New luxury property The Londoner Hotel aims to bring the best of the British to Macao.
As we drive up to the entrance of the new The Londoner Hotel in Macao, on a cobbled driveway with a glass-covered porte cochère, it takes me a moment to realise it is modelled on London’s Victoria Station.
Imagine my surprise when I walk into the impressive Crystal Palace atrium, Victorian in design and featuring glass, iron, and marble in an intricate, 10-storey-high ceiling. The centrepiece of the atrium pays homage to Piccadilly Circus’s Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain. It is a surreal experience, as I feel transported from Macao to the heart of the UK capital.
Check-in is flawless and I am soon settled into my luxurious Louis Suite. These spacious suites offer panoramic views of the city through floor-to-ceiling windows. I was taken with the warm, homey feel created through the clever use of soothing greys, creams, and beiges, complemented by British-style design features such as framed royal crests and crowned lion statuettes. The interiors are designed by Steve Leung Design Group.
I love the practical living area tastefully furnished with a Chesterfield sofa and high-backed leather armchair that exudes elegance. Marble floors, dark carpets, and an understated tartan rug add to the overall sense of elegance.
My bed is adorned with pristine white linen and Londoner-monogrammed silk brown cushions. A low-back armchair near the window becomes my favourite spot for sipping tea and enjoying the view at the start and end of each day.
The Londoner Hotel is owned by Las Vegas Sands, who also own The Venetian Macao, The Parisian Macao, among others — all located along the Cotai Strip.
The Londoner Hotel also features invitation-only Suites by David Beckham OBE, a Sands Ambassador. Through his ‘Be My Guest’ program, Beckham can extend an exclusive invitation to visitors to enjoy one of the 14 David Beckham-branded apartments on the hotel’s top two floors. Collaborating closely with the design firm David Collins Studio, Beckham added his personal touch to each richly appointed room, with photographs of the football star in every room, even the bathrooms.
Even for non-gamblers like me, The Londoner Hotel has plenty to offer. The life-size replica of Big Ben (Elizabeth Tower) chimed every hour, just like the original in London. An original 1966 London red double-decker bus adds a touch of British nostalgia to the front courtyard. And to add to the London experience, there is a quirky rendition of the Buckingham Palace ‘Changing of the Guard,’ complete with music, trumpeters, drummers, Scots Guards, and an impersonator of Her Majesty.
Dining options at The Londoner are diverse, catering to broad tastes and culinary preferences, including Churchill’s Table — a four-meal restaurant inspired by Sir Winston Churchill. My favourite is the North Palace which showcases the very best of northern Chinese cuisine. I dine on superb roast duck, Beijing lamb from inner Mongolia, and flatbreads from Xinjian.
The Londoner takes you on a journey through time of how British culture came to be a cornerstone of Macao. Though Macao was a former Portuguese colony, after the arrival of the British in Hong Kong, Macao became the centre of British influence in the Far East region.
About the complex
The integrated Sands resort encompasses several award-winning properties:
– The Londoner Hotel, featuring Suites by David Beckham
– Londoner Court
– Conrad Macao
– The St. Regis Macao
– Sheraton Grand Macao
The complex also features 150 fashion and lifestyle boutiques that comprise Shoppes at Londoner that joins Shoppes at Venetian, Shoppes at Parisian and Shoppes at Four Seasons, for 850 combined stores, all within walking distance of each other.
The writer was a guest of The Londoner Macao