By Nickky Faustine P. de Guzman
THE BORACAY of simple nipa huts and backpackers’ dreams is long gone.
While Boracay is still a consistent top choice among the world’s best beaches — the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents voted it as the “Favorite Beach Destination in 2015,” while TripAdvisor called Boracay the world’s seventh best beach this year for its clear waters and white powdery sand — it has transformed into a party town with a vibrant nightlife that saw the travel-dating site MissTravel.com ranking it as the most popular destination for Millennials who want to skip the usual family get-togethers especially on holidays.
“Boracay has changed now. It’s primarily a party town. You don’t go to chill or relax anymore, especially in Station 2,” said Annabella Wisniewski, president of Raintree Hospitality Group (RHG), during the launch of Boracay’s newest hotel on Nov. 12. “The market is young. The Millennials are very active, they have high energy,”
Tapping the energy of the Millennials, who are a growing market of Boracay-bound vacationers, RHG, in partnership with Cyrus and Luisa Sta. Maria’s Beach Design Hotel Group, Inc., will open a 71-room “Millennial-friendly” hotel called Coast at Station 2 in the first quarter of 2016.
“It’s a ‘new-gen’ resort that has a lot of energy, but in an organized chaos,” said Ms. Wisniewski. But she was quick to add that it can be family-oriented, too. The room rate averages between P6,000 and P8,000.
Setting it apart from the rest of party-ready hotels in Station 2 — it is located at the middle of the bustling beach, just a few steps away from the restaurants, bars, and pasalubong (souvenir) stores of the D’Mall — its beach butler service which comes at no extra charge. And it has cotton candy and popcorn available at the lobby (“Just to add something unique.”).
Food is also a focus at The Coast — after all, RHG owns Metro Manila eateries like the Museum Café and Kabila at the Ayala Museum in Greenbelt 4, and the Japanese restaurant Saboten, among many others. At Coast, vacationers can choose from a rooftop bar and lounge (The Coconut Club), or a pica-pica (finger food) food truck, a grill (Cafecito), or an all-day dining restaurant (Cha Cha).
“We don’t need to be high-end [to have a superb service.] My mission is to improve the standard of service. The Filipinos have this gaya-gaya(copycat) mentality, which has a good side. We have to uplift the standard — while we’re not five-star hotel, we have to be good. We have to represent the country, and Boracay is a showcase,” Ms. Wisniewski said.
The gaya-gaya mentality was in reference to the air-conditioned boats that HSAI-Raintree — which developed and managed Discovery Suites, Shores, and Country Suites from 1999 to 2012 — started offering to transport tourists from Aklan to Boracay. Soon the rest of the island’s hotels started offering their own comfy boats.
Now, she said Coast hotel wants to lead by example, as a budget hotel with five-star hotel-like service.