As we recently mentioned in our 2018 round up article, last year didn’t feature many new hotel openings in Singapore. We basically saw the Six Senses Duxton (check our review), The Capitol Kempinski and the Six Senses Maxwell open their doors to Lion City visitors last year.
Singapore
2019 promises to be much more interesting, though the nature of hotel construction schedules means many of these openings will actually be properties originally due to launch in the last year or two, which are simply running behind schedule.
| Raffles Singapore | Opening: Mid-2019  |
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| Details | |
| Probably the most anticipated opening in Singapore this year is actually a re-opening, following a renovation of close to 18 months. A Singapore institution, Raffles was designated a national monument by the NHB in the late 1980s. Continuously used as a hotel since 1887, it is the oldest surviving establishment of its kind on the island.
Raffles’ former 103 rooms and suites will become 115 in the newly opened hotel, with a brand new design which promises it will still nod to the classic colonial features of the building and its 14ft-high ceilings. |
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| Quirks we love | |
| The Long Bar, where the national cocktail the Singapore Sling was invented by Ngiam Tong Boon, has already been returned to its original location and re-opened. The hotel will also feature 10 new or refreshed bars and restaurants, including BBR by Alain Ducasse in the Bar & Billiard Room, which will once again serve a weekend Sunday Brunch. | |
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| Images: AccorHotels | |
| Capri by Fraser at China Square | Opening: Q1 2019 |
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| Details | |
| This brand new 16-floor property will offer 304 rooms close to Chinatown and walking distance from Club Street. | |
| Quirks we love | |
| Technology is the focus here, with everything from reservations and check in through to housekeeping requests and laundry collection able to be controlled through an app, or via a Chatbot.
Many rooms will also feature kitchenettes, for the convenience of an apartment feel during longer stays. There’s also a rooftop pool. |
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| Images: Frasers Hospitality | |
| Dusit Thani Laguna | Opening: Q1 2019 |
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| Details | |
| Golf is the name of the game here, with this brand new hotel located inside the Laguna National Golf and Country Club, close to Changi Airport. Indeed it’s set to be the first Singapore hotel featuring direct golf club access. | |
| Quirks we love | |
| Dusit is known for traditional Thai style, and golf resorts don’t always scream modern, so we were a little taken aback to find a building resembling a brand new airport terminal proposed for this project.
Golf may not be everyones game, but the massive outdoor pool, bars, extensive dining options, tennis courts and Dusit’s signature Devarana Spa should keep everyone happy here. |
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| Images: Dusit International | |
| YOTELAIR Changi Airport | Opening: Q2 2019 |
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| Details | |
| Singapore’s second YOTEL property is set to open in the JEWEL Changi Airport during Q2 2019. The capsule hotel promises free Wi-Fi, a 24 hour gym and direct access to Changi’s three main terminals. It is only the second airport hotel located in the public areas. | |
| Quirks we love | |
| Access to good food and drink is often the biggest challenge when staying in these ‘capsule’ hotels. That’s not an issue here, the JEWEL project is set to feature over 300 retail and dining facilities with everything from Norwegian fast food to an A&W already confirmed.
Alternatively covered walkways link the facility to the public areas of T1, T2 and T3, with even more food choices. You can even wander across to the Crowne Plaza Changi Airport and dine in one of the restaurants there. |
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| Images: YOTEL | |
The Sentosa trio
Far East Hospitality, a subsidiary of the giant Far East Organisation, is already known for a number of hotels in Singapore such as the Oasia Downtown and the Village Hotel Bugis.
The company has an ambitious project in Sentosa opening this year, with three brand new hotels in the same development located located along Artillery Avenue in the Palawan area of the island.
