Celebrity chefs collaborating on new Raffles Hotel Singapore culinary concepts: (from left) Anne-Sophie Pic, Alain Ducasse and Jereme Leung
Ahead of its reopening scheduled for 1Q2019, Raffles Hotel Singapore has unveiled new dining concepts, including three helmed by celebrity chefs.
Where the 122-year-old Bar & Billiard Room once stood, chef Alain Ducasse will present his first Mediterranean sharing and grill concept in the world, BBR by Alain Ducasse.
Celebrity chefs collaborating on new Raffles Hotel Singapore culinary concepts: (from left) Anne-Sophie Pic, Alain Ducasse and Jereme Leung
In homage to the restaurant’s glory days as a club during British colonial rule, dining will also be accompanied by a lively bar scene.
The new concept will serve sharing plates and regular-sized dishes, as well as feature an open kitchen with charcoal grills and wood-fired pizza ovens.
Three-Michelin-star chef Anne-Sophie Pic will debut her entry into Asia with the opening of La Dame de Pic in the hotel’s dining room in the Main Building. The restaurant will boast “an elaborate and diverse collection of pairings”, using wines, cocktails, whisky, sake, tea, coffee, dashi, broth and consommés.
Marking celebrity MasterChef Jereme Leung’s return to Singapore, 兿 yì by Jereme Leung will open on level 3 of the newly restored Raffles Arcade. The restaurant will use single sourced and seasonal ingredients and “create authentic taste profiles enhanced by modern culinary techniques”, Leung said.
The refreshed Raffles Arcade will welcome the Butcher’s Block, which will focus on fine cuts of single sourced meats. The restaurant will also feature communal tables and a wine library housing more than 100 different wine labels.
The hotel will also bring back signature concepts with some enhancements.
For example, Tiffin Room, part of Raffles Hotel Singapore’s history since 1892, will return with a refreshed semi-buffet lunch and a la carte dinner, specialties served in tiffin boxes, tableside service by chefs, and a restored decor.
Home of the Singapore Sling for over a hundred years, the Long Bar’s plantation-inspired décor will be refreshed, and the famous Long Bar counter restored.
Established as a tribute to famous writers that have come through the doors of Raffles Hotel Singapore over the years, Writers Bar will be expanded to a full bar with bespoke craft cocktails, wines and spirits.
The hotel is now in its final phase of restoration and will remained fully closed for a reopening planned for the first quarter of 2019.
The initiative could help generate supplementary income for hosts in rural communities; rice transplanter in Sekinchan, Selangor
Tourism Selangor is piloting a state-endorsed initiative to train and certify locals in Sabak Bernam, Klang and Kuala Selangor as community experts to tourists.
Training for the first batch of 26 locals in the Selangor Community Host Programme, set to conclude in September, comprises four parts, each spanning four days over a five-month-period. It culminates in a written examination which candidates must pass to receive a certificate from the Department of Skills Development.
The initiative could help generate supplementary income for hosts in rural communities; man operating a rice transplanter in in Sekinchan, Selangor
The certificate is also recognised by Malaysia’s Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture and Tourism Selangor.
Tourism Selangor general manager, Noorul Ashikin Mohd Din, said the pilot was initiated to groom community experts with knowledge of the history, culture, heritage, local food and the rich stories in their areas.
The project will also have a social impact, helping rural communities earn additional income through guiding and showcasing cottage industry products and local craft products.
Tourism Selangor will also help them market their services through its website, and the local experts can broker guiding arrangements with inbound agents, added Noorul.
She further shared that Tourism Selangor plans to roll out the training programme to four other districts in Selangor, namely Ulu Langat, Gombak, Ulu Selangor and Kuala Langat.
Azizi Borhan, managing director, Asutra Convex, said: “Local community guides is not a new idea. It is practised in other countries such as Indonesia, Thailand and Brazil, where local guides… take over (from) tourist guides (when the tour) reaches their areas of specialisation.”
While local community guiding brings social benefits and complements
the service of existing guides, Azizi pointed out that it might also result in an increase in tour guide fees.
“Now two guides will have to be paid, instead of one. The payment mechanism will have to be sorted out. What could be done is to pay the travel agency guides to do the transfers and for the specialised guides to do their tours within their specialised areas,” Azizi remarked.
