S Hotels & Resorts Celebrates Major Achievements at its Eco-Friendly Island Resorts in Asia

Santiburi Koh Samui signs the UNESCO Sustainable Tourism Pledge, which aims to eliminate single-use plastic, while Phi Phi Island Village Beach Resort and Hard Rock Hotel Maldives receive Condé Nast Traveler awards

Phi Phi Island Village Beach Resort is ranked six in Top 20 Resorts in Thailand in the 2020 Condé Nast Traveler Readers’ Choice Awards

BANGKOK, THAILAND: S Hotels and Resorts Public Company Limited, the flagship hospitality arm of Singha Estate PCL, is celebrating a series of highly significant achievements at its upscale beachfront resorts in Asia, including two impressive international awards and an important environmental pledge.

S Hotels & Resorts is happy to announce that two of its idyllic island resorts were honoured in the 2020 Condé Nast Traveler Readers’ Choice Awards. Phi Phi Island Village Beach Resort, the stunning seafront retreat, has been named as the sixth best resort in Thailand, while Hard Rock Hotel Maldives, the music-inspired five-star resort, was voted as the 23^rd best resort in the Indian Ocean. The Condé Nast Traveler Readers’ Choice Awards are the longest-running and most prestigious recognitions of excellence in the travel industry, and this year’s awards were voted for by more than 715,000 Condé Nast Traveler readers.

The readers of Condé Nast Traveler selected Hard Rock Hotel Maldives as one of their favourite resorts in the Indian Ocean

Santiburi Koh Samui, S Hotels & Resorts’ high-end, experience-driven island retreat, has enhanced its environmental credentials by signing the UNESCO Sustainable Tourism Pledge. Created in partnership with the Expedia Group and Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), this initiative is a key part of the global mission to rid the world of single-use plastic and promote low-impact travel. It also forms part of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the global blueprint for a more responsible future.

Like many of S Hotels & Resorts’ properties, including Hard Rock Hotel Maldives, Phi Phi Island Village Beach Resort and SAii Lagoon Maldives, Santiburi Koh Samui is proud to be a single-use plastic-free resort. It has already banned plastic bottles and has started using glass bottles and bottling its own water, with a hygienic refill station for staff, guests and islanders alike. Plastic straws have also been replaced with bamboo or lemongrass versions, and daily coast cleaning exercises are conducted to remove any plastic waste that may have washed ashore and ensure that it does not return to the sea. This made signing UNESCO’s pledge a natural step forward for Santiburi Koh Samui.

Nestled in 23 acres of landscaped grounds and coconut groves, Santiburi Koh Samui is an eco-friendly paradise

There are many parallels between these three exclusive island retreats. Nestled in 70 acres of tropical gardens with an 800-metre-long stretch of white sand, Phi Phi Island Village Beach Resort is a sanctuary of sustainability with a wide range of amenities and activities, including its innovative Marine Discovery Centre. Hard Rock Hotel Maldives is also designed on environmental principles; as part of CROSSROADS Maldives, the resort is actively involved in many areas of conservation and operates a Marine Discovery Centre. Finally, Santiburi Koh Samui is nestled among 23 acres of landscaped grounds and coconut groves, with a 300-metre-long private sandy bay, allowing guests to enjoy an amazing array of leisure activities, comforted by the knowledge they are not harming nature. 

S Hotels & Resorts has created comprehensive CSR programmes for all three properties, covering every aspect of their operations from waste management and water conservation to reforestation, recycling and outreach programmes. Santiburi Koh Samui was officially certified as carbon neutral in 2019 and Phi Phi Island Village Beach Resort received its carbon offset certificate in 2020.

“I am delighted to announce these three wonderful achievements for our outstanding Asian resorts. For Santiburi Koh Samui, working in harmony with the planet is at the heart of its ethos, so signing the UNESCO Sustainable Tourism Pledge is a proud moment. The guests at Phi Phi Island Village Beach Resort and Hard Rock Hotel Maldives also clearly appreciate their focus on eco-friendly experiences, which is one of the key reasons the resorts achieved these prestigious international awards from Condé Nast Traveler. I would like to thank everyone involved for making this possible,” said Dirk De Cuyper, Chief Executive Officer, S Hotels & Resorts.

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