The InterContinental Hotel in Abu Dhabi was designed by American architect Benjamin Thompson and built in 1975. It is located on an artificial hill overlooking the beach. The hotel has 387 rooms and 54 luxury suites with views of the city or Gulf. It was one of the first luxury hotels built in Abu Dhabi and was intended to house heads of state. The simple exterior contrasts with ornate interiors decorated in gold and geometric patterns. Renovations in 2007 updated rooms and suites while preserving historic ballrooms. The hotel has several restaurants serving cuisines like Brazilian, Belgian, Italian and Lebanese.

1. Report
InterContinental Hotel 1980

2. -Intercontinental Hotel:
needs a frame, and the frame of the InterContinental Hotel isEvery art
. Built onentryrows of buildings that create a majesticalidiya Street with itsKh
royalty in a desert city where the land is mainlyshowstop of an artificial hill, it
flat.
Location:-
aroundisAbu Dhabi andlocated on the beach ofstar luxury hotel isThis five
.center5 km from the city
The Intercontinental is perfectly behind the beach and is less than 10 minutes
from both downtown and the International Exibition Center.
The Heritage village, the cultural foundation and the Lulu Island are also close
it. For an extremely unique shopping experience, the Gold Souk is a must,
while the more modern Marina and Abu Dhabi Mall are near.

3. history:-
blossoming, Abu Dhabi was still anterContinental was builtWhen the I
owned Abu Dhabi-Sheikh Zayed created the governmentIn 1975,capital.
he same year, theto build and manage hotels. In tNational Hotels Company
company signed a 50 million dollar deal for the construction of the
paying 90% of the total sumbyInterContinental Hotel in the Bateen area,
%. With the10residualwhile the InterContinental Hotel Group provided the
theobservedHilton and the Sheraton Corniche hotels, the InterContinental
beginnings of the tourism industry in Abu Dhabi. The hotel was intended to
the six heads of the Gulf Cooperation Councilprovide accommodations to
1981.the yearrst summit instates during their fi
hotel that was opened by Sheikhthe onlyThe Intercontinental hotel is
Zayed bin Sultan may he rest in peace, since it is the Hotel that has been built
to attend the first summit of the Gulf Cooperation council in 1981.
1981LEADERS INGCCHE ARRIVAL OFT
-Designer:-
Benjamin Thompson (July 3, 1918), known as Ben Thompson, was
an American architect.

4. He was born in Saint Paul, Minnesota, graduated from Yale
University in 1941, and then spent four years in the United
States Navy fighting in World War II. He moved
to Lexington after the war, Massachusetts, where he
participated in the design and creation of Six Moon Hill, a
neighborhood of modern houses. Thompson began his
career as an architect in 1946, when he helped
persuade Walter Gropius and six other architects to
form The Architects' Collaborative in Cambridge,
Massachusetts.In 1953, he founded Design Research, a company that provided
interior furnishings and accessories. Design Research was the first U.S.
importer and retailer of the Finnish clothing and textiles of Marimekko. The
firm eventually added stores in New York (1964) and San Francisco (1965). In
1969, he designed the company's revolutionary second Cambridge store,
notable for its extreme openness and use of glass. In 1970, Ben lost financial
control and ownership of Design Research.
-Architecture:
The InterContinental has white solid walls
that show contrast with the green of the land
and the blue colors of the sky. The façade
contains simple rows of windows organized in a
regular pattern. The architect Benjamin
Thompson prevented monotony by splitting
the hotel into two parallel planes. By this effect,
the hotel looks like it has an added dimension.
The break in between the planes is used to
make the presidential and royal suites more
expansive, thus quite suitably forming the crown of the building.
-Access (Entrance(s)):

5. -One main entrance to the hotel.
-2 entrances for the wedding hall.
-One VIP entrance and one behind the main entrance.
-Lighting:
In this hotel they used artificial and natural lighting; they put a lot of
opening in every single side of the hotel to have natural light and also
because they have many awesome views to look at, but this opining didn’t
stop them to put artificial lights, they placed a huge chandelier behind the
entrance inside restaurant and inside balls.

6. -Interior:-
Benjamin Thompson understood that modern simplicity will not meet
his client’s expectations, so the interior of the hotel was decorated in gold and
Orientalist with geometry, repetition and luxuries.
The hotel has a total of 387 rooms and 54 luxury suites. All rooms come
with either a great view of the city skyline or a view over the Arabian Gulf.
Guest rooms come furnished with the latest in technology, with satellite
TV, pay per view movies, and direct dial telephone with voice mail, work desk /
space and free standard services of the internet.
Luxuriously furnished room come with private bathrooms with a
Bathtub, minibar and tea and coffee maker.
Spacious and comfortable suites, have king bedrooms with large
seating area and a dining area, the marble bathrooms give a double vanity.
Suites enjoying privacy and can be opened into an adjourning bedrooms.

