Relax - Boutique hotel goes Peranakan

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Boutique hotel goes Peranakan

By Cheryl Lim, my paper | Thu, Oct 29 2009

Providing lodging in culturally rich areas latest move by operators to attract more guests

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HOTELS here are beginning to bank on their locations in culturally rich areas to attract more guests.

A new boutique hotel, Le Peranakan Hotel, set in two blocks of shophouses along East Coast Road with Peranakan architecture and furnished with traditional Peranakan furniture, was launched yesterday.

Far East Organization’s hospitality arm will tomorrow relaunch three hotels and four residences under the new brand of Village Hotels and Residences, with an emphasis on the cultural attractions in the buildings’ vicinity – at a cost of $12.5 million.

The hotels comprise the former Albert Court Hotel in Little India, now called Albert Court Village Hotel; the former Golden Landmark Hotel in Arab Street,now called Landmark Village Hotel; and Changi Village Hotel in Changi.

Guests can experience the local culture in the vicinity by taking part in free walking tours conducted by professional guides in the area, and culinary demonstrations of Singapore fare like teh tarik and chicken rice.

Far East Hospitality’s director of hospitality operations, Mr Raphael Saw, said: “Singaporeans who opt for a ‘staycation’ at a Village Hotel may be pleasantly surprised to rediscover the precincts, especially with our guided tours and demonstrations which feature local merchants.”

The “Village” brand, and the experiential stays there that the company aims to create, will differentiate the hotels from its rivals, and help customers better identify with the hotels, he said.

The hotel rooms in Le peranakan Hotel are furnished with traditional
Peranakan furniture.

It will also help the company branch into hotel management overseas, he added.

Home-grown investment company Haruta Investment, which owns Le Peranakan Hotel, decided to go with the Peranakan theme because the shophouses were located in a well-known Peranakan district, said its executive director, Ms Lau Sin Ling.

The 65-room hotel was developed at a cost of about $5 million.

Furnishings, such as cabinets, tables, chairs and mirrors, were custom-made with Peranakan touches in China.

Mr Leong Yew Poh, group chief executive officer of Radiance Hotel Management, which runs the hotel, said that it is well-positioned for the expected influx of tourists after the two integrated resorts open their doors early next year.

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