(Article by Giovanni Angelini, HOTELINTEL.co Intelligence for Hoteliers, February 2020)
GUEST CONTRIBUTOR – 26 FEBRUARY 2020 – NEWS Article by Giovanni Angelini
The past few months haven’t treated the hotel industry kindly in Asia. With a combination of political protests, chronic air quality issues and now the Coronavirus pandemic grinding international travel to and from Asian destinations to a halt, many in the industry are hurting badly and wondering how and ‘if’ they will weather the storm. Hopefully the following list compiled by Hotelintel.co’s own advisory board member veteran hotelier Giovanni Angelini, will provide some encouragement for hoteliers in the region – a list of 70 Heritage Hotels in Asia that despite disease outbreaks, political unrest, wars, economic collapses and natural disasters, are still going strong, the oldest of which – the Nishiyama Onsen Keiunkan in Hayakawa, Japan, has been operating since the year 705. Asia’s Heritage Hotels still in Operation
“Sequence of the listing; from opening to the Second World War”
Date: Feb, 2020
| Opening Year | Hotel | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 705 | Nishiyama Onsen Keiunkan | Hayakawa Japan (oldest operating in the world?) |
| 718 | Hoshi Ryokan | Komatsu Ishikawa Japan |
| 1191 | Arima Onsen | Kita-ku Kobe Japan |
| 1684 | Amangalla Hotel | Galle Sri-Lanka |
| 1729 | Sujan Rajmahal Palace | Jaipur India |
| 1746 | Lake Palace Hotel | Udaipur India (now Taj) |
| 1756 | Jing’s Residence | Pingyao China |
| 1806 | Mount Lavinia Hoel | Colombo Sri Lanka |
| 1832 | Royale Chulan Hotel | Penang Malaysia |
| 1835 | Rambach Palace Hotel | Jaipur India |
| 1841 | LaLiT Great Eastern Hotel | Kolkata India |
| 1856 | Bellevue-Dibbets/Salak Heritage Hotel | Bogor Indonesia |
| 1863 | Adelphi Hotel | Singapore (now Adelphi complex) (Sarkies Brothers) *[1] |
| 1864 | Galle Face Hotel | Colombo Sri-Lanka |
| 1875 | Grand Oriental Hotel | Colombo Sri Lanka |
| 1876 | Oriental Hotel | Bangkok Thailand (now Mandarin Oriental Bangkok) |
| 1880 | Hotel Continental | Saigon Vietnam |
| 1880 | Falletti Hotel | Lahore Pakistan |
| 1880 | Capella Hotel | Singapore |
| 1885 | Lal Durbar Palace/Yak & Yeti Hotel | Kathmandu Nepal |
| 1885 | Eastern & Oriental Hotel | Penang Malaysia (Sarkies Brothers) * |
| 1887 | Raffles Hotel | Singapore (Sarkies Brothers) * |
| 1888 | Grand Kolkata Hotel | Kolkata India (now the Oberoi Grand) |
| 1888 | Okura Hotel | Kyoto Japan |
| 1890 | Imperial Hotel | Tokyo Japan |
| 1891 | Kartika Wijaya Hotel | Batu East Java Indonesia (Sarkies Brothers)* |
| 1892 | West End Hotel | Bangalore India |
| 1894 | Grand Hotel | Sri Lanka |
| 1895 | 137 Pillars House | Chiang Mai Thailand |
| 1900 | Miyako Hotel | Kyoto Japan (now Westin) |
| 1900 | Goodwood Park Hotel | Singapore |
| 1901 | Strand Hotel | Yangon Burma (Sarkies Brothers) * |
| 1901 | Metropole Hotel | Hanoi Vietnam (now Sofitel) |
| 1902 | Tai O Heritage Hotel | Lantau Island Hong Kong |
| 1902 | Maidens Hotel | Delhi India |
| 1903 | Taj Mahal Palace | Mumbai India |
| 1904 | Satri House Hotel | Luang Prabang Laos |
| 1908 | Chakrabongse Villa | Bangkok Thailand |
| 1909 | Nara Hotel | Nara Japan |
| 1909 | Shanghai Club/Hotel | Shanghai China (now Waldorf Astoria) |
| 1910 | Majapahit Hotel | Surabaya Indonesia (Sarkies Brothers) * |
| 1910 | Phoenix Hotel | Yogyakarta Indonesia |
| 1912 | Manila Hotel | Manila Philippines |
| 1914 | Chosun Hotel | Seoul Korea (now Westin) |
| 1914 | Shanghai Ruijin/Morris Garden Hotel | Shanghai China (now InterContinental) |
| 1915 | Tokyo Station Hotel | Tokyo Japan |
| 1915 | Grand Hotel de Pekin | Beijing China |
| 1920 | Belmond Governor’s Residence | Yangon Myanmar (Burma) |
| 1920 | Rex Hotel | Saigon Vietnam |
| 1920 | Majestic Hotel | Malacca Malaysia |
| 1923 | Cafe Batavia & Hermitage Hotel | Jakarta Indonesia |
| 1923 | Railway Hotel | Hua Hin Thailand (now Centara Grand) |
| 1926 | Rachamankha Hotel | Chiang Mai Thailand |
| 1926 | French Club/Hotel | Shanghai China (now Okura) |
| 1928 | Peninsula Hotel | Hong Kong |
| 1928 | Tjampuhan Hotel | Ubud-Bali Indonesia |
| 1928 | Fullerton Hotel | Singapore (hotel since 2001) |
| 1929 | Umaid Bhawan Palace | Jodhpur India (now Taj) |
| 1929 | Peace Hotel | Shanghai China (now Fairmont) |
| 1929 | Hotel Le Royal | Phnom Penh Cambodia (now Raffles) |
| 1929 | Goodwood Park Hotel | Singapore |
| 1930 | La Residence Hue Hotel & Spa | Hue Vietnam |
| 1930 | Central Hotel | Nanjing China |
| 1932 | Majestic Hotel | Kuala Lumpur Malaysia |
| 1932 | Settha Palace Hotel | Vientiane Laos |
| 1932 | Grand Hotel d’Angkor | Siem Reap Cambodia (now Raffles) |
| 1936 | Imperial Hotel | Kyoto Japan |
| 1936 | Imperial Hotel | New Delhi India |
| 1937 | Metropolo Classiq Hotel | Shanghai China |
| 1938 | Yabshi Phunkhang Heritage | Lhasa China |
[1] The first hotel group in Asia (a portfolio of 9 Hotels) was founded and managed by the Sarkies Brothers & Family; Hotels included: 1863 – The Adelphi Hotel, Singapore. 1884 – The Eastern Hotel Penang and in 1885 – The Oriental Hotel Penang that in 1889 were combined into the Eastern & Oriental Hotel. 1887 – The Raffles Hotel, Singapore. 1891 – The Kartika Wijaya, Batu-East Java, Indonesia. 1901 – The Strand Hotel in Rangoon. 1905 – The Crag Hotel in Penang. 1910 – The Majapahit Hotel, Surabaya. 1923 – The Seaview Hotel, Singapore.
