"Unspeakably hot. The equator is arriving again. We are within eight degrees of it. Ceylon present. Dear me, it is beautiful! And most sumptuously tropical, as to character of foliage and opulence of it. 'What though the spicy breezes blow soft o...
Dear Friends of The Most Famous Hotels in the World, First of all thank you very much for your brilliant responses on my last week's question whether we should consider young hotels like Dubai's iconic sail-shaped hotel Burj Al Arab (Ju...
The last stop before Bangkok was Rangoon. After flying over dense jungle, the mountains gave way to flat irrigated paddy rice fields and soon Don Muang, Bangkok’s airport, was reached. In March 1924 the British formed Imperial Airways (the for...
Kurt Wachtveitl will retire after 42 years as General Manager of the hotel he had made famous: the Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok. For over four decades German born Kurt Wachtveitl had set new standards for the global hotel industry. When I was an aspi...
Andreas Augustin Hotelnamen haben einen besonderen Klang. Manche versprechen weltweit Qualität, andere erreichten als Solitäre globalen Ruf und wurden zum Synonym für die Destination, an der man sie findet. Manche sind schlicht irref&...
If you think you have seen them all, read this one. Around 1960, it was sent to the proprietress of the Oriental Hotel in Bangkok, Germaine Krull, who remembers: ‘Our bill collectors had their problems. One debtor had left the French Embassy a...
Picture: "Khun" Kurt, as he is respectfully addressed in the original Thai way with the hotel's Executive Chef Norbert Kostner, 60-year Oriental veteran Ankana Kalantananda, Guest Relations Consultant, and his wife Mrs. Penny Wachtveitl. Why do...
“Sunset over the Atlas Mountains”, 1935 oil painting by Winston Churchill Winston Churchill considered La Mamounia and Marrakech the most unforgettable place on earth. The world-famous balcony that bathed his creative sensitivity in glo...
A room at the Oriental in the 1920s, at the time of Somerset Maugham's arrival Fighting White Ants by Andreas Augustin At The Mandarin Oriental shop, and present in every room, the book about the Oriental's history is more than j...
Unearthing History by Andreas Augustin Oh people of the shelter what a gift you've given me, To smile at me and quietly let me share your agony, And I can only bow in utter humbleness and ask, Forgiveness and forgiveness for the things we'...
Two books by Adrian Mourby should interest all hotel aficionados: Rooms of One's Own — 50 Places That Made Literary History Writers' relationships with their surroundings are seldom straightforward. While some, like Jan...
Author Andreas Augustin visits a good old friend. Once called one of the “Maidens of the East”, today one of the Grand Old Ladies of South East Asia. The Mandarin Oriental in Bangkok keeps its reign as the most famous hotel of Thailand, b...
Bangkok / Siam (today Thailand) "The hotel faced the river. My room was dark, one of a long line, with a verandah on each side of it, the breeze blew through, but it was stifling. The dining-room was large and dim, and for coolness" sake the windows...
By Andrew Williamson and Andreas Augustin Never ask a lady about her age! we have all learnt to accept. But if we stop calling hotels grand old ladies, we might very well aks. ‘How old is this establishment?’ is often one o...
The first pool at The Oriental (1959) Exactly 50 years ago, swimming pools were not necessarily part of the basic facilities of an Asian hotel. In the 1960s, The Oriental in Bangkok was among the first hotels to have its own pool, long bef...
If you have 18 minutes watch our movie about the history of The Oriental in Bangkok. You can also watch it there (recommended). Visit the permanent exhibition THE ORIENTAL JOURNEY.
From the book THE ORIENTAL, BANGKOK, the history of the legendary hotel, published in the library THE MOST FAMOUS HOTELS IN THE WORLD® by Andreas Augustin and Andrew Williamson Why don't you do some work, for a change? Chapter: Italthai 196...
Johannes Baur, born in Austria in 1795, was a visionary entrepreneur who profoundly shaped Zurich’s hospitality industry. In 1837, at the age...Read More
The historic building (top, slide to the right): The "new" Raffles main building in 1899. It opened on 18 November 1899, featuring the all new...Read More
Since decades “The Oriental”, as it is affectionately known by travellers from all over the globe, leads the lists of most...Read More
In 1952, a group of wealthy individuals including Donald Deskey, the fabled designer (among his works the Radio City Music Hall); Harvey Firestone,...Read More
You don your safari gear during the day, but you always dress for dinner. Because Mount Kenya Safari Club Nanyuki is an exclusive retreat. High on...Read More
