Swiss-Belinn Medan

Medan started as a village called Kampung Medan (Medan Village). Kampung Medan was founded by Guru Patimpus around the 1590s. Because Kampung Medan sits on Tanah Deli (Land of Deli), Kampung Medan is also known as Medan-Deli. The original location of Kampung Medan is an area where the Deli River meets the Babura River.

The diary of the Portuguese merchant in early 16th century states that the name of Medan was actually derived from Medina, which is a holy city in the western part of Saudi Arabia. However, other sources indicate that the name of Medan actually came from the word "Maidan" in the Indian Hindi language meaning "ground" or "land" (as in Pragati Maidan in Delhi). In the Karo-Indonesia dictionary written by Darwin Prinst SH published in 2002, he wrote that Medan could also be defined as "recover" or "be better".

The first inhabitants of Medan were Malays from the Malay Peninsular and the Bataks from the Karo Highlands. The Sultanate of Deli began to flourish when Sultan Iskandar Muda sent his warlord, Gocah Pahlawan Laksamana Khoja Bintan, to be the representative of the  Aceh Sultanate in Tanah Deli. This stimulated growth in both the population and the culture of Medan. In the second year reign of the Sultan of Deli (1669–1698), there was a cavalry battle in Medan.

Medan did not experience significant development until the 1860s, when Dutch colonialists began clearing the land for tobacco plantations. Medan quickly became a centre of government and commercial activity, dominating the development of Indonesia's western region. The Dutch governed Tanah Deli from 1658, after Sultan Ismail, ruler of the Kingdom of Siak Sri Indrapura, yielded some of his land, Deli, Langkat and Serdang. In 1915, Medan officially became the capital of North Sumatra Province, and officially a city in 1918.

Medan features a tropical rain forest climate with average city temperatures of approximately 27 degrees Celsius throughout the year. Some of Medan's historic architecture from the colonial era has been lost to make way for modern buildings.

One of the unique features of Medan is the motorized becaks that are found almost everywhere to take passengers around in the city. The fare for riding a 'becak' is relatively cheap and is usually negotiated beforehand. There are also more common forms of transport, such as taxis and minibuses, known as sudako.

The seaport of Belawan is about 20 km to the north of the city centre. Polonia International Airport is located in the heart of the city. Kuala Namu International Airport is a new airport under construction and is due to replace Polonia in mid-2012.
 

Featuring 175 well-appointed guestrooms comprising Superior, Deluxe, Superior Deluxe, Junior Suites and Suites, Swiss-Belinn Medan offers business or leisure travellers all the comforts and amenities of an international hotel blended with warm local hospitality.

Savor our selection of international and local dishes in a combination of bar, restaurant and lounge. The restaurant serves for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The lounge and bar, a stylish place to sit back and relax.

Swiss-Belinn Medan offers five meeting rooms: Sinta, Rama, Semar Meeting Room 1, 2 and 3. Each meeting room is equipped with modern facilities including: LCD projector, screen and audio equipment to cater to meetings, seminars and parties in small capacities ranging from 10 to 120 sitting to standing receptions.
 
Sinta and Rama Meeting Rooms are located on the lobby area and can be combined for a venue for a capacity of up to 80 people.
 
Semar Meeting Room 1, 2 and 3 are located on the second floor and can be combined into a larger venue with a capacity of up to 120 people.
 
Each meeting room is fully equipped with state-of-the-art facilities and are an ideal venue to host business meetings, conferences, seminars andsocial functions.

• State-of-the-art audio-visual equipment
• LCD projector and portable screen
• Internet access
• Standard sound system with 2 microphones
• Meeting equipment: notepad, pencil, candies and mineral water
• Flip chart, white board and markers
• Reception desks with flower arrangement
• Room set up and arrangement