Dasho Sangay Wangchuk provides an exclusive tour of his visionary Six Senses Bhutan
Dasho Sangay Wangchuk takes us on a journey through his country and provides an exclusive tour of his visionary Six Senses Bhutan
“I KNEW EXACTLY WHAT I WANTED TO DO WITH THE SIX SENSES BHUTAN SO I LOOKED FOR TALENTED ARCHITECTS WHO WOULD REALLY LISTEN”
Elegant, humble and passionate are a few words to describe Dasho Sangay Wangchuk, a Thimphu-born entrepreneur and the man behind the Six Senses Bhutan. Sangay is married to HRH Princess Chimi Yangzom Wangchuck, the daughter of his Majesty, the fourth King of Bhutan. Travelling the world from a young age with his parents, who were involved in hotel industry ventures, instilled an entrepreneurial spirit in him. “I came to the realisation that our country was unique,” he says. “When Aman opened back in 2006, there was a lot of interest globally, but I thought we could do something better, even more magical and groundbreaking in location and design.”
As soon as you arrive in Bhutan, the first reaction is one of wonder, especially with respect to the environment – it’s pristine and utterly pure. Says Sangay: “We are the only country whose constitution states that 60 per cent of our land will remain untouched forever. We’re also the only country who in the last 50 years has increased our forest coverage – from 72 per cent to 74 per cent. We aren’t carbon-neutral; we’re carbon-negative.” While the rest of the world is debating and (in better instances) trying to eradicate climate change, Bhutan is one of the few destinations with the right priorities and strategies in place.
Sangay credits the country’s success to the leadership of the monarchy. “We have been blessed with visionary kings who really felt for the kingdom,” he says. “Being Buddhists, our people were quick to realise that money isn’t everything. Nowadays, we often talk of sustainability, but sustainability was already a common catchphrase in every policy and corporate document for us 100 years ago – this has long been a key focus.”
In 1974, Jigme Singye Wangchuck was crowned King of Bhutan. “My father-in-law was the youngest head of state in the world, yet knew that Bhutan needed to develop and grow in this modern era,” recalls Sangay. “When he invited all the government planners and consultants to advise on this, it was clear their united focus was purely on economic growth and increasing GDP. The king charted his own course of action – to focus on the happiness of his kingdom during his reign. This would be measured by the Gross National Happiness (GNH) indicator, striking a balance between material, emotional and spiritual well-being. The rest of the world was quite negative when this was first announced. They’d comment, ‘You can measure happiness in your own household, but how can you manage this across a country?’” Fast forward 10 years into the GNH’s implementation, when world experts came to visit Bhutan, they were wowed by what they saw.
“OUR LIFESTYLE AND CULTURE HAS NOT CHANGED FOR 1,000 YEARS ”
| JAN/FEB 2020
The country’s GNH is based on four fundamental pillars: sustainable world economic growth, the preservation of one’s culture, the preservation of the environment and good governance. “We measure this with giant indicators, looking at the suicide rates, the crime rates, and the access to healthcare and education,” explains Sangay. “In the West, the majority are very stressed about medical insurance, health care and social security. When you get sick in Bhutan, the hospitals are free and education is free. This already ensures a relatively low level of stress. We don’t have anyone in the country who’s homeless or hungry – everyone is happy, physically and mentally.”
Sangay, who earned his master’s degree in public administration and business from Columbia University in New York, reflects on his personal experiences, “I’ve been to some of the strongest countries, both militarily and economically. Yet I see homeless people on the streets, high rates of crime, and suicide and drug abuse. Everyone seems very stressed and unhappy. This makes you think, are we human beings born to work like machines and make a lot of money, and then use that money just to consume? Where everyone who has less is trying to catch up with everyone who has more? And people who have enough are just continually trying to grow their wealth? Where do we draw the line? We live on Planet Earth and our resources are finite.”
