Intercontinental Hotel in Bucharest has been the highest building in Romania for more than 30 years. It is about 80 meters and, also a symbol of the Romanian capital. That is because it rises in the center of the city. The university square is not a large one. Yet, in it are the Bucharest University, The National theater, Coltea hospital and the hotel. Since we have been living for more than 25 years in Bucharest, we cross the area daily. This square is indeed the starting point for visiting the town.

INTERCONTINENTAL HOTEL HISTORY

It rises near UNIVERSITY SQUARE and near the NATIONAL THEATER, I.L. Caragiale. Interstenting is that both the theater and the hotel appeared almost in the same time. Works lasted  between 1967 and 1973. The land on which the hotel stood belonged to a monastery in the 18th century and came to a family of merchants who sold it to the Town Hall. Subsequently, the land was used for exercises by the County Police Regiment of the Capital. In 1935, a summer garden was built here and a restaurant, demolished soon after 1944 when Krately Circus, a circus of the time and plenty of shops and breweries took their place. But in 1967 they were also all demolished for the plans of Intercontinental Hotel and National Theater.

CELEBRITIES AT INTERCONTINENTAL IN BUCHAREST

Romanian authorities and Intercontinental Hotels Corporation Society, a US company started the construction in 1967. Intercontinental Hotel opened on February, 20, 1971. The first client was an American called Dortmann. Architects who built this hotel were: Dinu Hariton, Gherghe Nadrag, Romeo Belea and Ion Moscu. The hotel has 23 floors, 423 rooms, 16 offices, several restaurants, including Romanian cuisine, bars, lounges for receptions, a swimming pool on the 22nd floor and a huge basement garage. See here their website.

If you go to Romana Square from here, on the right you will find the ITALIAN CHURCH. On the other side of University Square you can visit BUCHAREST MUSEUM.

UN Secretary, Kurt Waldheim, the President of the German Federal Republic, Gustav Heinemann, the Italian tenor, Luciano Pavarotti and, even, Rockefeller spent at least one night at Intercontinental Hotel in Bucharest.

SEE MAP…