The grand arrival of China’s Fairmont Sanya Haitang Bay exceeds expectations thanks to its outstanding facilities, including the world’s first seawater canal to run within a hotel.
Fairmont Hotels and Resorts is on a roll. Together with the news of the brand’s forthcoming debut in Australia in 2023, Accor has outlined the ambitious vision behind its first flagship Fairmont resort in Greater China, set to open in December 2020.
No expense spared in Sanya
The French hotel giant – in partnership with Hainan Keenwin Holdings – has truly gone the extra mile by detailing plans for an extravagant 523-key offering, set along the resort-strewn coast of Haitang Bay.
Gary Rosen, Accor Greater China’s chairman and chief operating officer said: “With the roll-out of the masterplan for Hainan Free Trade Port, Hainan Island will create impactful opportunities mostly with tourism services and high-tech industries. It is perfect timing for the arrival of Fairmont Sanya Haitang Bay to China’s largest special economic zone, as Hainan continues to transform into a major international trading, financial and shipping centre.”
An eight-minute drive from Sanya Haitang Bay International Duty Free Shopping Complex – and with views of Wuzhizhou Island and Yajia Daling Mountains – the newly refurbished Fairmont Sanya Haitang Bay also looks destined to hit the top feng shui notes, ensuring harmony between travellers and nature.
Chinese architecture principles
With interiors by Nick Winai Suansalee from Leo Design Group and landscape architecture by Francis Leung, the former design director of Belt Collins, the property is certainly shaping up to be a showstopper.
An overall formal symmetry – often found in imperial palaces – is revealed through details like a pair of watchtowers, which form the portal to the resort, while covered lounge bridges made from stone arches double as pathways to the lobby pavilion. Here, a grand sense of arrival is revealed through detailed wood carvings on the walls and elaborate ceiling friezes, which took two years to complete.
The highlight though, will undoubtedly be the 1.2km-long river, the world’s first seawater canal running within a hotel, on which guests can reach their rooms and other facilities via a dragon boat.
Rosen added: “With Fairmont properties already in some of the world’s most famous destinations, the Fairmont Sanya Haitang Bay will notably become a focal point of the island and will exceed our leisure and MICE guests’ expectations with outstanding facilities and services. Turning special moments into lasting memories that could only be found at Fairmont.”
Standout features of Fairmont’s newest resort
These outstanding facilities include a 1,500 sq m pillarless ballroom, nine meeting rooms, a VIP function room and a spectacular Chinese-inspired wedding pavilion in the lush tropical garden.
Healthy appetites, meanwhile, will be catered for via a clutch of restaurants and bars. Among them are Veranda, an all-day venue serving market-fresh fare with a hint of South-East Asian flavours; Yuen, a Chinese restaurant mixing a menu of fine Cantonese dishes with contemporary Hainanese offerings; and Ocean Lounge, best for a preprandial tipple, where cocktails and tapas plates are served amid a seaside setting.
Elsewhere, there’s the indulgent Willow Stream Spa, the Fairmont Fit gym, three outdoor swimming pools, a kid’s club, the Wood Art Gallery with furnishings and artefacts from the Ming and Qing Dynasties and, last but not least, the Fairmont Gold Club.
This exclusive offering can be found in the Fairmont Gold Tower, which houses some of the guestrooms, suites and residential apartments. Here, the VIP ‘hotel-within-a-hotel’ concept features enhanced luxury interior details, like lashings of warm timbers, plush, textured carpets and buttery soft-leather details, alongside a distinctive villa area and nine-hole golf course.
Li Liming, Hainan Keenwin Holdings’ chairman, said: “We are confident to work with Accor on the operations of our property at Haitang Bay through its iconic luxury brand Fairmont, which is known across the globe for landmark hotels with unrivalled presence. We are very proud of this resort, well-situated on Hainan Free Trade Port, a unique destination in China.
“We anticipate that with the expertise of Accor and the brand excellence of Fairmont, we will be able to capture new markets once Fairmont Sanya Haitang Bay is launched.”
According to the TOPHOTELCHAINS database, Accor is very much focused on expanding its portfolio across the APAC region, with 190 projects set to launch there over the next few years:
Fairmont Hotels & Resorts enjoys a worldwide reputation for accommodation excellence, with a global portfolio that includes historic icons, elegant resorts and modern city-centre properties