What is important in life is to live purposefully and for Sangay, creating the Six Senses Bhutan has long been his vision. “Since I was a teenager, I started collecting and looking for ideas and themes,” he recalls. “Then came locating and identifying the perfect sites that would encompass all the beauty of Bhutan. When this was set, we dove deep into the building and design works for 10 years – two and a half years purely perfecting the design – to ensure every square inch was perfect. The final product was something every luxury operator wanted to pitch, with all of them saying that Bhutan is the most authentic destination in the world.”
“It’s our setting in the Eastern Himalayas with such a dramatic and beautiful backdrop that I really wanted to showcase throughout the property – to really open up the amazing panoramic views of the valleys, the temples and the staggering mountains,” continues Sangay. “We wanted to use all real and natural materials and to ensure the design truly reflected the setting. We also wanted to have all the luxurious facilities in place without being too garish or ostentatious.”
Last year, Six Senses Bhutan won the prestigious Prix Versailles World Awards 2019 (for Best Hotel Design) in Paris at the UNESCO World Headquarters. This recognition is clearly well deserved. Apart from being structurally
“MINDFULLNESS IS A KEY WAY I CENTRE MYSELF. IN BHUTAN, OUR SENSE OF COMMUNITY IS VERY STRONG AND TIGHT KNIT. FAMILY IS CORE ”
去年，不丹六善酒店贏得2019年度Prix Versailles World Awards。酒店項目除擁有矚目結構和貼心設計外，亦周全考慮到很多旅客關注的重要問題，由環保、幸福感、傳統和文化，到照顧精神和心靈的層面方面，不丹六善酒店也一一達標，這些亦是不丹一直擁護的核心價值。
「我們最想為訪客創作故事。」Sangay熱誠地表示。不丹六善酒店由5座酒店建築組成，提供數之不盡的設施，讓住客盡情放鬆身心靈。每座酒店的設計各有特色，而且全都設有六善酒店水療和健康中心、貼心的餐飲服務和優越的睡眠環境。但這些只是配套，如何享受這趟身心旅程，決定權仍在你手。
「到達機場後，先乘車約50分鐘前往首都廷布，這兒是國王和王室的居住地，也是政府部門重地。位於首都的酒店屹立於山上，名為『Palace in the Sky』，20間客房全都飾以木材和舒適地毯，並設有私人水療室，讓客人享受傳統的熱石浴。」
跟首都相距約2.5小時車程的普那卡是不丹主要的稻田所在地。立於梯田之中的酒店有「Flying Farmhouse Amidst Rice Fields」之名，故設計偏向型格和前衛，有如一間新式時尚的農舍。由普那卡往東行，來到如詩如畫的崗堤，多條小徑穿梭於樹林之間，猶如置身綠色童話世界。在冬天，這兒是瀕危的黑頸鶴的棲息地，也是崗堤寺的所在之處，這座建於16世紀的寺廟是不丹其中一間最重要的佛教修道院。至於設計方面，酒店建於一座高橋之上，是觀賞雀鳥的好地點。
布姆唐是六善酒店建於最東面的酒店，很多歷史悠久的廟宇均建於此區。這裡的松樹既密集又強壯，所以酒店以森林中的森林作為設計意念，每間房也有一棵樹。
最後，從布姆唐乘坐內陸機飛返帕羅，酒店就在一個壯觀的遺跡旁。這個山谷以屹立於陡峭岩壁上的虎穴寺而聞名，酒店的設計亦從中取材，客房有如自凹凸不平的石頭轉化而成，十分矚目有趣。
「以上就是六善酒店的旅程，是從感官出發的不凡之旅。每座酒店也能喚醒你平時不曾留意的感官，在你動身離開之時，你的第6感官也自然會醒過來。」Sangay總結說：「以往，不丹是很多人在世時最想前往的地方一，但最近我們發現不少旅客帶著不同的旅伴再三重臨。」不丹人也當然深深熱愛自己的國家。「本地人到訪的國家愈多，便愈想回來，他們都知道不丹有多獨一無二。」//