The Central Zero Point of Shanghai—Forever Park Hotel

永远是上海大地的圆心国际饭店

She used to keep the record of being “the No.1 Building in the Far East” for 30 years and she had been a symbol of Shanghai for 50 years. Her sheer appearance takes us back to the old Shanghai of the 1930s and 1940s， and back to the luxurious ambience of the city. Through a photo of a handsome hotel boy wearing shining shoes and a smart suit， we can faintly see the youth and beauty of the hotel. She had been unmatched for 50 years， and has been standing unchanged through prosperity and adversity for 70 years. She has witnessed a long history， and she is a history herself. She is the Park Hotel Shanghai.

Park Hotel Shanghai was originally built as an investment by four major banks， namely the Gold City Bank， the Salt Industrial Bank， the Continental Bank and the Middle South Bank. The designer of the hotel was the famous Hungarian architect Laslo Vodac.

The construction commenced in August 1932 and finished in October 1933. On December 1， 1934, the hotel was officially opened and became the “No.1 Building in the Far East”. The building was so imposing that it was considered a skyscraper in China and attracted the attention from all over the city.

From then on， the Park Hotel not only became a symbol of great Shanghai， but also a place for domestic and overseas officers， politicians， capitalists and celebrities in Shanghai to hold parties and social activities.

Since its opening， the Park Hotel has established its reputation for more than half of a century. As one of the oldest in Shanghai， the hotel has won abundant praises from its guests for its facilities， service and reputation. It is especially appreciated among foreign guests， overseas Chinese， and guests from Hong Kong， Macao and Taiwan. Its special identity of being at the “top of Shanghai” has allowed it to witness the changes in Shanghai. As a part of shanghai's history， it is the precious spiritual fortune of the city.

People recall that during the foundation and development of the hotel， there were many interesting anecdotes. For example， in 1934 when the Park Hotel was the tallest building in the Far East with a height of 83.8 meters， a young man passed by and was shocked by the imposing sight. He was so proud of being a Chinese and made up his mind to become an architect. Today this young man has become a world famous architect; he is I.M. PEI (leoh Ming Pei). After the Park Hotel was finished， an elevator with a speed of 600 feet per minute was installed in the hotel， being the third fastestelevator in the world; the first and second were in New York. Although， unfortunately this elevator was removed in the remodeling， two other special elevators have been retained. One is a “giant” elevator that can lift a lorry; the other is a mini elevator that is smaller than one square meter. Moreover， while it is now common for hotels to install automatic spray fire safety devices， it was most advanced for the Park Hotel to have these devices as early as 70 years ago.

Most importantly， there is a little “secret” that is worthy of revealing here: the geodetic origin of Shanghai is actually within the Park Hotel. While in transportation terms， the People's Square is considered to be the zero point for calculating distance from Shanghai， in surveying and mapping terms， this point of origin was set at the Park Hotel. In order to unify the plane coordinates of Shanghai， the Surveying and Mapping Department of Shanghai set the central flag post on the roof of the Park Hotel as the origin of the coordinates so as to triangulate the whole city Because of its unique location， its status as the tallest building in Shanghai， and its good reputation in China and the rest of the world. A one-meter-tall memorial post in the lobby of the first floor has been set up to commemorate this history. The post has now become quite a tourists' attraction.

After 70 years， the Park Hotel Shanghai is still charming. Renovated from a traditional hotel， the Park Hotel blends a modern flavor with a rich classical ambience. Hong Kong newspaper Wen Wei Po reported in its feature article that “the height of the Park Hotel can be surpassed， but the hotel will remain the central zero point of Shanghai forever.”

Park Hotel

Star rating: ☆☆☆☆

ADD: 170 West Nanjing Road， Shanghai 200003， China

TEL: 86-21-63275225

FAX: 86-21-63276958

WEB: www.parkhotel.com.cn