Raffles Hotel Singapore

From Cheap Travel Hotels

Raffles Hotel (Chinese: 莱佛士酒店) is a colonial-style hotel in Singapore, built in 1887, and named after the founder of Singapore, Sir Stamford Raffles. Raffles Hotel is managed by Raffles International. The hotel is known for its luxurious accommodation and superb restaurants. The hotel houses a tropical garden courtyard, Victorian-style theatre and museum.

Raffles hotel was founded by the 4 Armenian Sarkies Brothers (Martin Sarkies, Tigran Sarkies, Aviet Sarkies, and Arshak Sarkies). They opened the 10 rooms colonial bungalow at Beach Road & Bras Basah Road on December 1, 1887. The original location of the hotel was by the seaside, although continued reclamation means that the site is presently some 500 m away from the shore. No Asians were permitted as hotel guests until the 1930s. Designed by architect Regent Alfred John Bidwell of Swan and Maclaren, the current main building of Raffles Hotel was completed in 1899. The hotel continued to expand over the years with the addition of wings, the addition of a verandah, a ballroom, a bar and billiards room and further buildings and rooms.

The Great Depression saw trouble for Raffles Hotel and in 1931 the hotel went into receivership. In 1933, however, the financial troubles were resolved and a public company called Raffles Hotel Ltd. was established.

Upon the start of the Japanese occupation of Singapore on February 15, 1942, it is commonly said that the Japanese soldiers encountered the guests of the Raffles Hotel dancing one final waltz. During World War II, the Raffles was renamed Syonan Ryokan (湘南旅館, shōnan ryokan), incorporating Syonan ("Light of the South"), the Japanese name for occupied Singapore, and ryokan, the name for a traditional Japanese inn.

Raffles hotel survived World War II despite the hardships Singapore faced and the use of the hotel at the end of the war as a transit camp for prisoners of war. In 1987 Singapore government declared the hotel a National Monument.

In 1989, the hotel closed for an extensive renovation, at a cost of S$160 million.

It reopened on September 16, 1991, after being restored to its state during its heyday in 1915. The hotel has built an extension with a similar design, for a shopping arcade and new rooms.

In announcing the July 18, 2005 sale of parent company Raffles Holdings, Colony Capital LLC chief executive Thomas J. Barrack said in part as the purchaser, "We deeply respect the historical significance of the Raffles Hotel Singapore and we consider it our responsibility to protect that legacy".

On 16 September 2007, the hotel celebrated its 120th anniversary with Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew, who turned 84 on the same day.

Raffles Hotel 120th Anniversary

Raffles Hotel, Singapore