Ashui.com

Visitors to the southern hub will be able to indulge in the luxury of the Ritz Carlton Hotel as the giant hotel group is planning to open an international five-star hotel chain in the city center in 2015, In Suk Ko, CEO of Bitexco Group, told a press conference today.

Under a construction project titled "The One Ho Chi Minh City", a 48-storey tower, which contains office space in the lower half and the Ritz Carlton Hotel in the upper floors, will be built in a total gross floor area (GFA) of 195,000m2 with a total investment of around $500 million.

The hotel’s public areas are in the podium and include a ballroom, meeting rooms, restaurants, bar, fitness club and a pool at the podium roof deck. The floors above the office levels contain the Ritz Carlton’s guest rooms, VIP club and a rooftop lounge. The upper floors will house VIP suites.

The first Ritz Carlton Hotel in Vietnam will provide the most luxurious amenities, services and facilities, aimed at delighting local and international travelers alike.

In Suk Ko explained that “The One” means “The Number One” or “All in One”, but according to Vu Quang Hoi, Chairman of the Bitexco Group, it is the first step in the new period of economic recovery.

“In fact the Bitexco Group is one of the few developers with the courage and the means to keep forging ahead with such an ambitious project during these difficult times. Having said that, the dark clouds of the economic horizon are moving away and latest economic data show that Vietnam is on the road to recovery” In Suk Ko told the conference.

In shaping these unique towers, architect Bernardo Forte-Brescia, founder and principal designer of renowned US-firm Arquitectonica, was inspired by the ancient Vietnamese legend of the two dragons.

The two towers thus symbolize dragons rising up from the land – a sign of strength and prosperity. The podium represents their coiled tails and feet; the rectangular tops dragon heads – and the cantilevered glass cubes the pearls in their mouths. Theses will glow at night and be recognizable from any point in the city.

And by creating this “dragon” motif while using the most contemporary of styles, the architect has rooted the property in the local culture while placing it firmly in the 21st century – and able to call the region’s best contemporary structures as its peers./.