Raffles Hotel to undergo restoration works in 2017

The iconic Raffles Hotel on Beach Road will undergo restoration works in 2017. ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG

SINGAPORE - The iconic Raffles Hotel on Beach Road will undergo restoration works in 2017, more than 25 years after its last change.

The hotel, one of the few remaining 19th-century hotels left in the world, will be restored in three phases, starting in January next year with The Raffles Hotel Arcade.

The Arcade houses 40 shops, indoor and outdoor function areas including The Ballroom and The Lawn restaurants, and bars such as Long Bar, home of the Singapore Sling, a gin-based cocktail widely regarded as a national drink.

In the middle of 2017, the main hotel building, which houses 103 suites, framed by polished teak verandas and white marble colonnades, and serviced by butlers, is expected to be restored. The lobby will be restored as well.

Raffles Hotel Singapore will close for the final phase near the end of 2017 before a grand reopening in the second quarter of 2018.

"We have a rich and colourful history and are about to begin a new chapter in our ongoing story - a sensitive restoration that will enable us to continue to offer what our guests expect and value," said Ms Diana Banks, vice-president, Raffles Brand, Raffles Hotels and Resorts.

The hotel was closed for two and a half years during the last restoration held from 1989 to 1991.

The project will be led by Aedas Singapore, a global architecture and design firm that was behind restoration projects including the London Coliseum. The interiors of the project will be handled by designer Alexandra Champalimaud, who has worked with many high profile luxury hotels around the world including New York's The Plaza, Hotel Bel-Air in Los Angeles, and The Dorchester in London.

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