7. -Repetitive to Unique/ Geometry:-
The designer used repetition in many ways in chandelier, columns,
designs, also in geometry.

8. kind becauselast one from itst’s theI.This marble in the photo are from Egypt
it's very expensive.
Leisure, sports and recreational facilities:-
There is an outdoor swimming pool that looks over the hotels own
private marina and Yacht Club, tennis courts and squash court as well as a
state of the art gym and health club with sauna, Jacuzzi, steam room and
plunge pool.
There is also an on-site Spa, with treatment rooms offering a range of
massage and facial treatments.

9. Restaurants:-
CHAMAS
Is a Brazilian Churrascaria restaurant where they
. Also, theyfurniture’swood in floors, ceiling, walls anddark brownUsed
s.chandelierhad luxurious
BELGIAN CAFÉ
Belgian Café, the2009the yearopening init'sinceEver s
restaurant amongst locals,primaryhas been the city’s
Theexpats and tourists offering the best of Belgium.
a classically European setting.restaurant is designed in
The Belgian Café is a little piece of old Brussels right in
the heart of Abu Dhabi.
rrace serves up for anythe Belgian Café teIn addition,
occasion. Add to that a marina view that never
.anyonedisappoints

10. FISHMARKET
It is one of the first and most famous restaurants
in town and InterContinental Abu Dhabi’s
flagship outlet. The Fish market first opened its
doors 30 years ago. You can pick the freshest
seafood, cooked Thai-style and served in a
relaxed setting along the beach and you have the
recipe for a truly legendary dining
experience.
They designed the fish market like
classic Emirati houses with a modern
touch this is shown in every single
item such as the chairs, tables,
chandelier and even jars and
accessories. This makes the customer
feel the Emirati culture and way of life.
CIRCO
Circo offers expensive Italian flair built upon
groundwork of signature Tuscan recipes from
the kitchen of Maccioni matriarch Egidiana
and prepared by Chef Luca. The menu is
served in a lively, stylish setting reminiscent of
the old-style European circus tents which
motivated the restaurant's name. The menu
features signature Tuscan dishes with accurate

11. recipes passed down through the generations of the Maccioni family who
originated the restaurant. With locations in New York and Las Vegas, Circo is
the only restaurant in the UAE, exclusively at the iconic, InterContinental Abu
Dhabi
Circo’s dining room takes guests on a journey from the lively streets of Abu
Dhabi to a playful European carnival tent through its imaginative and
charming design. The radiant colour palette and cheerful decor creates a
vibrant, unusual and lively ambiance that is enhanced by luxurious interior
design.
THE YACHT CLUB
This brand is a new Asian attraction inspiration
from hotspots like Hong Kong, Hanoi, Tokyo,
Bangkok and more.
The Yacht Club is a hot favored in Abu Dhabi for a
many reasons. It’s a gorgeously designed club,
with mirrored walls, high ceilings and colorful
décor. Very obviously a nightclub, the floor plan
hearts around the bar and dance floor, though the
place still achieves its dining section on quiet
nights beautifully
The outdoor seating has comfortable enormous
couches, overseeing the marina, with charmingly
designed lighting and ambiance. That being said,
we opt for a table indoors, feeling it’s just a tad
warm to quite appreciate the outdoors, and so

12. comfortable up in one of the spherical booths
elevated over the sides of the dance floor.
BYBLOS SUR MER
This restaurant has a Lebanese
dining experience; it's over two floors with expansive
terraces,
It delights guests with its charismatic
atmosphere and stylish decor reminiscent of traditional
Phoenician forts. Adding to the heart-warming
ambiance.
At the InterContinental Abu Dhabi they are
continually bringing together the stylishness and
sophistication of the modern world with world-class
traditional flavors
The 300 seat restaurant is set over
two floors. The ground floor and terrace will
be the exclusive dining areas, where guests
will be transported to the coast of Byblos
and able to appreciate the magnificent
seaside view. The second floor will host
Byblos Sur Mer’slounge bar where singers
and performers will amuse guests
throughout the evening
They designed the enterance with
shesha because they have a special taste for
it, it’s a very luxuious restaurant.
Also for the logo they used a Lebanese
traditional dancers.

13. Renovations:-
llrooms were leftonly the bain 2007, wherehappenedRenovation
ever since Benjamin Thompsonuntouched
designed them. Curtains and carpets were
This isspoiled.changed because they were
ballrooms are one of the hotel’sbecause the
places: it is there that Sheikh Zayedalhistoric
many princelywherewelcomed the heads of the GCC states, and
he striking contrastIn addition, tweddings were celebrated, too.
.conservednterior wasbetween the simple exterior and the opulent i
rooms and suites were completely renewed because they were of anAll
but thewith classic tasteold design such as the Marie Antoinette and others
outside was kept the same. This resulted in people not believing how a place
so simple from the outside could be so luxurious from the inside.
Before there were four restaurants (Mexican, Moroccan, buffet
but after that they opened the Italian, Belgian,restaurant, and fish market)
They also added 2 pools.Lebanese and Brazilian restaurant.

