Heritage Hotel Soon to Rise in Cebu, Oldest Philippine City

Palm Grass, the Cebu Heritage Hotel to open late this year

 

Cebu City — Palm Grass Hotel, the latest player in Cebu’s vibrant hospitality industry, is now on its third phase of the construction stage as interior finishes will soon commence, Bebilou Espina, general manager of the hotel said in a press release.

 

The first cultural and heritage hotel in Cebu is now 85 percent complete in time for its opening late this year. “We are ready to welcome our guests during the Christmas holidays and we’re all excited to start this journey to our past,” Espina said.

 

 

Palm Grass, The Cebu Heritage Hotel is the first of its kind in the province and possibly in the country as it positions itself as a heritage hotel which aims to revive interest to Cebuano history and culture. It will house a historical gallery, a mini-library and a mini-book store on Cebu heritage.

 

It has seven floors and 10 suite rooms named after Cebu heroes. It will have a function room named after the uprising of Tres de Abril. All 79 guest rooms will contain artworks of local artists depicting the lifestyle of Cebuanos during the pre-Spanish and Spanish colonial periods.

 

A coffee shop-cum-restaurant located at the ground floor is named after Lumaya, which according to folklore, is the founder of the Rajahnate of Cebu. A mini-bar called Hardin Dagami  will be available at the roofdeck which will have its own garden and an open wellness gym.

 

Palm Grass will also introduce the first salt-water swimming pool located at the 7^th floor, Espina said.

 

Palm Grass Hotel is owned and managed by descendants of Cebuano Katipunero Isidro Guivelondo. According to local history, Guivelondo’s house in Mabolo was the meeting place for the planning of the Tres de Abril uprising.

 

Melba Guivelondo-Blanco, one of the company incorporators said the hotel is their tribute to the legacy of their parents Caridad Tan Guivelondo and Mamerto Arcilla Blanco.

 

“Palm Grass is our tribute to Cebu history and Mother Earth. We advocate for the preservation and promotion of the Cebu Cultural Heritage because we believe that through appreciating the bravery, determination and selflessness of heroic Cebuanos in history, our people today will be able to realize that indeed a united people will be able to build a better society,” she said.

 

Palm Grass is also built to withstand earthquakes, the company official said.

 

“The structural foundation and masonry of the building are designed to withstand even magnitude 9  earthquakes,” Espina added. (A press release from Vanessa Almeda)