Press Dossier - Hotel Hesperia Tower 2009

HESPERIA TOWER HOTEL, TECHNOLOGY AND AVANT-GARDE DESIGN Turned into a reference of the new Barcelona’s skyline, the Hesperia Tower hotel, designed by the prestigious architect Richard Rogers in conjunction with Catalonian architects Alonso and Balaguer, is now part of the cityscape of central Barcelona. The tower is 105 metres high, with 27 floors, topped by a stunning glass dome, home to Santi Santamaría’s “Evo” restaurant. The hotel has 280 luxury rooms, 12 duplex suites with Jacuzzi in the bedroom, 7 executive suites and 1 presidential suite. It also has a 5,000 m2 Convention and Congress Centre, an innovative, top-class Sports and Urban Spa Centre Club Metropolitan -, along with the new central offices of the Hesperia Chain in an adjacent building. It is situated just a few minutes from the port and airport, at one of the most important, strategic locations for communications and access to the city. It is in the L’Hospitalet de Llobregat area of Barcelona, which has been undergoing a major transformation since construction began there on the new Barcelona Exhibition Centre site, Montjuïc 2. The architecture studios of the Richard Rogers Partnership and Alonso and Balaguer, were chosen to design this unique 5-star hotel. They are prestigious names in architecture today and were selected for their international renown, clear from the numerous hotel, landscaping, business and housing projects they have carried out throughout the world.

ARCHITECTURE WITH BIOCLIMATIC TECHNOLOGY The Hotel Hesperia Tower is a new hotel concept. Its unique character is no coincidence. Richard Rogers, one of the world’s most prestigious architects and recently awarded with the Pritzker Award, is the founder of a movement known as high technology. He trained at the Architectural Association School of Architecture in London and at Yale University. His works reflects his passion for technology and the concept of the building as machine. He is an enthusiastic urbanist and his projects focus on creating places for people. Rogers’ work includes the Pompidou Centre in Paris, the Millennium Dome in London, as well as the Lloyds, Reuters and Channel 4 buildings in London. He also designed the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, the extension to Marseille’s airport and the South Bank Centre in Berlin and London. 1

He is known as the number one promoter of bioclimatic architecture, and Rogers has used these techniques in the construction of the Hesperia Tower designed to reduce energy consumption and polluting emissions. The architecture studio of Luis Alonso and Sergi Balaguer has carried out more than 700 works and projects, for housing as well as public and privately financed buildings. In 1999, their company started working with Richard Rogers, and they are currently working on 3 major projects together, such as the leisure complex at “Les Arenes” former Bullring in Barcelona, the “Protos de Peñafiel” Winery at Ribera del Duero in Valladolid province, and the Hesperia Tower Hotel in Barcelona, together with its sports club Metropolitan. Alonso and Balaguer are specialists in Bioclimatic Architecture, and they have designed and headed projects for twelve Sports Clubs in different Spanish and Chilean locations. They have received various national and international awards; they have published a range of works, and are considered amongst the best skyscraper architects in the world. INTERIOR DESIGN GCA Arquitectes Associats is the studio in charge of the interior design project for the Hesperia Tower Hotel. The project has been designed by architects Josep Juanpere and Maria Vives and developing the project a team made up of Toni Soler, Ester Falcó, Mónica Daza and Gisela Grandes. The GCA Arquitectes Associats Architecture Studio was founded in Barcelona in 1986 by Josep Juanpere and Antoni Puig. It currently has a team of 8 partners and over a 100 professionals. GCA Arquitectes Associats design and develop architecture, town planning and interior design. Over the years, the studio has developed projects for hotels, offices, housing, commercial areas and buildings. Their projects are characterised by conceptual and spatial innovation, always respecting the character of the environment, and maintaining the balance between past and present in refurbishment works. Of the projects they have carried out, special mention should be made of Hotel Arts, the Gran Marina Hotel (Barcelona World Trade Center), Hotel AC Barcelona, Hotel Prestige, Hotel Casa Fuster, Hotel Cram; offices for Pronovias, Cuatrecasas Abogados, Banca Mora (Andorra), the Centre of Logistic Activities Zal; interior design for top level boutiques as well as Sergi Arola’s, Carles Gaig’s and Drolma restaurants. The 280 rooms and suites available at Hotel Hesperia Tower have large windows and spectacular views over the city. The exquisite décor, together with the warm, welcoming colours and balanced lighting, bring to our guests a sense of relax and well-being, whether travelling for business or pleasure. All rooms have spacious dressing rooms, hydro massage showers and wall-towall, anti-mist mirrors, along with butler service, pillow menu, free Wi-Fi connection, plasma TV, Bvlgari welcome pack, etc. 2

A COMPLEX AT ONE WITH ITS SURROUNDINGS The Hesperia Tower has been a major contribution to the urban transformation of the L’Hospitalet de Llobregat area. The project includes the completion of Bellvitge Park, close to the hotel, building a residence for students at the nearby Ciutat Sanitaria, as well as a commercial and leisure area, with restaurants and a cinema complex. These projects will bring a better offer to users of the airport, the Barcelona Fira Exhibition Centre, and the Zona Franca Industrial Park – some of our complex’s potential clients. The Hesperia Tower is now one of the top hotels in Hesperia that has recently entered into the luxury sector with hotels in Madrid, Lanzarote, Alicante, La Coruña and La Toja Island (Pontevedra). With this project, Hesperia assumes a major commitment to the environment and to the concept of quality that characterises all its locations. The Auditorium at the Hotel Hesperia Tower is an example of the chain’s technological investment, and is a reliable reflection of its concept of progress and growth, embodied in this top-class establishment.

EXCLUSIVE AND PERSONALIZED ACCOMODATION The most exclusive and personalized rooms are in the 21st, 22nd and 23rd floor, corresponding to the Tower Club. The Tower Club is an integral concept designed for frequent business travellers, offering them solutions and anticipating their needs. This service offers early check-in and late check-out, direct access to the Metropolitan Sport Club & Spa, and free access to the Tower Club Lounge, where clients will find a library and a selection of CDs, Bang & Olufsen Entertainment Center, Business Corner and private lounges. There is a selection of food and drink (from Express Breakfast to designer tapas by Santi Santamaría) during the day; personal assistants for leisure and business activities.

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THE GASTRONOMY TOWER The Hotel Hesperia Tower has also made a name for itself in gastronomy, with the opening of the Bouquet Restaurant & Bar and the EVO Restaurant, awarded with a Michelin Star and lead by Chef Santi SantaMaria.

Stars in the dome The awarded EVO Restaurant is located in the glass dome of Hotel Hesperia Tower. Its head chef is Santi Santamaría, who received three Michelin stars at his Can Fabes Restaurant in Sant Celoni, and two more at the Santceloni Restaurant at Hotel Hesperia Madrid. With EVO, Santi Santamaría continues his collaboration with the Hesperia Group. EVO is short for “Evolution”. This word and concept is in line with the architectural atmosphere provided by Richard Rogers, and with Santamaría’s new gastronomic concept, which undergoes an evolutionary process in the content of its cuisine and in the aesthetics and workings of the new restaurant. The atmosphere at EVO is modern, without superfluous luxury, but offering great personality. This atmosphere is marked by the spectacular views, in a unique setting in Europe, born to be a Barcelona icon and a landmark in Catalonian gastronomy. Its menu is, as defined by Santi Santamaría himself, “an ode to produce, which opts for a mixture of amiable, Mediterranean proximity, with the earth as essential source of inspiration, and the strength that comes from the tastes and aromas of nature.” The restaurant team is headed by Chef Ismael Alegría. It is dedicated to progressive cuisine, in the same vein as the renowned Can Fabes and Sanceloni restaurants, true to foundations and techniques with 25 years of international prestige. All this has made it into the ideal place for group or private celebrations, and for business meals in surroundings marked by striking architecture and top-class cuisine. Famous Chef also runs the Bouquet Restaurant & Bar, located on the hotel’s 2nd floor, offering us a more traditional and homemade cuisine. Inside a modern atmosphere full of design details, it offers a new and casual option for daily lunches, but maintaining the quality and tradition which characterize Santi. The new menu of the Bouquet Restaurant combines fresh and healthy products of the Mediterranean, which change depending on the season, and offers a great wine selection. The Axis Bar & Café, located in the hotel lobby, has different areas to enjoy an aperitif, a snack, a drink or a simple cup of coffee, depending on the time of day. It is the new, ideal place to get together and enjoy “Martini Hour”, with a major selection of creative cocktails, accompanied by delicious tapas.

