The InterContinental Shanghai Wonderland is built into the wall of an abandoned quarry in Songjiang District, about 40 kilometres from central Shanghai. The pit had been mined since the 1950s and was left abandoned in 2000, roughly 88 metres deep with water pooled at the bottom.
Rather than fill it in, developers built downward. The hotel has 18 floors, but only two sit at or above ground level. Sixteen descend the cliff face, and the lowest two are underwater, including suites where bedrooms are enclosed by a saltwater aquarium. All 336 rooms have balconies facing the quarry walls and a purpose-built waterfall.
Construction began in 2006 and took more than a decade. Engineers had to prevent the pit from flooding, stabilise the rock face against landslides, and install seismic monitoring throughout the structure. The project generated 21 registered patents. It was designed by architect Martin Jochman and JADE+QA Architects, with the original concept by Atkins.
The hotel opened on 20 November 2018 and has been described by National Geographic's Megastructures as one of the top ten architectural wonders of the world.
Would you stay there? Tell us in the comments.
#Architecture #China #Engineering #LuxuryTravel #Megastructure
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