Coordinates: 1°17′40.8″N 103°51′16.6″E / 1.294667°N 103.854611°E / 1.294667; 103.854611

Raffles Hotel

The grand entrance of the Raffles Hotel
Building
Town	1 Beach Road, Singapore 189673
Country	Singapore
Client	Sarkies Brothers
Construction
Completed	1887
Design team
Architect	Regent Alfred John Bidwell

Raffles Hotel is a colonial-style hotel in Singapore, dating from 1887, and named after Singapore's founder Sir Stamford Raffles. Managed by Raffles International, it is known for its luxurious accommodation and superb restaurants. The hotel houses a tropical garden courtyard, museum and Victorian-style theatre.

[edit] History

The hotel was founded by the four Armenian Sarkies Brothers (Martin, Tigran, Aviet, and Arshak Sarkies). They opened the 10-room colonial bungalow at Beach Road and Bras Basah Road owned by an Arab trader and philantrophist Syed Mohamed Alsagoff on 1 December 1887. Alsagoff developed the site of his late father's estate until it became the most modern building in Singapore at the time. Sarkies was a tenant on favourable short-term lease. The original location was by the seaside, although continued reclamation means that the site is presently some 500 metres away from the shore.^[1] No Asians were permitted as hotel guests until the 1930s.^[1] Designed by architect Regent Alfred John Bidwell of Swan and Maclaren, the current main building of Raffles Hotel was completed in 1899.^[2] The hotel continued to expand over the years with the addition of wings, a verandah, a ballroom, a bar and billiards room, and further buildings and rooms. The Great Depression spelled 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.

The Raffles Hotel as seen from Beach Road surrounded by lush greenery

Upon the start of the Japanese occupation of Singapore on 15 February 1942, it is commonly said that the Japanese soldiers encountered the guests of the Raffles Hotel dancing one final waltz.^[3] During World War II, the Raffles was renamed Syonan Ryokan (昭南旅館, shōnan ryokan^?), incorporating Syonan ("Light of the South"), the Japanese name for occupied Singapore, and ryokan, the name for a traditional Japanese inn.^[4] More than 300 Japanese troops committed suicide in the hotel using grenades following the liberation of Singapore.

The 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, the government declared the hotel a National Monument.

In 1989, the hotel closed for an extensive renovation, at a cost of S$160 million.^[4] The renovation was carried out by Ssangyong Engineering and Construction, a South Korean construction firm acclaimed for its overseas projects.

It re-opened on 16 September 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.

Interior view of Raffles Hotel

In announcing the 18 July 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.^[5]

The hotel also houses the Raffles Hotel Museum, which showcases the rich history of the hotel. The museum was created after the launch of a well orchestrated heritage search by international public relations consultant. People from all over the world returned items and memorabilia of their stay at the 'grand lady of the far East'; photographs, silver and china items, postcards and menus as well as old and rare editions of the works of the famous writers who stayed there. These items are displayed in the museum along with photographs of its famous guests and visitors.

[edit] Notability

View of the courtyard and some of the hotel rooms

• Raffles Hotel is reputedly where the sole surviving wild tiger in Singapore was shot and made extinct. Some stories place this event in the Long Bar. Raffles itself claims the tiger had escaped from enclosure at a nearby "native show" and chased underneath the hotel's Bar & Billiard Room (a raised structure) and shot to death there on August 13, 1902.
• Raffles is where the Singapore Sling was invented. The cocktail was invented by bartender Ngiam Tong Boon between 1910 and 1915.
• Raffles is the setting for Murakami Ryu's novel and film titled, Raffles Hotel. The film was shot on location.
• The site of the hotel was originally the location of the oldest girls' school in Singapore (1842), now called St. Margaret's. It was founded by Maria (Tarn) Dyer, the missionary wife of Samuel Dyer.
• The hotel was featured as a Japanese stronghold in Medal of Honor: Rising Sun.
• Raffles Hotel was the subject of Paul O'Grady's Orient for Carlton Television.
• The hotel featured in episodes of the BBC's Tenko.
• Long Bar is featured in Peace Arch Entertainment's "UberGuide" television travel series as one of the top ten bars in the world.

[edit] Famous visitors and guests

Famous visitors and guests of the hotel include:^{[citation needed]}

• Anthony Burgess
• Ava Gardner
• Beyoncé Knowles
• Black Eyed Peas
• Charlie Chaplin
• Elizabeth Taylor
• Fascinating Aïda
• George H.W. Bush
• Gwen Stefani
• Hugh Jackman
• James A. Michener
• Okko Kamu
• Jean Harlow
• Joseph Conrad
• Karen Mok
• Michael Jackson
• No Doubt
• Noel Coward
• Patrick Macnee
• Queen Elizabeth II
• Queen Sofia of Spain
• Robert A. Heinlein
• Rudy Giuliani
• Rudyard Kipling
• W. Somerset Maugham

[edit] Food and beverage outlets

Raffles North Bridge

• Ah Teng's Bakery
• Bar and Billard Room & Martini Bar
• Doc Cheng's & Doc Cheng's Bar
• Empire Cafe
• Long Bar, birthplace of the Singapore Sling
• Long Bar Steakhouse
• Raffles Courtyard & Gazebo Bar
• Raffles Creamery
• Raffles Culinary Academy
• Raffles Grill
• Royal China at Raffles (branch of the famous Royal China in London)
• Seah Street Deli
• THOS SB Raffles Shop
• Tiffin Room
• Writer's Bar
• Anders Helledi & Klaus Poulsen

[edit] Arcade

Raffles Hotel has a shopping arcade housing boutique brands such as Louis Vuitton and Tiffany & Co.. The arcade houses most of the hotel's restaurants. It also has shops such as Singapore's famous custom tailor, CYC The Custom Shop [1], which makes shirts for Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. The third floor of the arcade houses the Raffles Hotel Museum and Jubilee Hall.

[edit] See also

• Stamford House, Singapore

[edit] Notes and references

[edit] Literature

• Ilsa Sharp. There Is Only One Raffles: The Story of a Grand Hotel. Ulverscroft Large Print (1991). ISBN 978-0708924532
• Raymong Flower: The Year of the Tiger, 1986, Singapore
• Andreas Augustin. The Raffles Treasury, Secrets of a Grand Old Lady. Treasury Publishing (1988). ASIN B000PCGBHO
• Andreas Augustin. RAFFLES, THE MOST FAMOUS HOTELS IN THE WORLD, London/Singapore/Vienna, (1986)

• William Warren, Jill Gocher (2007). Asia's legendary hotels: the romance of travel. Singapore: Periplus Editions. ISBN 978-0-7946-0174-4. 
• Ralph Modder. Romancing the Raffles: A Collection of Short Stories. SNP Editions (2000). ISBN 9814059692
• Ryu Murakami (Author), Corinne Atlan. Raffles Hotel. Picquier (2002). ISBN 978-2877305839
• Chefs of Raffles Hotel. The Raffles Hotel Cookbook. Butterworth-Heinemann (2003). ISBN 978-9814068581
• Fables From the Raffles Hotel Arcade. Angsana Books (1995). ISBN 978-9813056725
• Gretchen Liu. Raffles Hotel style. Raffles Hotel (1997). ISBN 978-9813018860
• Lenzi, Iola (2004). Museums of Southeast Asia. Singapore: Archipelago Press. pp. 200 pages. ISBN 981-4068-96-9. 

[edit] External links

• Media related to Raffles Hotel at Wikimedia Commons
• Raffles Hotel Singapore Homepage
• Revealing reviews from travelers who stayed at the Raffles Hotel
• Panoramic virtual tour of Raffles