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Finally, the Azimut Restaurant is specially designed for previously booked groups, and offers a varied buffet with market produce, and a different theme each day.

THE CONGRESS AND CONVENTION CENTRE Hotel Hesperia Tower has a 5,000 m2 Congress and Conference Centre which can be adapted to all needs, with various halls, outstanding for their multifunctional nature. The Congress Centre offers: one grand hall measuring 1,614 m2; an auditorium with capacity for 500 people; 4 multi-function rooms (500 m2 in total) with access to outdoor terraces ideal for cocktails, coffee breaks and social events; 6 rooms which can be configured to different sizes with separation panels and 6 boardrooms made in fine materials, all of them with the latest audiovisual equipment. Furthermore, it also offers natural daylight in the majority of halls, good access, Press and Business Centres, and free wireless Internet connection throughout, making it an undisputable landmark in the organisation of events in Barcelona. SPORT & HEALTH

The Metropolitan Group is the national leader in sport and health, with eleven centres throughout Spain and six more under construction. It operates throughout the south district of Barcelona, in places such as Hospitalet, Zona Franca, El Prat, Cornellá, etc, which have lacked this kind of facilities and services up until now. With an internal connection, guests and clients of Hotel Hesperia Tower have direct access to the Metropolitan Gran Vía installations, where they will find a range of sport, health and beauty services and facilities that are all but unique in the world. In this way, guests have access from their rooms to any of more than 100 weekly classes (cycling, tai-chi, yoga, step…), to the SPA area, the 25m swimming pool, etc., with the exclusive, personal service that characterises the Metropolitan Chain. The philosophy of this centre is to create a place where design and technology play a primordial role, achieving a warm, welcoming atmosphere where attention is paid to every last detail. The “Metropolitan-wide membership” formula means that members can use all the facilities of the entire chain, so that you can continue your training programme or health and beauty treatments during business trips or holidays. 5

Facilities and services at Metropolitan Gran Via Centre: Fitness Room • Activities and Indoor Cycling Room • SPA (hydromassage pools, Turkish baths, saunas, special ice showers) • Water features in each changing room (Turkish bath, sauna) • “Metro Zen” relaxation area (300m2) • Beauty Centre (facial and body treatments, massages...) • Pilates • Personal training • Swimming pools • Healthcare service • Nutrition • Solarium • Paddle Tennis • Towel service • Executive laundry service • Car park • Restaurant AWARDS The Hesperia Tower Hotel is one of Condé Nast Traveller’s top 20 hotels. The 5-star hotel is number 17 on this publication’s annual hot list of the sixty best hotels in the world, and is the top Spanish hotel featured. Its stunning views, innovative architecture and spectacular design, are just some of the qualities that have earned the Hesperia Tower its major distinction. Furthermore, the hotel has received some other prizes like Alimara 2006 Award for The Best Corporate Image Campaign; The Best Architecture gave for Business Traveller Magazine and The Best Recommended Hotel by Actualidad Económica Magazine. GROWTH OF THE HESPERIA GROUP With more than thirty years experience, the Hesperia Group has become one of the most important national hotel chains, with establishments in the main Spanish cities. The chain currently has 50 hotels, of which 46 are in Spain, 1 in Andorra, 1 in London (Great Britain) and 2 on Margarita Island (Venezuela), with more than 7,500 rooms in total. For more press information: Rocio Aparcero- Telf. +34 934 135 000 Hesperia Tower [email protected]

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