While the Mandarin Oriental group’s Singapore flagship – first unveiled 36 years ago as The Oriental – is fast approaching middle age, you’d hardly know it. In fact, it has never looked better, thanks, in part, to an astonishing renovation, revealed to the public September 2023 in the wake of a six-month closure.

Designer Jeffrey Wilkes of Designwilkes – the award-winning firm behind the design of several Mandarin Oriental properties globally – took inspiration from the city-state itself in his vision for the hotel’s new look and feel. “Every corner of the hotel tells a story, from Singapore’s lush landscapes to the intricate details found in traditional shophouses,” says Wilkes, who integrated heritage-imbued local design elements from Peranakan architecture to local flora, such as the Angsana tree, into the refit. “We wanted guests not just to be visiting the city, but to feel a part of it.”

Mission accomplished. This deeply entrenched pride of place begins every morning in each of the hotel’s 510 freshly reimagined rooms and suites: Marina-facing rooms now boast a cooler colour palette that bleeds into the blue waters of the bay; the warm-toned hues of sea-facing rooms reflect the warm light of the rising sun; and city-facing rooms feature vibrant botanical prints that mirror Singapore’s tropical greenery. To boot, two new suites – the Presidential Suite and the four-bedroom Royal Marina Bay Penthouse, on the two uppermost storeys of the hotel – add a fresh dimension of luxury to the vaunted property.

Further show-stopping feats of design are visible across the hotel, including in the sun-flooded lobby. Here, Singapore’s national flower, the Vanda Joaquim orchid, makes an appearance in the form of beautifully crafted crystal spheres that drip from the lofty ceiling. A new all-day dining venue, the plant-filled embu, was named for Singapore’s iconic Tembusu tree. Guests here can look forward to Indian and Asian fare, wood-fired pizza and barbeque-style cookery – not to mention a tailored menu and play area for the little ones, while the newly revamped club lounge, HAUS 65, is home to an exciting line-up of events, including sommelier-led wine tastings. What better place to toast to the hotel’s renaissance?