Indonesia’s Lost Hotels: Bali Beach InterContinental Hotel
InterContinental Bali Beach Hotel (BBIH) was built in 1962 at the suggestion of the first Indonesia President, Soekarno, before the completion of the Tampak Siring Palace. Development funds obtained from the spoils of war in the Japanese colonial era, but, ironically, the construction was done by a Japanese contractor, Taisei Construction, together with PT. PP Indonesia.
The project was completed when Soekarno had resigned from his post in 1966. The hotel was subsequently inaugurated by Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX with operational management handed over to the InterContinental Hotels -then was a luxury hotel chain established by PanAm as accommodation for the aircraft cabin crew and for the tourists who fly PanAm.
Located right on the waterfront with views of Mount Agung and the Nusa Lembongan island, the hotel is laid in an area of over 40 hectares of which are equipped with the best facilities in Bali of its time. BBIH building remains the tallest hotel in Bali (10 storeys) to date -there had been no regulation on the maximum height of man-made structure in Bali until years later.