Tauzia Hotels' Stefano de Champeaux (middle) and Harris Hotels' Stefano de Champeaux (right) at the 17th anniversary celebration
Indonesian homegrown hotel management company Tauzia Hotel Management has unveiled details of its South-east Asia expansion, in addition to enhancements to its flagship Harris brand to strenghten its foothold in the growing four-star segment in Indonesia.
Marking the company’s first foray beyond Indonesia is the 30-room Liu Men Malacca, which is expected to open under the Preference Hotel brand come October.
Tauzia Hotels’ Marc Steinmeyer (middle) and Harris Hotels’ Stefano de Champeaux (far right) at the 17th anniversary celebration
Next in line is a Harris Hotel under construction in Nha Trang, Vietnam, targeted to open in the next couple of years.
Marc Steinmeyer, founder of Tauzia Hotels, said: “This is part of our efforts to bring the Tauzia Hotels brands to (South-east Asian) countries. We are expecting to announce more properties in the region soon.”
The regional expansion was one of several developments the hotel group announced during its 17th anniversary celebration in Jakarta on August 8.
At the event, the company also introduced the third generation of its flagship Harris brand, emphasising its technology and lifestyle aspects.
Stefano de Champeaux, brand manager Harris Hotels, said that after 16 years in the market (with a refresh in 2012), the brand has to be transformed once again to strengthen its positioning amid a growing crop of properties in the four-star category.
Apart from a new logo, the enhancements include On the Move by Harris, a lobby concept where guests can connect, shop and eat in the lobby area, which includes co-living and co-working spaces, a grab-and-go F&B outlet and a boutique.
“Our aim is to keep the lobby busy with the guests interacting at the lobby area,” de Champeaux.
To keep to its healthy lifestyle concept, Harris Hotels will offer more healthy food and beverage options at its restaurant and grab-and-go counter, as well as work with Celebrity Fitness, a fitness centre operator with clubs across Indonesia and Asia, to run regular health and wellness activities in the hotel.
The first property to open under the refreshed brand is Harris Hotel Solo, which was launched earlier this year.
Tauzia Hotel Management is adding nine new hotels representing some 1,300 rooms to its portfolio this year. It has also signed up another eight hotels with a total of 1,000 rooms.
A heritage icon in Ho Chi Minh City, Caravelle Saigon, is undergoing an extensive renovation.
All 303 rooms in the hotel’s Opera Wing, together with its ballrooms, meeting rooms and function areas, will be refreshed over the coming months.
New room design at Caravelle Saigon
According to a statement from the hotel, guestrooms will be “significantly upgraded” and refurbished with expanded bathrooms, as well as plush interiors.
The first of the redesigned spaces is scheduled to be unveiled in the first quarter of 2019, and dining outlets and Heritage Wing suites will remain open in the meantime.
A previous major enhancement on the property was in 1998, when a 24-storey tower was built to complement the original 10-storey building and accommodate more guests.
Caravelle Saigon, a WorldHotels’s affiliate hotel, holds decades of history, having once housed the Australian Embassy, the New Zealand Embassy, and the Saigon bureaus of NBC, ABC and CBS during the 1960s, which made it a notable communications hub in the Vietnam war.
Hotel Maya Kuala Lumpur has appointed Teekay Goh as general manager.
Goh embarked on his travel career with Mayflower Acme Tours and thereafter built up a career in the hospitality industry in the following two decades.
His vast hospitality experiences encompass a spectrum of hotels, resorts and serviced suites, including various senior sales positions with Berjaya Hotels & Resorts, Pangkor Island Beach Resort, Lanson Place Ambassador Row Kuala Lumpur and Parkroyal Serviced Suites Kuala Lumpur.
Rasa Ria Reserve, a 64-acre nature reserve situated in Shangri-La’s Rasa Ria Resort & Spa, relaunches this October with new adventure and cultural experiences. Established in 1996 to protect and educate visitors about Malaysia’s Sabah culture and indigenous animals and flora, the expanded innovative recreational proposition enhances the reserve’s conservation and education programme.