| The Village Hotel Sentosa | Opening: Apr 2019 |
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| Details | |
| Designed for families, this mid-tier price range hotel includes 2-bed family rooms with two bathrooms. There are a total of four swimming pools including an Amazonian Riverine lazy river. | |
| Quirks we love | |
| Sorry, this one’s included with the other two in the project purely for the sake of completeness. A 606-room family hotel including an adventure pool and a lazy river only fills us with dread! | |
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| Images: Far East Hospitality | |
| The Outpost Hotel Sentosa | Opening: Apr 2019 |
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| Details | |
| An adults and couples oriented property, the more stylish black-and-white themed Outpost Hotel will feature 193 rooms, each with customised amenities including a Nespresso machine. | |
| Quirks we love | |
| The rooftop pool on the 7th floor is exclusive to hotel guests. | |
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| Images: Far East Hospitality | |
| The Barracks Hotel Sentosa | Opening: Q3 2019 |
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| Details | |
| A heritage building dating back to 1904, when it was built as a military outpost by the British, a meticulous restoration is promised to bring us The Barracks Hotel later this year. | |
| Quirks we love | |
| Details are still thin, but at just 40 rooms this hotel sounds the perfect size for us. The conserved colonial building is a definite plus. Rooms and suites on the ground floor have direct access to the main pool. | |
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| Images: Far East Hospitality | |
The Village Hotel and the Outpost Hotel will have a “soft launch” (that’s when something isn’t really finished, but you open it anyway) in February 2019, followed by a formal opening in April 2019.
The Barracks Hotel will take bookings from Q2 2019 for opening in Q3 2019.
A Holiday Inn Express at Serangoon is also due to open in Singapore during Q1 2019.
Elsewhere in Asia-Pacific
As regular travellers across the region, there are a number of other properties set to open this year that caught our eye, and may well interest you too.
Bangkok
| Hyatt Regency Bangkok | Opening: Opened 21 Dec 2018  |
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| Details | |
| This one shouldn’t really be on the list, managing to open its doors just before the close of last year on 21st December 2018. | |
| Quirks we love | |
| The 3,000 sq ft. ‘Regency Club’ lounge on the 27th floor with floor-to-ceiling city views. It’s not open yet though, expect it in early 2019. | |
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| Images: Hyatt | |
| Orient Express MahaNakhon Bangkok | Opening: Q4 2019 |
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| Details | |
| Originally this was intended to be a much-anticipated hotel, The Bangkok EDITION. That property was due to open in 2018, promising the unique sophistication of EDITION hotels already opened in places like London, Miami Beach and Shanghai.
The group even went as far as advertising an opening offer, however something changed dramatically last year with an ownership change of the MahaNakhon building to King Power. It was then announced that the building’s new owners had decided not to install the EDITION hotel concept in the development after all. King Power has strong affiliations with the AccorHotels group, so it was no big surprise to find that the new hotel would fall under their management. This time though it was Accor’s chance to launch their first Orient Express hotel. The property will feature 154 rooms including nine suites and two penthouses, the same as was planned for The EDITION. |
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| Quirks we love | |
| There’s an entire ‘wellness’ floor including an outdoor pool and signature Orient Express Spa by Guerlain. Guests will also have access to the rooftop observation deck and rooftop bar.
The hotel also promises to incorporate Art Deco stylings and plant motifs of the original Orient Express carriages into this modern skyscraper, the tallest building in Bangkok. We’re curious, if anything, to see if they can pull that off. |
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| Images: King Power / AccorHotels | |
| Capella Bangkok | Opening: Q2 2019 |
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| Details | |
| The Capella Bangkok will feature 101 suites with unobstructed river views, and riverfront villas. Some of the accommodation is set to feature sky gardens and private outside living space. | |
| Quirks we love | |
| A riverfront setting in the “Charoenkrung” neighbourhood, the Capella should be a retreat from the busier parts of the city. A 9,000 square foot Auriga wellness spa and an outdoor pool in a tropical garden setting, should complement the peaceful experience. | |
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| Images: Capella Hotels & Resorts | |
| Four Seasons Bangkok | Opening: Early 2019 |
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| Details | |
| You’d be forgiven for recalling, like we did, that Bangkok already had a Four Seasons hotel. In fact the previous one, on Radjadamri Road, was rebranded under the Anantara group in 2015 (having originally opened as the Peninsula in 1978 and operated as a Four Seasons for 12 years from 2003 to 2015).
