Parkroyal on Pickering opens for business

SINGAPORE: Green certified hotel, Parkroyal on Pickering, opened its doors to customers on Jan 16. Located on Pickering Street opposite Hong Lim Park near Chinatown, the hotel’s green efforts have been rewarded with a Building and Construction Authority (BCA) Green Mark Platinum rating, the highest for green buildings in Singapore.

“Our team of knowledgeable and passionate associates is excited to build upon the green architectural foundations of Parkroyal on Pickering to promote sustainable hotel operations and management practices in Singapore,” general manager David Sullivan said in a statement.

The 16-storey hotel is designed by internationally acclaimed Singapore architecture firm WOHA. The property features 15,000 sq m of lush four-storey tall sky gardens, reflecting pools, waterfalls, planter terraces and cascading vertical greenery, twice its land area. The hotel is the first to adopt the hotel-in-garden concept.

The hotel introduces the state’s first solar-powered sky gardens. Other energy conservation features are automatic lighting, rain and motion sensors, rain harvesting and the use of recycled water, NEWater.

About 50% of the guestroom corridors are shaded by tropical trees and flanked by water features. This reduces the temperature and use of air conditioning. There are also heat pumps to generate hot water rather than the conventional electrical heating system, thus reducing energy usage by 70%.

There are 367 guestrooms and suites that offer views of the city and the sky gardens. The fifth floor is an outdoor wellness space with fitness and recreational facilities such as an infinity pool overlooking the city and a 300m long garden walk. The St Gregory spa will be launched in March and will pamper guests with its signature therapy and treatment. The hotel has meeting rooms and the pillar-less William Pickering ballroom for special events.

This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on February 8, 2013.

There are 367 guestrooms and suites that offer views of the city and the sky gardens.