Out of Town Blog
Summit Hotels opens Bicol’s first chain brand
Summit Hotel in Naga City
Team Out of Town Blog Hub (Outoftownblog.com) – As Bicol recently officially reopened its tourism industry, the region also welcomed the opening of its first hotel chain brand, Summit Hotel in Naga City.
Situated at the Robinson’s Place mall complex, the three-star business boutique hotel which soft-opened in January is the latest addition to the growing number of tourism establishments in Bicol, one of the top domestic destinations before the Covid-19 pandemic struck.
The 26th property of the Robinsons Hotels and Resorts (RHR), the hospitality arm of Robinsons Land Corp., it has 56 rooms, four suites with a scenic view of Mt. Isarog, and a fitness gym, a lap pool, a convention hall, and 3 function rooms.
It also has the signature all-day restaurant and coffee shop Café Summit, fast becoming a favorite dining haunt in the city with its regional Bicol cuisine and international favorites.
The Gokongwei-owned chain has 27 properties in key cities such as Cebu, Gen. Santos, Tacloban, Iloilo, Bacolod, Dumaguete, Tagaytay, and Metro Manila under Robinsons Hotels and Resorts. Naga is the seventh under the Summit Hotel group.
Named manager of Summit Hotel Naga is Ann Margrett Mapula, one of the hospitality industry’s youngest lady millennial executives. The 36-year-old manager will also oversee the operations of the adjacent 68-room Go Hotel Plus which will open this summer.
Born in Butuan City in 1986, she finished her Bachelor of Science in Tourism at the University of the Philippines.
A native of Masbate province, she started her career at the InterContinental Hotels Group in 2011 as a guest relations officer for InterContinental Manila, one of the country’s pioneer hotels.
She has worked in key positions in 3 other luxury properties namely Holiday Inn and Suites in Makati, InterContinental Kuala Lumpur as Front Office Manager, and Club InterContinental Manager for InterContinental Singapore.
Her exposure to Asian countries has honed her to be an advocate of female leadership and gender equality in the industry. She also helped form and became a pioneer member of the Lean In Circle Organisation in Kuala Lumpur, a women’s professional and support group in Malaysia.
To prepare her for leadership roles in the prestigious hospitality chain, Ann Mapula also trained under the InterContinental Hotels Group’s RISE Program which trains potential female general managers.
As her first stint as a hotel top honcho, she expressed excitement at the prospects of bringing best practices in the global industry to a local setting such as the Bicol.
“Customer service is not rocket science. It is an art of 5 senses uniquely tailored for each individual’s preference. Listen and understand, and you will never go wrong,” she enthused.
Ann Mapula expressed optimism that with the international standards of the Robinsons Hotels and Resorts is bringing in, the potential of Naga City and the region for MICE tourism can be further enhanced.
The youthful hotelier said that with the growth of visitor arrival in the region brought about by conventions and events, Bicol can hasten the pace of its post-pandemic economic recovery.
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Read: Ultimate List Of The Best Hotels In Naga City
Original article: Summit Hotels opens Bicol’s first chain brand
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Summit Hotels opens Bicol’s first chain brand
Melo Villareal
Out of Town Blog
