InterContinental Opens 272-Key Location in Osaka Mega Development

By Eliza Theiss, Associate Editor

Japan’s second largest city, Osaka has been seeing some major investments lately in its bid to become one of the gateway cities of Asia. Part of that growth is InterContinental Hotels Group’s newest location, the InterContinental Osaka, located in Grand Front Osaka’s Tower C, floors 20 through 32.  The recently opened Grand Front Osaka is a massive mixed-use landmark development comprised of commercial outlets, a convention center, office buildings, as well as entertainment and academic facilities, the InterContinental Osaka offers some of the highest-end services in the Japanese metropolis.

The 215-key hotel offers some of the largest lodgings in the city with rooms averaging 538 square feet. In fact, the 57-unit InterContinental Residences, a development of IHG located in the same building features the largest suites in Osaka with their three-bedroom suites. The serviced residential component is comprised of fully furnished two- and three-bedroom units. Making units of the stunning skyline of the city, the hotel offers panoramic views of Osaka and its surrounding areas, starting with the hotel lobby, located on the twentieth floor of one of the Grand Front Osaka towers. And while the dynamic life of the city below is visible from InterContinental Osaka, the hotel itself contrasts the activity with its calm décor inspired by traditional elements, such as the use of natural stones and wood and combining them with glass touches.

Amenities at InterContinental Osaka include four event and meeting spaces totaling 9,150 square feet that feature views of Grand Front Osaka’s gardens, as well as a wedding chapel and ancillary wedding related facilities, taking up the hotel’s second and third levels. Further amenities include a 24-hour business center, 24-hour Fitness Suite fitness center, indoor poll, 24-hour lounge, high-speed Wi-Fi throughout the property and private limousines, among others. InterContinental Osaka features several dining options, including the hotel’s signature restaurant Pierre, the NOKA brasserie, the Adee lounge and bar, the Folly restaurant, the pastry and cake-shop Stressed and 3-60, The Lounge.

“Entering Osaka is an important milestone for InterContinental Hotels Group; it has great potential to be one of Asia’s major gateway cities,” said  Chief Executive, Asia, Middle East & Africa, IHG Jan Smits, in a press release. InterContinental Osaka is IHG’s seventh Japan property. The location will be operated by IHG ANA, Japan’s largest international hospitality operator.

Grand Front Osaka opened in late April in the 20-million strong megacity of Osaka. According to The Asahi Shimbun, the mixed-use shopping and business development consist of four skyscrapers. The 473,600 square feet of commercial space of the project houses 266 stores and restaurants, company office spaces as well the InterContinental Osaka’s hotel and serviced residences. The project broke ground in 2010 on more than 17 acres of the former Umeda freight station’s 59 acres. The land was reportedly the last chunk of central real estate in Osaka.