Brisbane's Holiday Inn turns into Shangri La's Traders Hotel

Brisbane's Holiday Inn hotel is a Holiday Inn no more after reopening as the first Australian Traders Hotel, from Hong Kong's Shangri-La group.

Smack dab central above the Brisbane Transit Centre, the new Traders is just the third hotel in Australia run by the group, after flagship outpost Shangri-La Sydney and Shangri-La The Marina in Cairns.

In Brisbane, 191 rooms are available overlooking the Roma Street Parklands and Brisbane's skyline.

Seven hundred square metres of meeting and function space are also available, while MJ's Restaurant and Bar offer modern Australian cuisine and light snacks respectively.

Business travellers who like to keep fit on the road will enjoy the 13th-floor rooftop fitness centre, including cardio and weight machines, plus whirlpools to take away the muscle strain.

General Manager Bruno Cristol is certainly excited: "We are thrilled to debut the Traders brand in Australia to leisure and business travelers alike."

John Walton

Aviation journalist and travel columnist John took his first long-haul flight when he was eight weeks old and hasn't looked back since. Well, except when facing rearwards in business class.