3 heritage hotels to rival the Raffles in Singapore
- Barracks Hotel Sentosa pays homage to the island’s history as a former British military base; Villa Samadhi offers a nature retreat on Singapore’s south coast
- A stone’s throw away from the city centre is Hotel Fort Canning, in another former military barracks whose colonial architecture has been lovingly preserved
The Raffles Hotel, made famous by literary luminaries including Somerset Maugham and Rudyard Kipling, is the undisputed grande dame of heritage hotels in Singapore.
Many older Singaporeans would remember frequenting the neoclassical Capitol Building, built in 1930, and the Renaissance-style Stamford House, opened in 1904, in their later incarnations, which included a theatre and a shopping centre.
The Capitol Kempinski has been restored to retain art deco elements such as high corniced ceilings and original Chengal wood flooring, but it is so low-key (the main entrance is tucked away in an alley) that it has remained under the radar even though it is just a 10-minute walk from Raffles Hotel.
Other heritage hotels in Singapore, both convenient and off the beaten track, also merit a mention. If the idea of a Singapore-Hong Kong travel bubble is resurrected this year, Hong Kong residents may wish to experience something new by checking into one of them.
1. The Barracks Hotel Sentosa
