A380 Flyer

I did a search on the forum but no particular Six Senses general thread that I could find.

I am in love with Six Senses hotels. The Zighy Bay property in Oman and Ninh Van Bay in Vietnam are 2 of the best hotel resorts anywhere in the world, IMO.

But is there consistency across their hotels worldwide? And do people consider Six Senses to be a more barefoot luxury version of Aman/Ritz Carlton Reserve?

MikeFromTokyo

For the most part, I think so. Soneva unquestionably is very high end. I love back-to-nature type of resorts that are designed with a maximum of sustainability and a minimum of environmental impact as possible, so they are perfect for me. Gili Lankanfushi also qualifies, of course.

I don’t consider them to be a “version” of any other resort group, but it is true that the service level could be considered similar to the groups you mention.

Aventine

They are their own brand for better or worse. Not a carbon copy of anyone else. SS is luxury for the most part.

offerendum

They are very special. I only visited Ninh Van Bay and while I was not overly enthusiastic it was definitively luxury IMO.

vuittonsofstyle

I think you have to understand the history behind SS. Originally, the brand was created by Sonu & Eva Shivdasani, with Soneva Fushi as the first resort. Allegedly they went bankrupt and the resorts were, mostly, aquired by Pegasus Capital who brought in a dream team of hoteliers to revitalise and grow the brand. These included Neil Jacobs (ex FS and Starwood Capital), Wolf Hengst (ex FS), Anna Bjurstam (Raison d'Etre Spas) and Henry Gray (Amanesorts).

Gili Langkanfushi was bought by BS Ong and is now independently run. The original Shivdasani properties were upgraded, but many still do not live up to the 'luxury' label. The first 'new' property was Six Senses Douro Valley, which demonstrates the way forward for Six Senses.

Sonu Shivdasani retained Soneva Fushi and Soneva Kiri in Thailand and then went on to open Soneva Jani in the Maldives. These resorts have nothing to do with Six Senses now.

A4K

Curious when Bhutan will open. I have a feeling that will be true luxury. Mark Swinton (ex Aman) is apparently still in charge.

Hopefully pricing is more competitive than Amankora, which is price prohibitive for me at least.

surftb15

Bhutan opens in January. I'm in touch with the GM because I've been trying to go for quite some time. No rates yet but should certainly be less then the Amans.

A380 Flyer

Six Senses are opening quite a lot of new resorts in 2018.

I think the Fiji property is already open, Kaplankaya re-opens soon, Singapore Duxton, Bhutan, and Uluwatu Bali are all very close to opening too. Shaharat in Israel before winter too.

But the reason for my question in the OP, let's take Six Senses Duxton for example - can a small property like that very close to Chinatown ever be considered true luxury? Boutique, yes, niche yes, but luxury?

surftb15

Yea, but six senses Fiji is a ripoff.
It commands the same price as Zil Payson and the rooms are small along with the pools.
The villas are incredibly nice though.

chinmoylad

Food and service at the Six Senses Yao Noi could not be considered luxury, no.

SaVa

offerendum

For the beginning...... We must see how they devolop.....

MikeFromTokyo

Aventine

That's going to be a tall order.

5DMarkIIguy

I have been waiting for this property to open since 2016. Booked a trip to Bhutan for those tshechus in March 2016 based on their projected date. Looks like it is going to be delayed by 3 years, and maybe more.