The deluxe Shangri-La Hotel, Vancouver will be strategically located one block from the city�s premier business address at Burrard and West Georgia streets.  Set in the heart of the city, the hotel is an easy walk to all downtown offices, shopping, restaurants, theaters, the convention center, the world-famous Stanley Park, and a half a block from the popular shopping district on Robson Street.

The hotel will occupy fifteen floors of a new 60-story landmark building, the tallest in Vancouver with cutting-edge architectural design.   The entire multi-purpose complex will showcase innovative residential living, a sculpture galleria � curated by the Vancouver Art Gallery, high end retail shopping, innovative live/work condominiums, unique restaurants and the Shangri-La Hotel, all in all �the best of cosmopolitan West Coast life�. 

Commenting on the new hotel, Shangri-La�s Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Giovanni Angelini said, �It is a wonderful opportunity for Shangri-La to enter the North American market with this landmark hotel and our dedicated partners.  It is an important step in the group�s expansion plans outside Asia Pacific to develop Shangri-La hotels in international gateway cities around the world, targeting the prime North American market plus the fast-growing outbound traffic from China and the rest of Asia.�

Ian Gillespie, President of Westbank Projects added, �We selected Shangri-La to manage the hotel due to the strength of their award-winning brand and its reputation for service excellence and Asian hospitality.  The group will introduce our hotel to its loyal guests including its rapidly growing Golden Circle membership and via its network of hotels and worldwide sales offices. The appointment of Shangri-La reflects our focus on becoming a major force in the hospitality industry.�

Peterson Investment Group and Westbank Projects have developed over $2 billion in projects consisting of over 3.8 million square feet of retail, mixed use, residential and office developments.  The group is one of the most active integrated development companies on the west coast of North America. The product mix includes luxury condominiums, urban infill housing, class A office space, neighborhood grocery anchored shopping centers, rental apartments and hotels. 

Contemporary styled, the hotel's guest rooms and services are following the operating philosophy of the �Horizon Club� floors, Shangri-La�s exclusive retreat for discerning travelers, offering a host of special amenities and privileges such as round-the-clock personal butler service, express check-in and check-out services. The guestrooms, averaging 550 square feet, will be among the largest in Canada, while the standard rooms will incorporate three components to deliver a suite-type concept with oversized bathrooms, bedrooms, and living/working areas.  In addition to the full array of Shangri-La services and facilities including 24-hour room service, same day laundry and valet service, satellite TV, data ports, wireless broadband Internet service, all rooms will have sensurround AV system and LCD monitors in the living room and bathroom. 

The Shangri-La Hotel, Vancouver will provide a creative feature restaurant with outdoor seasonal dining, a lobby lounge serving light meals with a bar overlooking the Vancouver Art Gallery Public Art Site, and a juice bar serving guests in the spa and pool area.  The hotel�s intimate function and private dining facilities will feature three rooms with seating capacity for 25 to 75 people, a canopied exterior terrace with access to the function rooms, library with fireplace, and a 48-seat screening theater. 

Hong Kong-based Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts currently manages 42 hotels in Australia, mainland China, Fiji, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan and the United Arab Emirates with a room inventory of over 21,000.  In addition, the group has over 20 projects under development in Australia, mainland China, India, Malaysia, Maldives, Oman, Qatar, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates.