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Shanghai’s venues come of age |
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By Amy Fabris-Shi
 
| KEE Shanghai
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When it comes to venues, Shanghai still leaves a lot to be desired. Greater China Offsite Connections general manager, Ms Anna Patterson, said: “There has been some development in the range of venues available in Shanghai – but there is still a long way to go. We seem to be limited at the moment to a small amount of off-site venues, hotels and historical sites, which can be difficult to obtain.”
The situation is set to improve, with several openings before the 2010 World Expo. These include a handful of landmark hotels, luxury Yachts de Paris vessels on the Huangpu River, and the expo venues themselves, including Shanghai Convention Centre.
Event planners also note the added quality of facilities at the newer venues, such as detailed audiovisual specifications and space for catering and car parking. Current en vogue spaces include Theatre-in-the-Round at 1933, an art deco abattoir transformed into an events venue with 32,500m2 of indoor and outdoor space. The 492m Shanghai World Financial Center is highly regarded for its 21 eco-friendly Forum meeting rooms and Sky Arena, a 450-person space on the 94th floor. Smaller events are a speciality of KEE Shanghai, a private members club in a heritage French Concession mansion for events of between 10 and 80 guests. Park Hyatt’s 93rd floor private dining room is a panoramic locale, seating 100 people.
HLD Event Services director, Mr Stefano Ritella, said: “Hotels are still reliable choices – and rates should be very attractive in the coming months.”
With more openings and a slough in demand, hotels are fighting hard for MICE business. Ms Patterson added: “We recently secured the Shangri-La Pudong ballroom for a previously scoped off-site event without a room hire. This made a dramatic difference to the client’s event, budget and perception that hotels are too expensive for events.”
Event planners are also increasingly looking beyond Shanghai to neighbouring cities. Mr Ritella said: “Hangzhou seems to be top of many people’s lists, and resorts in the area are capable of meeting international standards.”
The MINT Organization director of events, Ms Lori Moggy, added the imminent arrival of the Four Seasons and Banyan Tree brands in Hangzhou would increase the options for top-tier events.
“We are also using the F1 track in Jiading district, and a number of marques in Suzhou,” Ms Patterson said.
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