Rasa Ria Reserve boasts distinct experiential activities to encourage residents and hotel guests to explore, engage and connect with the abundance of wildlife. The protected 64-acre nature reserve is nestled within Shangri-La’s Rasa Ria Resort & Spa’s 400 acres site which is watched over by Sabah’s iconic Mount Kinabalu, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is home to long-tailed macaques, western tarsiers, bear cats and the famous huge-eyed slow loris, plus over 60 species of birds, 100 species of butterflies, pangolins and a wide spectrum of native plants.
Guests are now able to choose from a variety of new and enhanced experiences in the nature reserve including the creation of a Discovery Centre which educates wannabe explorers about the indigenous wildlife and plants through interactive exhibits. Constructed with environmentally sustainable materials and designed to capture the essence of the rainforest the Discovery Centre sits at the heart of Rasa Ria Reserve and is the gateway to the reserve’s unique trail system that covers five miles of walks through the tropical jungle. Six walking trails individually showcase a different side to the tropical jungle from entomology to herbs, native, adventure, wildlife and canopy, offering up to two hours per walk of exploration, learning and fun.
A new natural rain watering hole enhances the local wildlife’s habitat as well as provides the perfect look-out spot in which to see nocturnal animals including the adorable pangolin. Set in the midst of the Rasa Ria Reserve, the watering hole encourages local wildlife, which roam freely across the 64-acre reserve, to feed and drink allowing guests to get close to a multitude of creatures thus creating a truly magical experience.
The Ria Lookout summit platform with views of Mount Kinabalu has been extended and doubled in size to offer more guests the chance to experience the early morning sunrise hike. Serving continental breakfast on the summit deck, guests will have stunning views across the Tambalang River and Shangri-La’s very own 18-hole championship golf course, Dalit Bay Golf & Country Club. For those who want a wedding breakfast with a difference, couples can now enjoy an intimate celebration for up to 20 guests.
Youngsters love Rasa Ria Reserve with perennial favourites like Ranger for the Day allowing children to feed animals and help the team monitor flora and fauna whilst learning about the jungle. To add to the experience for mini adventurers, the handcrafted Rasa Ria Playground, inspired by the reserve, offers children the ultimate place to run wild. Home to play sculptures which represent some of Sabah’s famous wildlife, net tunnels with zip line, tree trunk climbing zone, large basket swing and a sandpit for mini-archaeologists to go hunting for dinosaur bones.
Book a stay at Shangri-La’s Rasa Ria Resort & Spa for 3 nights and enjoy the ‘Closer to Kota Kinabalu’ package, offering guests access to Rasa Ria Reserve, daily buffet breakfast and return airport transfers. Offer includes a jungle walk, night tour, ranger experience and adventure playground. Available until 23 December 2018.
Created by underwater naturalist and artist Jason deCaires Taylor, the Coralarium is said to pay homage to sea life and the coral house reef surrounding the resort
Reporting by Raini Hamdi and Feizal Samath
The Maldives President’s Office has ordered the newly-opened Fairmont Maldives Sirru Fen Fushi to remove life-size human-form sculptures that form an underwater art installation at the resort, citing “significant public sentiment” they constitute idol-worship.
The nearly 30 sculptures were created by renowned British environmental sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor for the resort’s Sculpture Coralarium which – aside from the unique value as being the world’s first semi-submerged underwater art gallery – is intentioned by the artist and the Accor hotel as a deeper dive into the connection between man and the environment. It is also a coral regeneration project that sees art & design aiding coral rehabilitation.
Created by underwater naturalist and artist Jason deCaires Taylor, the Coralarium is said to pay homage to sea life and the coral house reef surrounding the resort
“Our marine environment is really changing rapidly and there is really a need to start to protect it…the overall aim of this work is to sort of connect visitors to the sea, and to kind of open up a portal to this incredible world which is still very little understood,” said the artist in a short video that’s part of a press kit given to TTG Asia by the resort during an interview at ILTM Asia Pacific in Singapore in May.
But Islam, the official religion of the Maldives, prohibits the creation of images of sentient beings, and this latest incident once again reflects the uneasy co-existence that may arise between religion & culture and travel & tourism.
That said, industry members interviewed largely believe this order was politically motivated, i.e. the government is playing to religious sentiments in light of presidential elections next month.
