Exclusive hotel in the sign of the bee opens – Delta invests EUR 50 million in construction of InterContinental Ljubljana

Ljubljana has gotten a new luxury five-star hotel – InterContinental has recently started welcoming its first guests. The official opening of the hotel in downtown Ljubljana has been announced for September 27, and eKapija hereby present the details of the tallest building in the capital of Slovenia.

Hotel InterContinental is primarily meant for business people, as well as for tourists visiting Ljubljana. It offers luxurious rooms, the restaurant “B” on the 20th floor, a spa center, conference halls...

The most important segment of the hotel are 165 rooms, of which 14 apartments, spread across 16 floors. The rooms are spacious and decorated with details carrying motifs of Ljubljana, such as mirrors featuring the graphics displaying the city's highlights, whereas the carpets feature abstract lines symbolizing the flow of the river Ljubljanica, which passes through the city. The beds are very comfortable and, as they say at the hotel, it only takes 4-5 hours of sleep in them for a visitor to fully rest.

The hotel is also meant for congress tourism. The biggest hall, called Enmon, has a capacity of 300 people and is characterized by the latest equipment for various business and social events. Two halls, intended for seminars and smaller gatherings, are located on the 19th floor. The same floor also features Club InterContinental, reserved for guests seeking more privacy.

The entirety of the 18th floor is dedicated to relaxation. The Saruna spa center with a pool, three types of saunas, massage rooms, rooms for cosmetic treatments, a room for relaxation and a fitness center is located there. Treatments and exercising while being provided with a magical view to the Alps and the Tivoli Park are available to the guests and the citizens of Ljubljana alike.

Restaurant “B”

The highest point of the hotel features Restaurant “B”. It provides a unique view from the 20th floor to all four sides of the city.

The creative concept of the restaurant has been set by Italian chef Alfredo Russo, winner of the Michelin star, whereas Komnen Bakic, previously the chef at the Prime restaurant in Crowne Plaza Hotel Belgrade, is the Executive Chef.

The menu will be seasonal, featuring new specialties each few months. The offer of Restaurant “B” combines Italian cuisine with Slovenian tastes. Most of the ingredients are purchased in Slovenia, because, as the cooks, say, they are of great quality. Regarding the wine card, most of the wines featured are also local.

Restaurant “B” is available to both the hotel guests and the citizens and visitors of Ljubljana.

In the sign of the bee

In addition to the restaurant, which carries the name of the bee, plenty details in the hotel are also in the sign of the bee. The designer perhaps opted for this symbol because of the Kranj bee, an indigenous Slovenian species or because there are bees in 150 locations in Ljubljana, with the majority of the hives being located on roofs, balconies and gardens.

It can be said that the hotel is as busy as a beehive, due to numerous guests the host expect. They got off to a good start too, as the capacities were 100% full on the 13th day, the day of our visit. We also witnessed the diligence of the workers. Although a young team still learning to work together, they are full of energy, always smiling and prepared to meet all the demands the guests might have at any point.

The symbol of the bee is prominently displayed as soon as a guest checks in, as it is featured on the keycard. Furthermore, the chocolate bars in the rooms feature honey, there's a symbol of the bee at the entrance to the restaurant's toilet, the waiters at the restaurants wear aprons with a sign of the bee and a a honeycomb print, and the exit to the balcony on the 20th floor features an illustration of a bee printed on glass.

Price of accommodation

The prices in this luxury hotel depend on the events in the city and the extent to which the capacities are full (the fuller the hotel is, the higher the prices of the remaining rooms are). The prices will range from EUR 200 to EUR 500.

The most expensive one, of course, is the presidential suite, located on the 19th floor, which, as they say at the hotel, is the most luxurious apartment in Ljubljana.

It takes up 160 square meters, and, when a second bedroom is added to it, the area increases to 210 square meters. A family has already stayed at the apartment and three more reservations have been booked. The price ranges from EUR 1,800 up.

Hotel built in 18 months

Zivorad Vasic, General Manager of InterContinental Group for this region, cannot hide his satisfaction over the successful completion of the project in such a short time.

– I am very emotional now, as we've managed to complete the hotel in 18 months. The start wasn't easy, as many people didn't believe in this project, but the trust grew as the construction went along. We saw that Ljubljana is a city with many tourists, while lacking a 5-star hotel. We had great support from the city of Ljubljana and Mayor Zoran Jankovic. All the permits were issued within deadline – Vasic stated at the first media conference held at the hotel.

Vasic believes that this investment will stimulate a further development of the hotel industry in the capital of Slovenia and incite the existing hotels to initiate renovation.

Delta built the investment in Ljubljana from the ground up. The main contractor was CGP from Ljubljana, and 80% of the subcontractors were Slovenian companies.

A total of 110 employees were hired by the hotel, of which 85% from Slovenia, and Vasic admits that they had a problem choosing the employees.

– We didn't want to draw in the best people from other hotels by raising the salaries by 10-15%, we didn't want to take employees away from our colleagues, as this is not good for the industry. We have found young, educated people, who have been trained by our employees at the Crowne Plaza Hotel Belgrade.

Milos Cerovic, General Manager of InterContinental Ljubljana, stated that the hotel had brought international standards to the city above all. He emphasized that various energy saving systems had been implemented in the hotel, from keycards switching on air conditioning, lights and TVs in rooms, through sensor-equipped bathrooms, to the elevator which enters the sleeping mode when not used.

Further investments in Slovenia

Zivorad Vasic, General Manager of InterContinental Group for the region and Vice President of Delta Holding, said that they expected to make a return on the investment in the hotel in 7-9 years and that the company found Slovenia interesting for further investments.

– I hope that we will continue investing in Slovenia. There are solid hotels being sold, and we now have our eyes on two of them. We are also considering two hotel locations in Zagreb – Vasic announced.

InterContinental Belgrade

Delta Holding has planned to start building an InterContinental hotel in Belgrade after the opening of the one in Ljubljana. We asked Vasic when the works would start:

– The project, the agreement and the money are there, but we don't have the building permit. We paid EUR 35 million for the location. We urge the City of Belgrade to help us get the building permit and start building – Vasic said.

S.O.

Delta Holding d.o.o. Beograd

InterContinental Hotels Group PLC

CGP d.d. Novo Mesto Slovenija

Grad Ljubljana

InterContinental Slovenia

Hotel InterContinental Ljubljana

InterContinental Group

CGP Ljubljana

Zivorad Vasic

Milos Ceroviv

Alfredo Russo

Komnen Bakic

Restaurant B Ljubljana

accommodation in Ljubljana

hotel in Ljubljana

hotels Ljubljana

hotels in downtown Ljubljana

spa center Saruna Ljubljana

Ljubljana

Kranj bee

congress tourism