pool of water. The top floor—which is at ground level, has an impressive green roof that blends the hotel into the surrounding blanket of flora and fauna. Also, emphasizing the impression created by the quarry are cascading waterfalls that race down the surrounding cliff and a glass-enclosed artificial waterfall that goes down the entire height of the building.

The Intercontinental Shanghai Wonderland © AFP / Johannes Eisele

The Britain-based engineering and design company, Atkins designed the intercontinental Shanghai wonderland underground hotel with its 377 rooms and a vast array of amenities. The hotel’s curving form allows for sweeping views from the balconies of the rooms. Also, there are also underwater guest rooms that face a 10-meter-deep aquarium. Those rooms, as well as a restaurant, occupy the upper one of two underground levels.  The lower level, on the other hand, houses a swimming pool and water-based adventure sports.

Not only does the hotel possess a structure known for being a “fight against gravity”, but it is also notable for being environmentally responsible. It generates its own power using geothermal and solar energy.”By building the hotel where it is, designers and developers hope to prevent further damage to the ecological environment around it. The Songjiang Quarry Hotel may become just about the greenest hotel ever made,” said Atkins Global about the £345-million hotel.

The Intercontinental Shanghai Wonderland © AFP / Johannes Eisele

5000 architects, designers, engineers, and workers participated in the design and construction of the underground hotel Situated at the Sheshan Mountain Range, the hotel lies 30 kilometers away from Hongqiao Airport and close to attractions like Sheshan National Park and Chenshan Botanical Gardens. It is expected to open in October, but the prices of the rooms have not yet been released.