Many are baffled, as a project such as this, weighing over 200 tonnes in all, would not be installed had it not have received a series of approvals from the authorities, they said.
Said Hussain Sunny Umar, CEO of Maldives Getaways: “Religious issues have been surfacing recently as we are moving towards the election period (September 23). Sections of the public have taken the underwater museum phenomenon to social media using an absurd comparison relating it to mannequins in clothing stores and selling alcohol and pork in resorts.
“Although certain rules are black and white – for instance, selling alcohol and pork are haram (forbidden) by law in the Maldives – it is available on resort islands throughout the history of tourism.
“I truly believe Fairmont would have taken the necessary approvals from the required institutions and it’s sad to see this unfortunate event has cost them dearly.”
Said a local hotelier on the condition of anonymity: “This is due to a religious uproar and because elections are in September, the government is playing to religious sentiments. If the claim is that it is sensitive to Islam and that idol-worship is not permitted, then why are resorts selling alcohol and pork, which are banned in Islam? Also, people are not supposed to live together unless they are married, according to Islam, but this is permitted in resorts, whether it is locals or foreigners is immaterial.
Some opine that the order to remove the structures could be more about politics than religion
“This will be negative to the country as Fairmont has spent a lot on its investment on this world’s first undersea museum.”
It is however unclear if the installation has been or is being removed. TTG Asia understands the owner of the hotel, and even the tourism ministry, are “checking the facts”.
Accor has declined comment “until we know more about the situation”. At present, however, the Sculpture Coralarium does not appear anywhere on the hotel, Fairmont or Accor websites, or the artist’s website.
The President’s Office on July 27 issued a statement that it had consulted with the tourism ministry and asked the ministry to facilitate the removal by July 28. It added the ministry was working with the resort management on the removal from the lagoon of the resort island.
Fairmont Maldives Sirru Fen Fushi opened in April, while the Sculpture Coralarium was launched in May. “As the location for the Maldives’ first underwater art installation we hope to raise awareness that encourages long-term reef protection and sustainable tourism,” its general manager, Denis Dupart, said in May.
The semi-submerged building is cube-shaped, six metres tall and reached through guided tours led by the resort’s resident marine biologists several times a day. The design of the walls is based on natural coral structures and is porous to allow the tides, current and marine life to pass through it and the structure to “breathe” within its location, the artist described.
“The complex structural formation is designed to dissipate oceanic forces while creating a protective space that encourages nature to colonise and seek refuge. The construction, using high grade, polished, marine stainless steel aims to reflect and mirror the surrounding blues of the coral atoll and the sky above. A mirage on the horizon, that over time will take on the patina of the sea as it becomes colonised by algae and weathers within the environment,” he said.
“It is an immense challenge, and the first time a building like this design has ever been attempted,” said deCaires Taylor who felt a great responsibility to produce something that is worthwhile and meaningful for such a spectacular environment as the Maldives.
The race to provide visitors with unique experiences continues in the Maldives, where overwater accommodations and six-star villas are no longer differentiators.
Aside from the Sculpture Coralarium, Conrad Maldives Rangali is now taking bookings for its US$15 million undersea residence, believed to be the world’s first, for stays starting in November. The villa can accommodate nine guests.
In March, Jumeirah Vittaveli inaugurated the first ice rink in the Maldives with a celebrity performance by Russian Olympic Gold medallist Evgeni Plushenko. The resort said the country’s first ice skating rink was manufactured using Glice, a novel material from Switzerland that allows for eco-friendly ice rinks, eliminating the need to keep the ice rink cold.
“This enables guests to experience a world-first at Jumeirah Vittaveli when they go for a swim in the crystal clear waters of the Indian Ocean, followed by a quick stroll across the beach to put on their ice skates and glide along the picturesque backdrop of a tropical winter wonderland,” it said.
The Indonesian bedbank is among the top producers for hotels in Singapore's Orchard Road
Indonesia’s MG Bedbank is spreading its wings in South-east Asia by opening offices in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Manila and Vietnam this year.
Raymond Djani, founder of MG Holiday Group, said: “We have been successful in establishing our Indonesia domestic bedbank and now we need to expand.
