38 hotels to be built in Astana for EXPO 2017

38 hotels will be built in Astana by 2017, Tengrinews reports, citing the Astana Akimat (municipal authorities). There are 75 hotels in Astana, with only 4 hotels that have more than 150 rooms and the remaining hotels ranging from 4 to 30 rooms. At this capacity, the city is not ready for the influx of guests and visitors during the EXPO-2017. The Head of the Architecture and Town-Planning Management of Astana Vitaliy Siletsky shared the plans for EXPO-2017: “The General Plan considers all the aspects, including the vicinity of social infrastructure such as kindergartens and schools, fire stations and proportion of commercial locations (…). 38 hotels that are at the design stage will be opened by 2017”. The Akim (Governor) of Astana Imangali Tasmagambetov said that world-famous hotels will be built in Astana prior to the EXPO-2017. “The capital’s architecture will get such significant buildings like an opera and ballet theater, a library, the First President’s Foundation, National Defense University, domed city, Abu-Dhabi Plaza multi-functional complex, Hilton, Marriot, Ritz-Carlton and Four Seasons hotels, as well as an ice palace and a martial arts palace for 5 thousand seats,” said Tasmagambetov.