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The Moonlight Martini at Raffles L'Ermitage
We've kicked off our Summer Cocktails series where we profile fun new summer drinks that hotels are making. Got one we should know about? Send us the recipe with a photo of the drink. Otherwise, enjoy and @reply us when you're wasted!
Had a hard day with paparazzi following your every mundane activity? From lunching at The Ivy to shopping at Barney's to picking up some Pinkberry, every where you went today it seemed those men and their cameras were on you. Well, that's why you need to escape to the Raffles L'Ermitage in Beverly Hills and step into their exclusive Writers Bar for a Moonlight Martini.
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Raffles Singapore Turns 122, Gives Us (Complicated) Gifts
Not sure what the gift is for a 122nd anniversary? Neither are we, but the grand old dame that is the Raffles Hotel in Singapore has decided that for her 122nd anniversary, she's giving us guests a few bonuses instead.
Every deal is linked to the magic number, 122, and they run from now through to September 16. Usually $122 wouldn't get you much at the Raffles, but during the anniversary celebrations it can get you a lobster plus a glass of wine at the Raffles Courtyard restaurant, or a full three-course meal with a wine at the Long Bar Steakhouse – or a better deal, perhaps, lunch for two with two glasses of champagne. There's also a $122 spa promotion at the Raffles Amrita Spa and some bonuses in the gift shop.
So far, so good, but here's where it gets complicated (we think the marketing gang at the Raffles have too much time on their hands). Because the Raffles opened up in 1887 (yep, 122 years ago), you can get a further bonus if you have the digits "1887" in your passport or identity card. The bonus is that if you spend more than $122 at any Raffles restaurant, you can get $122 credit for a return visit. We're not exactly rushing off to check our passport for those magic digits but we hope at least a couple of guests figure out how to make use of this overly-complicated deal.
[Photo: Eustaquio Santimano]
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Raffles Opening Not-So-Soon in Kuala Lumpur
Management at Raffles Hotels continue to sit in a room and throw darts at a globe – in other words, they've just announced yet another new Raffles in another new corner of the world. This time the dart has landed on Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur.
The Raffles Kuala Lumpur won't be ready until 2011 but they're promising to bring "unparalleled service" to KL. This new hotel will include 200 rooms and suites and will be found in the main business district of the city, within the Pavilion Kuala Lumpur, one of KL's enormous shopping mall complexes.
Six different restaurants and bars sound like you won't need to leave the hotel for your entertainment at all – and one of them has opened already. Café Stelle is billed as a "light and refreshing" Italian café and they say it'll be an indication of the great service the Raffles Hotel itself will offer come 2011. It's been open for a few days and can be found in the Pavilion Kuala Lumpur.
Finally, there'll also be a Raffles Amrita Spa at the new Raffles, and although we've never had the pleasure of a treatment at an Amrita, we've certainly heard on the grapevine that they're not unpleasant. It's just a pity 2011 sounds so far away.
[Photo of KL Pavilion: Filo.mena]
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Raffles Makes Mecca Pilgrimage Comfortable, Full of Ice Cream
The Raffles group is still planning to open another exclusive-sounding hotel, and it's going to be in the holiest Islamic city of them all. The Raffles Makkah Palace is due to be opened in November 2009.
If you're on a pilgrimage, this is the ultimate in luxury stopovers: Apparently the Raffles will be just a three minute walk from the Kaaba within the Al Masjid al Haram, the spot where everyone will be headed.
The hotel itself will occupy the 11th to 26th floors of the Abraj Al Bait Complex, and is slated to include 198 suites. Something that impresses us no end is that there'll be an average of three staffers per suite and 24-hour butler service, so finding refreshments after a wearying pilgrimage will be no problem at all.
On the culinary front, the Raffles Makkah Palace has a couple more ways to impress us. There'll be a dedicated chocolate room in the restaurant with pralines and truffles made to order, as well as an icecreamery offering personalized ice cream creations. Whatever chocolate and ice cream you want? Talk about religious experiences.
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Your Most 'Enchanting' Raffles Experience Could Earn You a Free Stay
Well, your mother was right: flattery always works. Raffles Hotels has launched a contest challenging former and future guests to recount or dream up their most "enchanting" Raffles experiences. The big prizes? Free stays!
If you think you can tell the best 100-word story of an experience that you've either had at a Raffles property or would love to have at a Raffles property, get in there and submit something.
Five winners will each get 2-night stays in a Raffles Suite at any Raffles hotel or resort you want, with "an endlessly enchanting experience created by our Raffles concierge." Also included is daily breakfast for two, a Raffles Amrita Spa Signature treatment or a gourmet dinner, and return airport transfers. One lucky winner will win the Grand Prize: a 5-night stay in a Presidential Suite at any Raffles hotel or resort, that "endlessly enchanting experience created by [the] Raffles concierge," daily breakfast for two, Raffles Amrita Spa Signature treatment or a gourmet dinner for two, and return airport transfers.
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Raffles Dubai's Spa Will Fix Our Traveler's Palms
We would've gone just for the refrigerated pool pavement, but the Raffles Dubai has got a few more temptations up its sleeve: spa treatments that are going to make us so beautiful none of our friends will recognize us.
In conjunction with the launch of a Kerstin Florian line of products, the Dubai Raffles is promoting a few new spa treatments in their Amrita Spa. What grabs us, being frequent travelers, is the Traveler's Palm, which should refresh our skin and take away that over-traveled look; the Her Royal Highness facial also sounds like it'll take a few years off the ol' mug. The one we're not sure about is the Customized Corrective Skin Facial, mainly because the name is so not sexy. Yes, we're that superficial.
The Dubai Raffles has quite a big range of packages, but if the spa treatments call to you then the "Raffles Body & Soul" package is probably the one to pick; it's a two night deal with breakfast, a massage and spa access included.
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Raffles Loses the Raffle For Singapore Hotel
You can't chew gum or smoke in Singapore, but apparently the Raffles The Plaza can smoothly switch over to become the Fairmont Singapore without so much as a peep. Not only has this iconic property traded hands, but Fairmont is claiming the 769-room hotel as the flagship for their brand.
Named as among the Top 500 Hotels in the World in 2008 by Travel + Leisure, the old Raffles went through a smooth transition to the new Fairmont as their brand is actually owned by Fairmont — how incestuous. The change has brought more than new stationery; room rates have dropped slightly from an average of $210 under Raffles to $180 as the Fairmont. For travelers headed to Asia in this economy, any little lower difference matters, and so we couldn't be happier with the rebrand.
[Image: Fairmont Hotels]
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Raffles Olympia Resort Not A Place To Train For The Olympics
Raffles Hotels is planning to open the Raffles Olympia Resort in 2011 in Greece but you can forget anything associated with the Olympic Games or athletics for that matter. This hotel is strictly going to be a luxury resort.
The resort will have a couple of pools, four tennis courts and a golf course. Note: They are proud it’s unusual to have a golf course in Greece; we are thinking it’s weird to have a golf course in Greece.
A large Raffles Amrita Spa is also planned as is a long private beach, so if relaxing ever becomes an Olympic sport then this will be the right place to train.
Currently, the easiest way to get to the site of the Raffles Olympia Resort is a 2.5 hour drive from Athens. The hotel is relying on the nearby Andravida Airport opening its passenger terminal as promised in 2010 to make it easier for guests to arrive when the resort opens in 2011.
We’re not sure the Greeks are renowned for getting their building projects finished on time though, so we’ll check up on the Raffles Olympia again and see if they at least make it open before the next Olympics in 2012.
[Photo: Jason-Morrison]
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Siem Reap Hotel Guide :: Raffles, In Contrast, Is Fit For A Queen
Raffles Grand Hotel d'Angkor provides what's expected of it...no more and no less. Like Amansara nearby, the hotel focuses on understatement to liken itself to royal tastes and emphasize its subtle class. The hotel's sterile, colonial exterior continues inside the building's hallways and guest rooms. The result is a removed feeling from the air and bustle of Siem Reap--welcome to some and disconcerting to others.
Still, it's the best way to see how high society of yesterday (and today) experience Angkor, from a safe, removed distance. The newly-built extension continues the hotel's austere feel that the more critical might (and do) call "uninspired." The rear gardens resemble a place where Queen Elizabeth might let her basset hounds roam. And the buiscuits served at tea resemble something she might serve her guests, though the confections seem a bit too rich for such a disciplined woman.
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Raffles In Vietnam :: Insert Luxury Hotel Chain Here
Last week, we told you about the historic hotel in Phnom Penh, Cambodia bearing the Raffles name. Never to be outdone by its neighbor and fiercest competitor, Vietnam has announced a Raffles hotel of its own, set to open in Da Nang sometime in 2011.
The resort will be set right on China Beach on a stretch of sand usually inhabited only by fisherman. Once notorious for being the site of bloody battles during the Vietnam War, it's and now famous for such pristine beauty one can hardly imagine anything but pleasantries occurring there.
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Cambodia Hotel Guide :: Historic Raffles Hotel Le Royale
HotelChatter and Jaunted Contributing Editor Claire Duffett is now reporting from Cambodia and this week she is giving us the low-down on the hotel scene. Any questions about accommodations? Send 'em to us and we'll get them answered for ya.
Phnom Penh, Cambodia's capital, has distanced itself from its sordid past. Hotel Le Royale, now part of the five-star Raffles chain, was built in 1929 during the heyday of French imperialism. There, writers and journalists rubbed elbows with royalty and dignitaries. It was all very Casablanca, Southeast Asian-style.
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IOC Members Are Shacking Up at the Raffles Beijing
While we are sure golden-boy Michael Phelps is safely ensconced in the Olympic village somewhere, far, far, far away from any distractions that could derail his eight golden medals quest, the International Olympic Committee is kicking it at the Raffles Beijing Hotel.
And they aren't shy about letting you know that either. In fact, there's a press release on this which says that Raffles recruited the best of its employees from around the world to serve at the hotel during the Olympics:
In preparation, Raffles Beijing, which has 100% occupancy during the Olympics, has undergone more than 1,500 hours of Pre-Olympic preparation training since March 2008.
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