Mangosteen resort signs management deal with Golden Tulip
The Mangosteen sits high on a hill, with broad views of the southern end of Phuket.
The owners of the privately run Mangosteen Boutique Resort & Spa in Rawai have signed a management and marketing deal with Golden Tulip Hospitality Group of the Netherlands. It is Golden Tulip’s first venture in Thailand.
The deal was signed recently at the resort by Hajo von Keller, Mangosteen’s managing director, and Mark van Ogtrop, MD of Golden Tulip Southeast Asia.
Hajo von Keller (left) and Mark van Ogtrop shake on the deal.
“We are … delighted that our first footprint in the Thai hospitality market is in Phuket. We hope to re-position The Mangosteen as a unique Ayurveda destination, offering very special Ayurveda treatments to our guests for ultimate relaxation,” van Ogtrop remarked.
Van Keller said, “In selecting Golden Tulip to manage our resort, we are confident that the resort will be taken to the next level of being internationally recognized and promoted. We will also be able to take advantage of Golden Tulip’s extensive expertise and customer base to further attract guests from Europe, the Americas, Middle East, Africa as well as within the Asia-Pacific region.”
The resort, which opened five years ago, has 41 guest villas, a restaurant, spa and pool. It sits atop a hill with wide views across the south of the island. The resort also has a shuttle bus service to take guests to nearby Nai Harn Beach.
Van Keller told the Observer that what was particularly attractive about the deal was the access it gives the resort to Golden Tulip’s international marketing organisation. Up until now, the Mangosteen has been a stand-alone property, trying to attract guests in the face of large groups such as Hilton, Marriott and many other large chains.
He added that a new GM has been appointed for the resort. He is Claude Baltes, lately of West Sands and, before that, the Evason Phuket, which is just down the road from the Mangosteen.
Interior of one of the guest villas at The Mangosteen.
“We will share him with another Golden Tulip property on the island,” he explained, “which is good for us as it keeps down costs.” He said that he could not name the other hotel because the deal with Golden Tulip has yet to be sealed.
In addition to the resort, the Mangosteen’s owners also have 16 rai of land next door, currently for sale. “It could be sold outright,” von Keller said, “or an investor might want to take a stake in Mangosteen, allowing the land to be developed with the villas to be managed by us.”
Golden Tulip was founded 50 years ago and its website lists around 350 hotels in 38 cities worldwide, though the Mangosteen is the group’s first foray into Thailand.
Before joining Golden Tulip in 2007, van Ogtrop had a long career in hotel management. Most recently he was GM of the Silken Berlaymont Hotel in Brussels for seven years. He was also GM of the Dusit Laguna Resort in Phuket for several years, and so knows the island well.
