Related News
Home » Sunday » Now and Then
Opulent age lives on at lux hotel
Print Edition
ASTOR House Hotel, or Richard's Hotel as it was previously known, was the very first Western hotel in China. And it’s still receiving guests today.
The Hotel was established by the Richard family in 1846 along the Bund near Jinling Road E. It later moved to its current location near the Garden Bridge in 1857. It was taken over by another British businessman, Henry Smith, in 1860 and renamed Astor House.
Restored in 1907 in a neo-classical Baroque style, the Astor House was one of the most lavish hotels in the city, and the Far East, in the early 20th century. The hotel had more than 200 rooms equipped with modern heating systems, electric fans, individual rest rooms, hot water and, of course, spectacular views of the intersection of Huangpu River and Suzhou Creek. Its grand restaurant could hold 500 people. There was also a ballroom, a poker room, a reading room, day rooms, a bar and elevators — all luxury amenities at the time.
The Hotel was a star in the 19th century among expats, visiting celebrities and local dignitaries. Former Shanghai governor Cai Jun threw the first grand party in Shanghai at the Astor House in honor of the 60th birthday of Empress Dowager Cixi.
It’s no exaggeration to say that Astor House welcomed some of the world’s biggest names in its heyday. It accommodated Albert Einstein in Room 304 in 1922, former US President Ulysses S. Grant in Room 410 in 1897, Charlie Chaplin in Room 404 in 1931 and 1936, as well as Edgar Snow, the author of “Red Star over China,” in Room 303 in 1931.
These rooms have still kept their original furnishings, even after a major renovation in 2002, and have become known as “celebrity rooms.” It’s said that Room 8103, where Italian scientist Guolielmo Marchese Marconi stayed in 1933, still has its original furniture, floors and panels from about 100 years ago.
Yet, Astor House Hotel fell into decline during the Songhu Battle in 1937, an armed engagement in the Sino-Janpanese War. With the hotel located in Hongkou District, within the sphere of Japanese influence, Westerners in the area quickly moved to the other concessions for safety. As guests fled, the hotel could not longer stay in business. It was occupied by the Japanese until the end of the war.
After serving as a US naval club and local company offices for a while, Astor House was re-opened as a state-owned hotel in 1959, receiving tourists from overseas. Yet the hotel was later severely damaged in the Culture Revolution.
Though the launch of the Shanghai Stock Exchange took place in Astor House’s grand hall in 1990, the hotel was nearly demolished in 1995. Fortunately, its glorious history was noticed by the Hengshan Group, the new owners of the Hotel. In 2002, the once most deluxe western hotel in the city was reborn as a three-star hotel with 116 rooms.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