MG Bedbank is among the top producers for hotels in Singapore’s Orchard Road
“Globalisation has allowed international players to (set up) business here in Indonesia. If we do not (step up to the) next level and become a player on the regional level, we will be left behind.”
According to Djani, the company started penetrating these markets in late 2016 by appointing representatives, and business has picked since.
“Indonesia is the second biggest market for Singapore after China, and Orchard Road is a popular stretch where Indonesians like to stay. This gives us a competitive edge to grab the market.”
In newer markets like the Philippines, MG Bedbank saw a higher growth rate than in Singapore and Malaysia, although the market is still small in terms of volume.
“The market opportunity is huge. We are not only talking about Indonesians buying hotels overseas with us, but also regional or international travel companies buying international products.
“Although we are an online company, having physical presence in the market is important to build trust with the business partners,” Djani added.
He shared that the representatives in these offices are currently focussing on contacting with hotels, but would soon recruit sales and marketing staff to work with travel companies in each country.
As part of activities to promote regional hotels, MG Bedbank recently organised its first table top session in Jakarta that brought hotels in South-east Asia and Hong Kong together with outbound travel companies in Indonesia.
“We are planning to organise similar events once a year to allow travel companies and suppliers to communicate and get updates on each other,” Raymond said.
The HNA Group is selling Radisson Holdings to a consortium led by China’s state-owned Jin Jiang International.
Reports had earlier named Jin Jiang International a potential bidder in the sale by the cash-strapped HNA Group.
The agreement to sell Radisson is the latest in a string of hospitality assets dumping by HNA Group, which includes offloading shares in Hilton and NH Hotels
As part of the deal, the consortium will buy 51.15 per cent of Radisson AB from Radisson Hospitality, according to a statement from Radisson Hospitality. Bloomberg estimates the total purchase to amount to three billion Swedish crowns (US$332 million), valued at 35 Swedish crowns per share.
Under an agreement with HNA Sweden, an indirectly wholly-owned subsidiary of HNA Tourism Group, the consortium will additionally acquire up to 18.5 per cent of the outstanding shares and votes in Radisson AB that HNA Sweden previously pledged and transferred to a lender as security for a loan.
Following the share purchase, the consortium would acquire 100 per cent of Radisson Holdings for an undisclosed amount.
The transactions are expected to complete by end-2018.
More industry partnerships for Amadeus and Sabre as they drive forward their respective NDC initiatives
Sabre has enlisted four travel companies as launch partners of its Beyond NDC initiative, one of whom has also joined Amadeus’ NDC-X programme.
The four launch partners of Sabre’s Beyond NDC initiative are American Airlines, American Express Global Business Travel (Amex GBT), Carlson Wagonlit Travel and Flight Centre Travel Group.
More industry partnerships for Amadeus and Sabre as they drive forward their respective NDC initiatives
Along with Sabre, each of the four companies will participate in the solution design process, leverage beta testing capabilities and establish their position as drivers of NDC.
Sabre said in a statement that it will announce additional participants in the Beyond NDC programme throughout the remainder of this year and beyond.
Dave Shirk, Sabre president of travel solutions, said: “Launching this programme with such heavyweights illustrates that we are looking past the near-term goals of NDC to define the future of intelligent airline retailing at scale in both direct and indirect channels.”
Beyond NDC is Sabre’s collaborative innovation initiative chartered to drive the industry forward through the development, integration and testing of end-to-end capabilities to process NDC-enabled offers and orders.
Meanwhile, Amex GBT will also help pilot Amadeus’ NDC-X programme.
The managed travel company will use Amadeus’ solution to test and familiarise itself with the new NDC flow of “shop, order, pay”.
This is expected to help prepare Amex GBT for implementation of the industrialised version of the solution, which will include servicing capabilities, come 2019.
The deal between Amex GBT and Amadeus will also give the former access to NDC content, in addition to GDS content.
Amadeus’ NDC-X brings together all NDC initiatives across the company – as an IT provider and an aggregator – and Amadeus is working with several airlines and travel sellers to drive the adoption of NDC across the industry.
That said, industry members interviewed largely believe this order was politically motivated, i.e. the government is playing to religious sentiments in light of presidential elections next month.