This new Four Seasons is at Chao Phraya River, in the same riverside development as the Capella, which will also include private residences, shopping, and dining. |
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| Quirks we love | |
| Artist renderings promise a modern finish, quite unlike many Four Seasons properties, with floor-to-ceiling windows and muted grey and white tones. | |
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| Images: Four Seasons | |
| Rosewood Bangkok | Opening: Early 2019 |
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| Details | |
| The design of this 159-room, 30-floor tower is inspired by the graceful hand movement of the ‘wai’, a traditional Thai greeting. It will feature two restaurants, two bars, a luxurious spa, an outdoor swimming pool and a fitness centre. | |
| Quirks we love | |
| Sky Villas will feature large terraces and private plunge pools. | |
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| Images: Rosewood Hotels / KPF | |
Hong Kong
Like Bangkok, Hong Kong never has a shortage of new hotel openings. There are a number of new properties due this year, including:
- The Silveri Mgallery by Sofitel
- Hong Kong Ocean Park Marriott
- Sheraton Hong Kong Tung Chung
- Four Points by Sheraton Hong Kong Tung Chung
- Rosewood Hong Kong
One in particular though does catch our eye, and that’s the St. Regis Hong Kong. Originally due to open this month (January 2019), later shifted to March and now slated for June.
| St. Regis Hong Kong | Opening: Jun 2019  |
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| Details | |
| This brand new five-star hotel will feature 129 guest rooms, 112 of which are Deluxe rooms with 50 square metres of floor space, and 17 of which will be luxurious signature suites.
The personalised St. Regis Butler service tops off the experience. |
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| Quirks we love | |
| Mixologists at The St. Regis Bar will be serving the hotel’s own take on the brand’s signature Bloody Mary. Good enough for us. | |
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| Images: St. Regis Hong Kong | |
Perth
We love Perth and we absolutely adore COMO The Treasury, but we really need to get back to the city this year to check out the new Westin and the InterContinental (formerly a Rydges but extensively redeveloped).
There’s another new opening for 2019 though.
| The Ritz-Carlton Perth | Opening: Mid-2019  |
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| Details | |
| Set to feature 204 luxury suites with ground-floor retail space and residential apartments above, in the popular Elizabeth Quay area. | |
| Quirks we love | |
| It’ll be the first Ritz-Carlton hotel to open in Australia. Remarkably, we think this is the only hotel project on this entire list which is actually running on time! | |
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| Images: The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company | |
Auckland
We’re heading to New Zealand later this year, and while we usually book the Sofitel when staying in Auckland, it looks like there will be a couple of new hotels for us to consider this time.
| SO/ Auckland | Opening: Opened Nov 2018  |
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| Details | |
| Another slight cheat for the 2019 list, this one actually opened in November 2018 but to be fair the SO Well (an entire floor dedicated to wellness) and the Club Signature lounge only launched this month, so we’re claiming 2019 as the full opening! | |
| Quirks we love | |
| Well located near the Britomart, plus all rooms feature a complimentary mini bar, Nespresso coffee machine and free Wi-Fi. | |
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| Images: AccorHotels | |
| Park Hyatt Auckland | Opening: Mar 2019 |
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| Details | |
| Set to be the first Park Hyatt property in New Zealand, it will feature a seven-storey high internal atrium and even has a moat inside.
As well as 195 guest rooms there is a 25m indoor infinity pool, fitness centre and spa on the first floor. |
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| Quirks we love | |
| Full-size mock-ups of the hotel rooms set to be installed in the Park Hyatt Auckland were built in Beijing for testing and layout improvement before the final designs were settled upon. That’s the kind of attention to detail we like to hear about. | |
| Image: Hyatt | |
Tokyo
| Hotel Okura Tokyo | Opening: Sep 2019  |
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| Details | |
| A 1960s icon, first opened in time for the Tokyo Olympics in 1964, the Okura will once again open in time for the same event in the same city 56 years later following extensive remodelling. | |
| Quirks we love | |
| So fond were admirers of the original lobby in this longstanding hotel, a petition gathered 6,000 signatures worldwide to retain it. As a result, the developers will reproduce the old lobby, including a giant wall clock showing the time at major cities on six continents of the world, in the redeveloped hotel. | |
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| Images: David Kukin / Hotel Okura Tokyo | |
Summary
A busy year for hotel openings both in Singapore and across the region as a whole. We certainly won’t get round to visiting and reviewing all of these, but we’ll be trying our best to fit a number of them into our 2019 travel plans.
What did we miss, and which hotel opening are you most anticipating this year? Let us know in the comments section below.
(Cover Photo: Far East Hospitality)
Why no india:(
Which new hotel do you want to see?
Wow, thanks for sharing Andrew! Now I know where to stay for my next BKK trip – Rosewood Bangkok 🙂