Parkroyal’s third hotel in Singapore sees strong advance interest

PARKROYAL on Pickering, Singapore opened yesterday with several corporate meetings and weddings already on the books.

While the hotel’s general manager, David Sullivan, was unable to quantify the number of corporate events secured to-date, which included a “major VIP event for 350 guests nine days after the opening”, he told TTGmice e-Weekly that 52 weddings would take place at the hotel this year and 10 more had been confirmed for 2014.

Despite having several events in the bag ahead of opening, Sullivan said it was a “slow start” for the hotel due to “the time of the year”.

He explained: “Corporate clients usually go on vacation from the middle of December to mid-January. So although we got some bookings on the books in mid-December, it was only in the last week and a half that business started kicking into gear. And we are really gaining speed. We picked up three per cent occupancy in a single day (on Monday). It is a matter of time before we hit the 90 per cent range.”

The visually stunning 367-room hotel is a masterpiece of acclaimed architectural firm WOHA. Marketed as a hotel-in-a-garden and boasting extensive landscaping and environment-friendly features, the hotel opened with 200 guestrooms, as well as its signature all-day dining restaurant, Lime, an infinity-edge pool on the fifth floor, a luxurious residence-styled executive lounge and rooftop terrace on the 16th floor, and a collection of meeting and event venues on the second floor.

Remaining guestrooms will be rolled out gradually.

Sullivan said the hotel’s business mix would comprise 55 to 60 per cent corporate business, largely due to the property’s location in the central business district (CBD).

“From Sunday to Thursday we will be primarily a corporate hotel and transition into a leisure hotel over the weekend. Some hotels in the (centre of the) CBD really suffer on weekends because it is difficult to get any leisure travellers. Nobody wants to walk out of a hotel and onto empty streets. But here, we have Chinatown just behind us, Boat Quay, Clarke Quay and the Singapore River in front, and Marina Square and Marina Bay Sands in close proximity. Guests can also walk to Club Street where there are many interesting restaurants and bars,” he said.

Parkroyal Hotels & Resorts also operates two other hotels in Singapore – Parkroyal on Beach Road and Parkroyal on Kitchener Road – as well as the Parkroyal Serviced Suites Singapore.

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