Crimson is bluer than blue
I beheld more than 50 shades of blue during a rosy weekend at Crimson Resort and Spa Boracay, perched on the very private Station Zero of the island. The skies were blue, the seas, teal, deepening into shades of cobalt near the horizon. The pools (over 40 of them, of various sizes), from the main pool to the infinity pools and the private villa pools, were waves of aquamarine and turquoise. No wonder the different clusters of buildings of this luxury resort go by the names “Indigo,” “Cobalt,” and “Teal,” to name a few.
Because the Crimson beachfront is a cove jealously guarded by two big verdant rock formations that seem to double as natural sentinels, it is very private. It is a seascape waiting to be painted. Except for hotel guests frolicking in the waters or in the huge pool a few meters above it, Crimson’s beachfront is as exclusive as it gets, though it is open to other swimmers on the island. To those who want to escape the madding crowd, this is the beach.
On Saturdays, the resort holds a foam party in the main pool for those who want to make a splash and have early cocktails by the pool bar.
At any time you could cocoon in its Aum Spa, which is like a boutique hotel on its own, and have a traditional 90-minute hilot.
Or you can just enjoy your room. The resort’s sea view suites have floor-to-ceiling panoramic windows, a balcony where you can sip your favorite drink and watch the sky turn from blue to teal to dark denim blue.
“Since travel restrictions were lifted early this year, Crimson Boracay has been experiencing a very good comeback,” says Carmela Hidalgo-Bocanegra, vice president for sales and marketing of Chroma Hospitality, to which Crimson belongs. If you will recall, Boracay was shut down for rehabilitation before the pandemic, and, like the rest of the world, was on a strict lockdown several times in the two years after.
Now that it has reopened with safety protocols in place (each tourist has to get a QR code before being allowed entry into the island), “Phones have not stopped ringing, e-mails keep coming and the resort is back with so many guests. Our occupancies have increased tremendously. And this is just local travelers at the moment!” says Carmela of the resort. But the future looks bright and crimson.
“With international travelers soon to come, there is no doubt the future looks bullish and brighter than ever. Crimson Boracay will capture the world and make the Philippines proud of this world-class destination,” promises Carmela.
Live Love Local
There are other luxury resorts on the world-famous island, so I asked GM Patrick Manthe what sets Crimson Boracay apart, like an alluring woman in a crimson bikini on a stretch of white sand.
“Crimson Boracay is the first resort in the region to initiate an arts and culture program as a way of encouraging guests, staff, and aspiring painters within the region to make the most of their imagination and to position the resort as a creative hub for artists and art enthusiasts,” says Patrick.
Visual artist Eric Egualada is the program’s current artist-in-residence and he has been active in sharing his knowledge about creative pursuits in various art classes offered by the resort. In fact, as soon as I checked into the hotel, I had my first painting class as an adult!
Crimson has embraced “Live Love Local,” a campaign that “highlights the best that the Philippines has to offer in terms of including homegrown brands that use artisanal methods that make use of the finest local ingredients and materials,” says Crimson Boracay and Alabang director for public relations Ronie Marie Reyes.
During the launch of the program at the resort, members of media were treated to “Art on a Plate,” a dinner that was a concoction of several art forms — food, music, dance, visual arts. The symphony was not only in the dishes served during the dinner, held at the resort’s Mosaic fine dine restaurant, but in the entertainment that accompanied the five-course gourmet dinner. For instance, litson manok was served like a tortilla, with strips of chicken laced with Auro chocolate (an internationally acclaimed Filipino chocolate brand) mole sauce inside a tortilla wrap! Kare-kare also had its peanut sauce blended with Auro white chocolate and natural cocoa butter.
Eric painted while a vocalist sang a repertoire of songs from Oasis to Frank Sinatra, and a ballerina twirled to a hit from Phantom of the Opera.
“The idea behind this is really to celebrate fantastic food, good wines, in combination with visual art,” explained Patrick. “We always have a guest performer, a pianist, a dancer, and we’ve had a violinist, too. The concept is always to be local. We want to give a great stage like this for upcoming artists of every generation, and help them to get a platform, and hopefully take something with them as well, and not just give to you. These events are never rehearsed. And that’s another beauty of it.”
Just like the symphonies of sun, wind and waves in the resort are never rehearsed, but are always riveting performances, day and night — in more than 50 shades of blue as backdrop.
(You may e-mail me at [email protected]. Follow me on Instagram @joanneraeramirez.)
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