The Grand Dame reopens on 108th anniversary

JUST a day before the historic hotel’s founding anniversary, The Manila Hotel plans to partially open its doors to its valued guests, with the famed Café Ilang Ilang, the Lobby Lounge, and the Delicatessen resuming operations today. A rebirth of sorts after months of following government quarantine protocols, the hotel has adjusted along with the rest of the world in navigating the “new normal,” and puts a high premium on the well-being of guests.

With the lobby shining bright anew signifying eternal hope, The Manila Hotel commemorates its 108th founding anniversary on July 4 by welcoming guests with an enduring brand of service that is now focused on enhanced health, hygiene, and sanitation protocols in line with DOH guidelines.

As the hotel prepares for the reopening, its president, lawyer Joey Lina assures the public, “You are safe here. We have taken every precaution to heart so you and your loved ones can have peace of mind when you visit or stay with us.”

To celebrate the milestone, Café Ilang Ilang will give the first 108 customers for the first 108 days of its reopening (including Saturdays and Sundays) a special dining rate for lunch and dinner. While there will no longer be a buffet, guests can “order and eat all you can” from a bountiful selection of dishes.

Both Café Ilang Ilang and the Lobby Lounge will be open with limited seating capacity. Thorough sanitation procedures will be implemented, and guests can order using disposable menu, eat using cutlery in sealed containers, and even use tables with acrylic dividers. Front-facing personnel communicating with guests like Guest Services Officers ( GSOs) and waiters will don masks, gloves, and face shields as well. To further limit contact with guests, Café Ilang Ilang is also fine-tuning its contactless ordering and payment system.

Moreover, high- touch points like door handles, elevator buttons, public area furniture and others will be sanitized multiple times per day using UV technology. Tests reveal that UV sanitation greatly reduces the bacteria count on surfaces, as demonstrated by lower RLU readings — whose value is used as a measure of surface cleanliness — after the procedure.

Barring announcements from the government to the contrary, the hotel also plans to start accepting room bookings by July 3.

The Grand Lobby of the historic Manila Hotel lights up again today, a day before its anniversary on July 4.