A Historical Hotel with Legends—Nanjing Hotel

老店故事多南京饭店

Located at the crossroads of Shanghai's Nanjing Road and South Shanxi Road， the Nanjing Hotel was first built in 1931， reputedly financed by a Russian merchant of Jewish origin.

The 7-storey building was constructed to resemble stairs. It was designed by Mr. Yang Ximiu （1899-1978）， a famous architect who was also the designer of the Shanghai Sino-French Press Station， the Shanghai Paramount Dancing Hall， and the Beijing Workers' Gymnasium. It was built by the Xiang-branch of Xin Jin Ji Construction Company which had successfully built the Shanghai Jianghaiguan Pass and the Shanghai Electric Power Company building. Nanjing Hotel was completed in September 1931. There were about 700 rooms in the hotel. As one of the few large hotels that offered apartment accommodations for guests and travelers， Nanjing Hotel was renowned for its delicate decoration and luxurious facilities. Today， the hotel still retains the copperplate engraving given as a present by jewellery merchants Wu Zhongnan， Ma Mouzhong and other notables of trading， when the hotel first opened.

Since the hotel opened， it has been the place for people in the literary world of Shanghai to meet. These people include Ba Jin， Lu Xun， and other giants of the literary world.

Additionally， the history of the annual China Journalists' Day on November 8^th is inextricably linked to the Nanjing Hotel. November 8^th, 1937 was the date on which the Chinese Youth Journalists' Association， the original organizational form of today's All-China Journalists' Association， was founded. In 1937 the Anti-Japanese War broke out. The Party Central Committee of the Communist Party of China had decided to establish a united organization of journalists in Shanghai， where most journalists lived. The purpose of the organization was to unite patriotic journalists in China. At 7 p.m. November 8^th， 1937， the Chinese Youth Journalists' Association was declared to be established in the Nanjing Hotel.

Celebrities that have stayed at the Nanjing Hotel also include Chiang Kai-shek and Soong May-ling. Chiang was not yet elected as the president of Kuomintang （KMT） at the time.

After reconstructions and refurbishments in the past years， the Nanjing Hotel is now under the management of Jin Jiang Hotel Management Co. Ltd.. It now has eight floors instead of the original seven. The hotel has retained its two star status and can accommodate foreign guests with its different sized guest rooms， restaurants， conference rooms and business centre. Today the Nanjing Hotel has 165 guest rooms of different types and restaurants which can host more than 400 guests. The restaurant's renowned chef instigated the offering of delicious cuisines with different specialties， and has successfully catered for municipal conferences on many occassions. Traditional delicacies such as “Fish fillets Sliced with Wine Sauce” and “Spiked Beche-de-Mer cooked with Peking Onion and Pea Mash” have won many gold medals as well as the award of “Famous Cuisine and Snacks”.

The Nanjing Hotel， a blend of tradition and modernity， takes advantage of the natural and social surroundings and offers an ideal place for people from all trades. With honesty as its cardinal principle， the Nanjing Hotel has become a leading two-star hotel， and is now repeating the glory of the past.

Nanjing Hotel

Star rating: ☆☆

ADD: 200 South Shanxi Road， Shanghai 200001， China

TEL: 86-21-63222888

FAX: 86-21-63516520

WEB: www.nj-hotel.com