One Year in, Hyatt Centric Kota Kinabalu Celebrates Raving Reviews, Milestone Achievements And Prestigious Awards
Kota Kinabalu, 20 November 2023 – One year into its grand opening, Hyatt Centric Kota Kinabalu is celebrating a string of accolades as well as raving reviews from guests. The first Hyatt Centric hotel in Southeast Asia is proud to hit its one-year mark with positive sentiments from all around, a testament to its track record as a growing lifestyle brand in the country and region.
Since its opening, the hotel has cemented itself in the good books of guests, both business and leisure, as the place to go to for their stays, particularly those from Korea, China as well as the US and UK. Key features of the hotel that steal the show include its spectacular pool, and its proximity to the Gaya Street Night Food Market and Sunday.
The market for an immersion into local culture and its vicinity with the Jesselton Pier, which spells speedy travels to nearby islands for water excursions. Coupled with its stylish interior design, top-notch amenities and warm and welcoming staff at every turn of the stay, it is the first choice for many travellers to the capital of Sabah.
Hyatt Centric Kota Kinabalu has served as a springboard for building connections with local communities in the art, culture, food and beverage segments to spearhead them to new grounds. To cultivate rapport among local chefs, the hotel staged events like the Best Bah-Ger in KK Competition, pitting esteemed chefs from the region in a friendly cook-off at its restaurant ON22. Similarly, to connect guests with local culture, it has on its perennial itinerary a Kota Kinabalu Street Art Walking Tour that helps participants discover and connect with the local street art scene.
The hotel has rewritten a new menu for the local F&B scene with its dining establishment ON22 and rooftop bar ON23, spotlighting local produce, flavours and influences. It injected a new experience that pairs vibrant local Sabahan tastes with true Sabahan hospitality. Under the stewardship of Chef Jun Yip Ho, modern Asian delicacies are spun from fresh, sustainable and locally sourced ingredients. Above it, at the rooftop bar ON23, guests are welcomed with stunning panoramic views of Kota Kinabalu before sitting down to locally-infused signature cocktails concocted by Bar Manager Kenneth Klassen.
Concurrently, it retains a local-centric focus on operations by retaining its philosophy of talent being the heart of the hotel. It works closely with local youths to grow careers and develop talents. Frequent engagement, on-the-job training and skill-building mutually benefit the team to sustain, retain and best serve its people as they live and work together as one team. This is in line with the Hyatt values.
For all it has achieved, Hyatt Centric Kota Kinabalu was recently awarded by World Luxury Awards 2023 in 4 categories i.e Best Architectural Design and Luxury Lifestyle Hotel; and its ON22 Restaurant garnered the Asian Cuisine and Magnificent Scenic Views awards. The hotel was also recognised as the Outstanding New Lifestyle Hotel by MyMalaysia Tourism Awards 2023. Additionally, it has also received the Hospitality Award from Pertubuhan Arkitek Malaysia (PAM) Award and a Silver Award certification by GreenRE.
General Manager Ruben Schrijver says, “Despite being only a year old, a very young hotel by all industry standards, we are proud to have made such a mark on the local scene and hospitality industry. We are celebrating in the only way we know how – by continuing to lead the way in making Kota Kinabalu a hub for arts and culture through hospitality. We hope to achieve that through our many innovative and fun initiatives in typical vibrant Hyatt Centric style.”
A Month-Long Anniversary Celebration
To celebrate this grand milestone, the hotel has come up with a series of activities taking place all month long, materialised alongside collaborations with local communities.
In mid-October, Street Strokes @ Ewan Lane saw local and international grafitti artists dress up Ewan Lane right behind the hotel with a series of customized artwork. Some of the talents who lent their skill to the project include Suiko from Japan and Waris from Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. There was also Get Inked at ON23 which gathered nine local tattoo artists from Kota Kinabalu to transform part of the bar into a pop-up tattoo studio where guests could book sessions overlooking the South China Sea. The effort was the fruit of collaboration with Black Ink Industry Tattoos.
On 19 November, members of the public were invited to participate in the e-Sports at Hyatt Centric Kota Kinabalu that took place in collaboration with Sri Pelancongan Sabah and Never Settle e-Sport Club. This first-of its-kind event welcomed various e-sports teams in PUBG Mobile and Mobile Legends who battled it out online at the hotel. On 25 November, don’t miss out on the Ewan Lane Festival that is returning with a bang following a successful inauguration last year. Aimed at promoting Kota Kinabalu’s urban culture, the festival will again feature hip-hop dance competition community mural art painting, skateboarders, Urban Tamu – a local artisan market, and a concert featuring Sahahan artists. Ewan Lane located next to Hyatt Centric Kota Kinabalu and known for its colourful street art, will be transformed into a carnival-like atmosphere with skateboard ramps, food trucks and market stalls. Activities will include street art jam sessions skateboarding demonstrations and competitions. To find out more, follow Hyatt Centric Kota Kinabalu on Facebook and Instagram.
One Year of Stellar Hospitality
One year in and Hyatt Centric Kota Kinabalu is only growing from strength to strength, setting its eyes on bigger, greater and more exciting things as the trendsetter for innovative and fun initiatives. More importantly, it seeks to be the cultural melting-pot hotpot where hospitality, culinary excitement and lifestyle movements come together for a new generation of travellers looking for something distinctively memorable.
For more information, please visit www.hyattcentrickotakinabalu.com or call +60154 874 1234. Follow Hyatt Centric Kota Kinabalu on Facebook and Instagram.
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