Luxurious, opulent, posh… Discerning travelers have become all too familiar with high-end superlatives. More often than not these adjectives are the plastic wreaths strewn on the corpse of a once glorious institution, the solemn engravings on the headstone of a property where personality has all but been replaced by a generic form of distinction.
Located in the heart of the shophouse-style setting of the Bugis Precinct, Intercontinental Singapore is an architectural triumph whose design brilliantly integrates into its surroundings while managing to retain the feel of a cloistered realm.
The same could easily have been written about the city’s paragon of a luxury hotel, the Mandarin Oriental. Designed by John Portman, this local variation of the lady’s fan is a virtual theatre where Singapore itself takes center stage.
The renowned Singaporean poet Alvin Pang once described the half-fish half-lion national mascot, Merlion in the following way: “Even though there are more websites on you than verses, even though you evoke cameras more than pride, postcards more than praise, still you seem to have a face poets love to woo”. The same could easily have been written about the city’s paragon of a luxury hotel, the Mandarin Oriental. Designed by John Portman, this local variation of the lady’s fan is a virtual theatre where Singapore itself takes center stage.
Probably the world’s most famous hotel, Raffles Singapore is an oasis of colonial style, calm and charm in the heart of modern Singapore – exclusive, historic and one of a kind. First opened in 1887, Raffles Singapore epitomizes the romance of the Far East, an intoxicating blend of luxury, history and colonial ambiance that no other hotel can match.
