Top Billing for a Hospitality Superstar

Lights! Camera! Action! And The Oscar goes to … The Ascott Limited!

Hailed by the Wall Street Journal as "The Oscars of the travel industry" , the World Travel Awards is acknowledged as the biggest and the most prestigious programme to recognise and reward excellence in the global travel industry. WTA winners are superstars, representing the gold standard to which everyone in the industry aspires.

This year, The Ascott Limited (Ascott), the largest international serviced residence owner-operator, has joined the ranks of luminaries at WTA with 20 wins spanning serviced residences in a dozen countries. The accolades garnered also include the hotly contested Asia’s Leading Serviced Apartment Brand and Europe’s Leading Serviced Apartment Brand.

Your Vote Counts

Adding to the excitement of the international recognition is the fact that The Ascott Limited is up for the ultimate accolade as well - the WTA World awards.

The Ascott Limited has been nominated for World’s Leading Serviced Apartment Brand; Go Green @ Ascott, the company’s eco campaign has been nominated for World’s Responsible Tourism Award; and Citadines Suites Lourve Paris and Ascott Raffles Place Singapore have been nominated for World’s Leading Serviced Apartments.

Winners are determined by votes cast by travel professionals and consumers. Voting has closed on 10 November and results will be announced on 30 November. You can check for the winners here: World Travel Awards Winners 2013 .

A Place at the Top of the World

The World’s Leading Serviced Apartment Brand recognises the winner as a top name in the serviced apartment industry throughout the world. As a serviced residence provider with 29 years of experience, Ascott is recognised internationally for its strong branding, as well as its product and service excellence. The Ascott Limited has more than 33,000 units in over 200 properties in across over 80 key cities and more than 20 countries in Asia Pacific, Europe and the Gulf region. A whole-owned subsidiary of CapitaLand Limited, the company operates three award-winning brands: Ascott, Citadines and Somerset.

And the Green Nominee is …

Go Green @ Ascott is the company’s concerted initiative to achieve its Green vision. Since its launch in July 2011, Ascott has achieved the ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 certifications for 106 of its serviced residences across 15 countries in Asia Pacific and Europe. These certifications are global standards for environmental management, and occupational health and safety management for businesses.

The Ascott Limited is also a long-time participant of Earth Hour and even organises its own monthly Earth Day on the first Friday of every month when eco-friendly practices are emphasised.

And the eco ideas keep coming. In June this year, The Ascott Limited launched the Dare to Go Green campaign. Serviced residences were challenged to meet at least one of these targets: incorporating green elements to our buildings, water, energy, paper and waste reduction.

For a week, 40 residents from Citadines Sukhumvit 8 and 11 Bangkok walked instead of taking the properties’ tuk tuks to and from the main road and saved 337 kilograms of carbon dioxide emission, and 1616 baht of fuel. At Somerset Emerald City Suzhou, 16 residents took up a two-week challenge to switch electricity off when they leave the apartment, reduce housekeeping service frequency and take public transport. For their efforts, the residents each received a little potted plant.

Cast a Vote for Luxury

A luxury boutique residence, Citadines Suites Lourve Paris is the first property under Ascott’s new Citadines Suites label. Its prime location at the heart of the most vibrant part of Paris puts it within walking distance of the city’s theatres, museums and business district. The elegant neighbourhood, with charming sidewalk cafes and high-end boutiques, is ideal for sampling a flavour of Parisian life.

Within its Art Nouveau façade built in 1908 are stylishly ornate interiors with an intimate ambience. The 51 impeccably furnished suites spread over seven floors come with the best home technology has to offer – a Nespresso® coffee-maker, Wi-Fi and iPod/iPad® docking stations, and a fully equipped kitchen.

Giving the opulent residence a personal touch are thoughtful additional services. Residents can opt to have their refrigerators filled with food upon their arrival; have their meals cooked in their apartments by a French chef, and even enjoy special honeymoon packages that play to the reputation of Paris as the city of love.

Another piece of history restored is the refurbished Ascott Raffles Place Singapore which is housed in the iconic former Asia Insurance Building, hailed as the tallest building in 1950s Southeast Asia. No effort was spared in the S$60-million preservation of the office tower gazetted by the Urban Redevelopment Board (URA) in 2007 as a conservation building. Ascott was conferred the Urban Redevelopment Authority’s (URA) Architectural Heritage Award for carefully preserving unique features of this heritage icon.

20,000 pieces of the original marble; the iconic mail chute by its inventor and architect, James Cutler; and the stainless steel crown that tops the structure commemorating the coronation of the Queen of England in 1953 have all been lovingly preserved.

While respecting its heritage, the 146 exquisitely decorated apartments come with all the comforts of modern living including meeting rooms, WiFi connectivity, an infinity pool, jacuzzis, a fully equipped gymnasium, a residents’ lounge, a lounge bar and a fine dining restaurant.

Ascott’s focus on delivering service from the heart, and providing guests with a memorable stay is what drives its business. It hires talented people who consistently deliver exceptional service with the right attitude. The company invests heavily in enhancing the capabilities of all its staff and developing potential. This ensures that staff can deliver the high standards that define the award-winning brand of service.