Fairmont Hotels & Resorts and Golden Land Real Estate have announced the development of a new hotel in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, Eastern China. Fairmont Suzhou, scheduled to open in 2018, will join the company’s growing portfolio of luxury hotels and residences in China.
Fairmont Suzhou will feature 390 luxury guestrooms, as well as five dining outlets. The hotel will also house over 43,000 square feet of banquet and event space. Leisure facilities will include a swimming pool and Willow Stream Spa, the company’s branded spa product.
“Fairmont Suzhou marks another key milestone for the Fairmont brand as we continue a steady and strategic pace of expansion into key Chinese markets,” said Jennifer Fox, president, FRHI international and president, Fairmont brand. “Not only is Suzhou one of the country’s most popular travel destinations on a domestic level, it shows continued strong growth internationally and is increasingly attracting foreign investment. We look forward to providing a luxury base for those traveling to this vibrant city.”
The hotel will be part of a mixed-use development that will also include office space and a retail podium, located close to the District Government, as well as office towers and other commercial and entertainment facilities. The complex will be located in Shishan, the business and financial core of Suzhou National New Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone – Suzhou New District (SND), near the city’s center. SND is a specially designated industrial zone with a focus on science and technology research and the development of high-tech industries. A growing number of Fortune 500 companies call the SND home, including Logitech, Canon, and Motorola and it is a major hub for software, IT, and electronic equipment manufacturing.
Suzhou is located in the center of the Yangtze River Delta, and is approximately 70 miles east of Shanghai. The city’s history dates back over 2,500 years, making it one of the oldest cities in the Yangtze Basin, where it has long been an important commercial and cultural center. It is currently the largest industrial city in China, but due to its mild climate and scenic setting, it also attracts a large number of visitors year-round. Famed for its stone bridges, canals, flowing water, and noteworthy architecture, Suzhou is often referred to as the “Venice of the East”. The city also boasts the Classical Gardens of Suzhou. Made up of eight gardens, out of more than 200 in the city, they span a period of almost 1,000 years and have been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Other attractions include numerous pagodas, temples, historical districts, and Tiger Hill, a popular tourist site which is said to resemble a crouching tiger, and is known for its natural beauty.
Suzhou is linked by six key expressways to major cities like Shanghai and Hangzhou and has high-speed railway connections to Nanjing and Beijing. The city is also expanding its metro system, which will include a proposed station under the Fairmont hotel. Suzhou is approximately 100 km (60 miles) from Shanghai Hongqiao Airport and 75 miles from Shanghai Pudong International Airport.
Fairmont currently operates a number of properties in China, including Fairmont Beijing, Fairmont Peace Hotel in Shanghai, Kunshan’s Fairmont Yangcheng Lake, and Fairmont Nanjing. The country continues to be a key growth market for the brand, with a number of new developments scheduled to open in the coming years, including projects in Chengdu (2015), Changsha (2017), Hangzhou (2018), Taiyuan (2019), and Nanning (2019).
