By T+L SEA Staff
Jul 9, 2021
HOSPITALITY IS ALL ABOUT DISCRETION, RIGHT?
But our credit card swipes chart our paths across the world—unless you pay cash, which isn’t always an option for advance bookings. Now, The Pavilions Hotels & Resorts, with properties across Asia and Europe, has just become the first global hospitality group to accept cryptocurrency from any country for reservations.
The boutique hotel group, headquartered in Thailand, has luxury resorts and residences there as well as in Indonesia, Nepal and Mongolia, in Asia, and Italy, the Netherlands and Spain, in Europe. The Pavilions plans to expand next year into the Philippines, Japan and Portugal.
El Nido Palawan Island
Himalayas Lake View
In the market for a vacation home? You can also now use cryptocurrencies to purchase a Pavilions Residence; there are two clusters of them, within the group’s Phuket and Niseko resorts.
“The end-to-end payment service is safe, flexible and easy for guests,” said Jesse Hemson-Struthers, CEO and co-founder of Coindirect, the crypto-payment gateway The Pavilions has partnered with to enable guests to spend Bitcoin, Ethereum and 40 other virtual currencies. (See here for the full list of cryptocurrencies The Pavilions accepts.)
Phuket Bali
The move to cryptocurrency is in line with The Pavilions focus on meeting customers where they are, according to the group’s founder and owner, Gordon Oldham: “Personalized experiences are at the core of our DNA.” They’ve recently launched a travel service called Curated Journeys in which local experts create multi-day bespoke itineraries based on guest interest — including even working from hotel. Basically, that means they cram as much unique-to-your-location fun into the times of day you’re not on your laptop.
Anana Krabi
Here’s a list of The Pavilions Hotels & Resorts (and Residences) around the world, all jumping on the blockchain train:
Asia
Indonesia
– The Pavilions Bali
Japan
– The Pavilions Niseko (including The Pavilions Residences) opening 2022
Mongolia
– The Pavilions Mongolia
Nepal
– The Pavilions Himalayas, The Farm
– The Pavilions Himalayas, Lakeview
Philippines
– The Pavilions El Nido, Palawan Island opening 2022
Thailand
– The Pavilions Phuket (including The Pavilions Residences)
– The Pavilions Anana Krabi
Europe
Italy
– The Pavilions Rome, The First Arte
– The Pavilions Rome, The First Dolce
– The Pavilions Rome, The First Aqua opening 2022
Netherlands
– The Pavilions Amsterdam, The Toren
Portugal
– The Pavilions Lisbon opening 2022
Spain
– The Pavilions Madrid
Horseback riding at The Pavilions Mongolia
All photos courtesy of The Pavilions Hotels & Resorts