Now’s the time to check into that special resort and join an activity that might scare you, frighten you a little, or add a new skill to your growing repertoire.
Would you like to join a fish filleting class in the afternoon? While it was a most unexpected question from the front desk staff, I should have seen it coming.
We no longer check into hotels simply to sleep and refresh ourselves for an onward journey. Immersive experiences are increasingly part of the stay, especially at resorts where guests spend several days. Lounging beside the pool, reading a book, and absorbing some ultraviolet rays was once all the rage, but many travellers now seek experiences that give them something more to take home than a suntan.
While they’re still offered, hotel guests are moving beyond cooking classes, market visits with the chef, nature walks, floating breakfasts in private villas, and beach volleyball. These days, hotels and resorts are digging deeper into their guest offerings, creating opportunities to learn a skill, meet people, explore local culture, or simply try something outside the usual holiday routine.
Fish filleting by the lake
On a recent trip to Austria, I returned to a lakeside hotel that had previously captured my attention. Hotel Post am See, overlooking Lake Traun, east of Salzburg, is a real gem. Situated in the village of Traunkirchen, this 60-room property offers tranquillity, gourmet meals, and access to the Johannesberg Chapel, which dates back to 1356. Its website lists a slew of activities ranging from fish filleting to fish smoking, as well as how to mix a Negroni and the ‘art of breathing’ during a yoga session.
I don’t have the patience for fishing, but I enjoy eating fish. Hence, the offer of a complimentary filleting class in the hotel’s Belétage Restaurant was an informative way to spend time before evening cocktails. It is one of the hotel’s most popular experiences and showcases its commitment to regional produce and the local fishing culture.
Experiences that take you out of your comfort zone
Many other hotels have created guest experiences that extend their knowledge and skills while enabling them to move out of their comfort zone. If you’ve ever wanted to try archery, brew the frothiest cappuccino, mix the driest martini, or learn the finer points of being an apiarist, now’s the time to check into that special resort and join an activity that might challenge you, surprise you, or add a new skill to your growing repertoire.*
A Martini for the night
Recently, I checked into a delightful Phuket resort overlooking the Andaman Sea. When I returned to my room after an adventurous evening, a martini-making kit had been placed in my room with the ingredients and instructions on how to make the nightcap. And yes, the recommendation was for it to be shaken, not stirred, and yes, it was more enjoyable than the usual turn-down chocolates.
It was a small gesture, but one that turned an ordinary evening in a hotel room into an activity of its own.
A book can be a way into a place
Reading a book is nothing new, and call me old-fashioned, but I prefer a book held in the hand, and not a Kindle.
Avani Hotels & Resorts have taken the concept one step further with the launch of the Avani Book Club, enabling travellers to discover a destination through its stories. The initiative reflects the growth of online reading communities such as BookTok and Bookstagram, as well as renewed enthusiasm for reading among younger travellers.
At its heart is a global reading list of 30 titles matched to 15 Avani properties. Each book reflects the culture, character, or atmosphere of its setting, helping guests see the place they’re visiting through a different lens.
The programme goes beyond the traditional hotel library, with Avani Book Corners, book swaps, author talks and readings, and children’s storytelling. For example, guests at Avani Ratchada Bangkok, where I stayed, can read books paired with themed coffees and cocktails.
Beekeeping above Paris
Some years ago I checked into the centrally located Pullman Paris Tour Eiffel within sight of the impressive tower. Located on the Left Bank, its rooftop once featured an urban garden complete with fruit trees, a henhouse, and beehives, with the garden supporting the hotel’s kitchens and urban biodiversity. While searching for the ideal photo of the famous tower, I stumbled upon beekeepers extracting honey, and they happily made me an amateur apiarist.
Mixing Gin in Siem Reap
One of my favourite regional hotels is the Raffles Grand d’Angkor in Siem Reap, close to the famous archaeological site of Angkor. In its early years, well-to-do adventurers in Cambodia set off to explore the ancient temples on elephants, and that sense of pioneering adventure lives on in the heritage setting that is now Raffles.
Curated experiences are offered, including an afternoon with the hotel’s gin butler. Gin Butler Nisha explains the uniqueness of each gin that has been specially made for Raffles using tropical botanicals.
The experience is less about simply having a drink and more about understanding the ingredients, history, and local character behind it.
A hotel with a wartime story
Along similar heritage lines, the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi offers guests a unique tour of its basement bomb shelter. It is a reminder that some hotel experiences are not about learning a new skill, but about understanding the history of the place where you are staying.
During hotel renovations in 2011, a wartime bunker beneath the hotel was ‘rediscovered’. It served as a bomb shelter during the war, protecting guests from air raids.
The bunker was restored and reopened in May 2012 to honour the contribution, courage, and resilience of staff who worked here during this challenging era. In 2013, in recognition of its efforts to preserve historical values, the hotel was honoured with a UNESCO Award for Cultural Heritage. Guests can join a daily ‘Path of History and the Bomb Shelter’ tour at 5 or 6pm.
The hotel describes the tour as a way to explore its history and the stories of the people who worked there during the war.
Build your own watch
Now that our mobile phones have a clock, I rarely travel with a watch; one less thing to worry about. While enjoying their extensive breakfast buffet, one of the friendly staff at the Swissôtel Living Jakarta Mega Kuningan noticed I was watch-less and suggested I join a watch-assembling class.
Now, this sounded unique, and that afternoon I joined a small group of guests to assemble my personalised PALA Nusantara watch.
The class took an hour, and everything was well explained. Various options are available, from the dial face to the watch band. I especially liked the fact that we also took home a micro-tool kit that has proved invaluable in repairing household items. The other great thing about my wooden watch is that one in ten people who see it comment on it.
It was the sort of souvenir that came with a story, rather than simply a price tag.
The human side of a digital hotel stay
Technology is changing the way we plan trips and experience hotels, from digital services to artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics. Yet the examples above suggest that even as hospitality becomes more technologically advanced, there is still value in experiences that ask guests to participate, learn, and interact with the people and places around them.
I wonder how AI will help me fillet my next fish, assemble a watch, and mix my next cocktail. Already, a robot has made me a cappuccino at COMO Metropolitan Singapore, while a robot concierge has awaited me at Sofitel Singapore City Centre, so anything is possible.
As World Tourism Day approaches on September 27, this year’s theme, ‘Digital Agenda and Artificial Intelligence to Redesign Tourism’, highlights how technology is transforming the global travel industry. But while AI may make our hotel stays increasingly seamless, there is still plenty of pleasure in doing something for yourself, learning a new skill, and having an unexpected encounter along the way.
