Mandarin Oriental Bangkok

Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok is a five-star hotel in Bangkok owned in part and managed by Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group. Located on the banks of the Chao Phraya River, the original structure was the first hotel built in Thailand when it opened as The Oriental in 1879. Today, the hotel is one of two flagship properties of Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group and is known for service, which consistently places it among the world's best hotels.

When Siam opened to foreign trade after the signing of the Bowring Treaty the sailors that manned the ships which conveyed this trade though Bangkok required accommodation on shore. To meet this demand, Captain Dyers, an American and his partner J.E. Barnes opened a hotel called the Oriental Hotel. This burnt down in 1865.

Several years later a partnership of Danish captains opened a replacement hotel. In the 1970s the board of the Oriental Hotel decided with the opening of the new River Wing, upon 1876 as the official establishment date of the Oriental Hotel.


At the end of the war a six-person partnership each contributed US$250 to buy the hotel. The partnership consisted of Germaine Krull (1897–1985), Prince Bhanu, General Chai Prateepasen, Pote Sarasin (a Thai lawyer) and John Webster and Jim Thompson, two Americans who had served in the Organization for Strategic Security (OSS) and who had stayed on in Thailand. Krull took the position of manager in 1947, despite no prior experience in the hotel field. Born in Poland, she had been best known as a photographer during the 1920s before service in the Pacific as a war correspondent for Agence France Presse. Badly run down after its wartime service, the partnership immediately began restoration and restocking of the hotel which offered to put Thompson’s an opportunity to use his architectural and artistic abilities.

The hotel reopened for business on 12 June 1947. Krull turned out to be a natural hotelier and during her reign restored the hotel to it position as the premier hotel in Thailand. Thompson soon left the partnership over a plan to build a new wing, though he stayed on in residence at the hotel for some time. To compete with popular clubs and a new local bar called Chez Eve, Krull established the Bamboo Bar, which soon became one of the leading bars in Bangkok .

In 1958 the ten-storey Garden Wing was built. It featured the city’s first elevator and was home to the Le Normandie Restaurant. In 1967, fearful that Thailand would fall to the communists, Krull sold her share to Italthai which at the time was well on its way to becoming one of the country’s most significant mercantile groups eventually totally some 60 companies involved in almost all aspects of the Thai economy.

Mandarin Oriental Singapore

Recently voted “World’s Best Hotels 2010” by Travel + Leisure, “Top 20 Asia Hotels” by Conde Nast Traveler and recognised in “The Gold List 2010” by Condé Nast Traveler, Mandarin Oriental, Singapore, is one of the city’s foremost luxury hotels. Featuring an impressive atrium lobby and 527 beautifully refurbished rooms, suites as well as the premium Oriental Club Lounge, the hotel also has extensive meeting and banqueting facilities, five renowned restaurants and a lounge overlooking spectacular Marina Bay. The hotel is located close to the financial hub with easy access to Marina Square Mall, Singapore International Convention & Exhibition Centre, Suntec City, Millenia Walk and Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay.

Mandarin Oriental, Singapore is located in Marina Centre adjacent to Marina Square Shopping Mall , within walking distance of Suntec City, which houses one of Asia Pacific’s largest convention centres, the Suntec Singapore International Convention and Exhibition Centre, and Marina Bay Sands Resort and Casino The hotel is also five minutes’ drive from the city's financial district and only 20 minutes’ drive via the expressway from Changi International Airport and the Singapore Expo.

Mandarin Oriental, Singapore is jointly owned by Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group and Marina Centre Holdings Private Limited.

Mandarin Oriental, Singapore opened in 1987, and was built by US architect John Portman, who also designed the FAN-shaped atrium for the hotel. H.L. Lim of LTW Design Works, the renowned interior designer who has handled many prestigious projects, including the refurbishment of The Oriental, Bangkok, was responsible for transforming Mandarin Oriental, Singapore into a modern landmark with a multi-million dollar renovation in end 2004. The renovation included the redesign of all 527 guestrooms and suites, and the enhancement to all public areas, dining and meeting facilities. Relaunched in May 2005, the hotel now provides guests the ultimate in luxury and sophistication along with unparalleled service.

