Singapore, The Republic of Singapore
After a three-year process of careful restoration and refurbishment, Raffles Hotel Singapore has officially reopened bringing its elegance back its original when it initially opened in 1887.
The Raffles Hotel is a colonial-style luxury hotel in the Downtown Core district of Singapore. It was designed by architect Alfred John Bidwell and established by Armenian hoteliers, the Sarkies Brothers. The hotel was named after British statesman Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, the founder of colonial-era Singapore.
In 1989, the hotel closed to undergo an extensive renovation that lasted two years and cost $160 million. However, the renovation significant changes were made converting the guest rooms into suites.
Colony Capital LLC. purchased Raffles Holdings, the entire chain of Raffles Hotels, and decided to restore the hotel back to its imperial style heyday.
As lead consultant and architect, Aedas led a multi-disciplinary team for the restoration of the one of the best-known monuments in Singapore.
The Team included heritage consultants Studio Lapis and interior designer Alexandra Champalimaud.
Integrating heritage splendor with modern spatial design, the consultant team was able to restore the “Grand Dame” back to its original glory and re-establish its vitality for the next 100 years.
The Raffles Hotel Singapore is timeless, and the interiors, the spaces are all designed to speak of an era of grace, conviviality and civility.
State-of-the-art restoration techniques were applied to heal the deterioration caused by time, weather, acid rain, sea-salt corrosion, and past methods of maintenance and restoration attempts.
Besides being restored and enhanced both structurally and aesthetically, the hotel has also received a subtle transfusion of technology to enable its operations and management to be on par with the latest and newest hotels anywhere in the world.
The suites and internal spaces are upgraded with intelligent energy-efficient lighting and airconditioning all precisely controlled from in-room intelligent touch pads.
Many common social spaces remain naturally ventilated and open to the lush landscaping, beautifully shaded by her iconic heritage trees.
“Since it’s a restoration project of one of the best-known monuments in Singapore, investigations of the existing deterioration and repairs needed are unprecedented in scope, due to the building’s age, and intrinsic historical value,” said Aedas Project Director Dennis Chan.
Architects: Aedas Architects Ltd.
Design Team: Gruffudd Owain, Dennis Chan, and Simon Thompson
Original Architect: Alfred John Bidwell (1887)
Heritage Consultants: Studio Lapis
Interior Designers: Alexandra Champalimaud
Client: Katara Hospitality
Photographers: Photography: Owen Raggett, Raffles Hotel