14. RenovationBefore
fterA
Renovation
Reception
Before
Renovation
Reception
After
Renovation

15. - Site Plan:
-How my research was done:
I started my research on the Intercontinental by surfing the internet on 28th
of
January. I have found information about the designer and the history of the
place as well as many pictures of its interior. However, I couldn’t find any close
up images of the exterior also there are many designers named Benjamin
Thompson and none of them have a specific information that he did the hotel
so I choose the closest one with his works and timing. My internet surfing
took about 1 week but I couldn't find the site plan, sections and elevations
anywhere on the internet and when I tried to get the top view of the hotel
from Google earth it was not possible. After 2 weeks, I called the hotel and
booked an appointment with Ms. Reema El Baroode to talk about the hotel
and to provide me with any information that can help my research. At the
interview, 90% of what she told me was already provided on the internet and
when I asked about the site plan she refused to deliver it because it is part of
the hotel's privacy and that she would send me images of the hotel before
and after the renovations but after 2 days when she contacted me, she sent
me only 4 photos that were already on the internet. After that, I contacted her
once more to try to give me the site plan; she refused again because she
cannot let it out of its place. Also because they don’t allow people to know all
of the hotel's entrances and exits as well as other details since it can be a
danger for the hotel. However, she told me that I can get it only by getting the
signature of the owner of the hotel Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mubarak and that was
difficult for me to achieve but a family friend that works with the royals spoke
to Mr. Nasr at the hotel but he also refused and said the Sheikhs signature is
needed. So, I tried once again and asked for two letters from the university
one for the owner of the hotel (so I found out his office and I gave the
massage to his secretary Ms. Judy (02-4440062)) and the second one for the
manager (to allow me to get the site plan but they still didn’t reply). So for the
last time, I went to the hotel and drew a small sketch of the site plan.
-Things I learned:
Before entering the hotel, it's simple exterior gave me the idea that it is simple
in the interior as well .however, when I entered its interior was completely
different in many ways than the exterior and this allowed me to know that in

16. design, the exterior doesn’t always represent the interior and how in the
internet photos of maps and Google earth it looked smaller. However, in
reality it was much bigger and has enormous spaces which made me not
believe everything on the internet. My research also showed me how hard it is
to gather any information in the Arab world.

17. -References:
1- http://www.f-in-d.com/stories/abu-dhabi-guide-2014-
intercontinental-hotel
2- https://www.google.ae/maps/place/InterContinental+A
bu+Dhabi/@24.457961,54.329398,2a,90y/data=!3m5!1e
2!3m3!1s15871724!2e1!3e10!4m2!3m1!1s0x3e5e65f273
3ee575:0xdc9256595a122f92!6m1!1e1?hl=en
3- http://www.lux-hotels.com/uae/intercontinental-
abudhabi/image_gallery.php
4- http://www.arabiahorizons.com/InterContinental-Abu-
Dhabi/
5- http://www.otelow.com/intercontinental-hotel-abu-
dhabi.html
6- http://www.dining-intercontinental-
ad.ae/restaurants/byblos-sur-mer
7- http://www.tripadvisor.com.eg/Hotel_Review-g294013-
d299238-Reviews-InterContinental_Abu_Dhabi-
Abu_Dhabi_Emirate_of_Abu_Dhabi.html
8- http://uaehistory.com/%D8%B5%D9%88%D8%B1%D8%
A9-%D9%85%D9%86-
%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%82%D9%85%D8%A9-
%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A3%D9%88%D9%84%D9%89-
%D9%84%D9%85%D8%AC%D9%84%D8%B3-
%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%B9%D8%A7%D9%88%D
9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AE/?tag=555
9- http://news.travelerpedia.net/tourism/%D8%AA%D9%8
8%D8%B3%D8%B9%D8%A7%D8%AA-%D9%81%D9%8A-
%D9%81%D9%86%D8%AF%D9%82-
%D8%A7%D9%86%D8%AA%D8%B1%D9%83%D9%88%D
9%86%D8%AA%D9%8A%D9%86%D9%86%D8%AA%D8%

18. A7%D9%84-
%D8%A3%D8%A8%D9%88%D8%B8%D8%A8%D9%8A/
10- http://www.ihg.com/hotels/ae/ar/ab
u-
dhabi/auhha/hoteldetail?qAdlt=1&qBrs=6c.hi.ex.rs.ic.cp
.in.sb.cw.cv.ul.vn&qChld=0&qFRA=1&qGRM=0&qPSt=0
&qRRSrt=rt&qRef=df&qRms=1&qRpn=1&qRpp=12&qSH
p=1&qSmP=3&qSrt=sDD&qWch=0&srb_u=1&icdv=9961
8341&siclientid=9086&icdv=99618341
11- reema.baroudi@ihg.com
12- The Architecture of united Arab
Emirates- Auther: Salma Samar Damluji