Hotel Okura Amsterdam celebrates 40-year anniversary

Amsterdam, September 27th 2011 – Forty years ago his Royal Highness Prince Claus opened Hotel Okura Amsterdam on September 24th 1971. He started his speech by explaining the meaning of the word 'okura': "a big warehouse with precious things". Hotel Okura Amsterdam was the first European hotel of the Okura-chain, the head office is located in Tokyo.

Monday evening September 26th 2011 an exclusive party found place in the renovated Grand Ballroom in honour of the 40-year anniversary. The room was uniquely decorated with among other things as an ice bar, vegetable "bouquets" and four restaurants, from where the executive chefs of the hotel took care of the culinary festivities of the evening. Ambassadors, Royal highnesses and occupants of high politics and business were invited to celebrate the 40-year anniversary together with Hotel Okura Amsterdam.

Hotel Okura Amsterdam is not only the owner, but also the manager of the well-known Okura-tower. This has made it possible to constantly invest in the improvement of the quality of both the service level and the facilities. From the beginning the managements mission has been to be a trendsetter in all divisions and to always step it up a notch. In 2009 the hotel opened a culinary centre and the lobby was fully renovated. The Lobby Bar was also added, even as Okura's latest culinary asset Serre Restaurant inspired by Ciel Bleu. This summer the most luxurious ballroom of Amsterdam reopened, the Grand Ball Room. Additionally the first floor was fully renovated.

In 2002 the Yamazato Restaurant received a Michelin star as the first traditional Japanese restaurant in Europe. The innovative French Ciel Bleu Restaurant, situated on the 23th floor, followed in 2005. Hotel Okura Amsterdam then owned two out of five Michelin stars in Amsterdam. Nowadays the Ciel Bleu is awarded a second Michelin star which means Hotel Okura Amsterdam owns three Michelin stars.
For the past few years the hotel has been renovating in different phases, three standard rooms have been rebuild into two Superior Rooms. The hotel rooms are facilitated with the latest features of hotel room techniques. THE SUITE opened in 2006; this is the most luxurious suite of the Benelux with its 485 square meters. This fall the final phase of the hotel room renovations starts and the last 95 rooms will be redecorated.

Looking back on the achieved results the management can conclude that Hotel Okura Amsterdam has indeed grown to 'a warehouse with precious things'. M.P. van Aelst, President & General Manager Hotel Okura Amsterdam: "In the future Hotel Okura Amsterdam will keep innovating, investing and initiating"

About Okura Hotels & Resorts
October 2010 Hotel Okura Co. Ltd acquired a majority stake in JAL Hotels Co. Ltd.
Mister Marcel P. van Aelst, President and General Manager of Hotel Okura Amsterdam and Senior Executive Director and Managing Corporate Executive Officer of Hotel Okura Co., Ltd., now also holds the position of Representative Director and President of JAL Hotels. The organization structure of JAL Hotels Co. Ltd. is slowly but surely integrated with the structure of the Okura-chain. As a result of this transaction JAL Hotels became a consolidated subsidiary of Hotel Okura. Besides JAL Hotels the Okura flag includes the Nikko Hotels and Frontier Hotels.

NOT FOR PUBLICATION
For additional information and/or visuals relating to Hotel Okura Amsterdam, please contact: 
Melissa Peters / Manager Marketing & Communications. T: 020 - 67 87 487 
E: peters@okura.nl 
W: www.okura.nl