The Oriental Ballroom and fourteen meeting rooms are fitted with the latest conferencing systems such as high-tech audio visual equipment, LCD projectors, built-in projector screens and wireless broadband Internet access. The Ballroom also encompasses a modern surround sound system and intelligent lightings, providing guests the opportunity to create the desired theme or mood for their events. At the Bridal Salon, couples can discuss their wedding requirements and plans assisted by the dedicated wedding consultants, and review a selection of wedding packages, menus, invitation cards, music themes, linen, chinaware and decorative elements, in a stylish and relaxed manner.

Evergreen Group

The Evergreen Group is the organizational designation used by a Taiwan-based conglomerate of shipping, transportation, and associated service companies. The Evergreen Group arose in 1975 from the diversification of the original Evergreen Marine Corporation, which was established in 1968 and currently operates as the world's fourth largest containerized-freight shipping company. Today, the Evergreen Group encompasses the Evergreen Marine Corporation, Evergreen International Corporation, EVA Air, Evergreen Aviation Technologies Corporation, Evergreen Air Services Corporation, Evergreen Air Cargo Services Corporation, and Evergreen International Storage and Services Corporation. Additional divisions and subsidiaries exist within several Evergreen Group companies, such as Uniglory Shipping Corporation and Uni Air.

Evergreen Marine is the fourth-largest containerized shipping company in the world, with a fleet of over 150 ships calling on 240 ports worldwide in about 80 countries. Evergreen Marine Corporation includes subsidiaries/divisions Uniglory Shipping Corporation, Hatsu Marine Ltd., and Italia Marittima S.p.A.

EVA Air is the international airline of Evergreen Group, operating regular flights to over 40 destinations worldwide. EVA Air features full passenger and dedicated cargo operations to North America, Asia, Europe, and Oceania. The parent company of EVA Air, EVA Airways Corporation, has links with the Evergreen Aviation Technologies Corporation, Evergreen Air Services Corporation, and Evergreen Air Cargo Services Corporation.

Swiss Quality Hotels International

Swiss Quality Hotels International is a non-profit organization and claims to be the largest hotel chain in Switzerland. The Zurich based chain represents 85 hotels in 52 cities and resorts in Switzerland (79 Swiss member hotels), Germany, Austria and Italy. The member hotels are 3, 4 and 5 star. Each Swiss Quality member hotel is an independently owned and operated hotel, acting and voting as a member of the non-profit association. The hotels keep their independent identity and their own name but are marketed under the brand Swiss Quality Hotels International.In Switzerland the hotels are classified by the Swiss Hotel Association-Hotelleriesuisse and have at least been awarded the Quality Label Level I from the Swiss Tourism Quality Programe.

Swiss Quality Hotels International was founded in April 1986 by a group of German and Swiss hoteliers. With 19 initial members the organization was known until 2003 as “TOP International Hotels”. Nowadays, the organization operates independently and owns its own reservation system, “QOnline”. In 2001 Swiss Quality Hotels International introduced its own classification of hotels.

Milad Tower

Milad Tower, with its height of 435 meters, is the fourth tallest telecommunication tower in the world. Milad Tower consists of five main parts: foundation, transition (lobby) structure, shaft, head structure and antenna mast. The lobby structure consists of six floors. The first three floors consist of 63 trade units, 11 food courts, a cafeteria and a commercial products exhibition, which is supposed to be 260 square meters.

The first and second floors underground consist of official and installing sections and data center. The ground floor is devoted to the entrance and visitors reception. The shaft is a concrete structure which is 315 meters high from ground floor. In three different sides of it 6 elevators are designed to transfer the visitors to the head of the tower at the speed of 7 meters per second and an emergency staircase exists at the fourth side.

The head of the tower is a steel structure weighing about 25,000 tons and consisting of 12 floors. This structure is the biggest and the tallest multi-story structure among all the telecommunication towers in the world. In the top floors of the tower, there are the fire-immune area as a refuge zone, closed observation deck, cafeteria, public art gallery, open observation deck, a revolving restaurant, telecommunication floors, a VIP restaurant, Mechanical floors, and a sky dome. The 4-stage antenna mast is 120 meters high. The lower floor of the mast is for the adjustment of public users' telecommunication antennas and the three upper floors are devoted to the antenna of radio and television organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran.