The new upscale Sanctum Inle Resort in Myanmar will make its official debut October 1.
Set on the shores of Inle Lake, the 94-room resort will have an Olympic-sized swimming pool overlooking the lake, a 150 square meter presidential Sanctuary Suite and a Shan and international cuisine restaurant called The Refectory. The resort was designed by Brigitte Dumont de Chassart in a style meant to invoke monastic traditions and Spanish architectural touches.
The resort has four room categories, including a pair of suites with full vistas of the lake, and a window on local markets, pagodas and stupas. The rooms range in size from 40 to 150 square meters, all with high ceilings, natural wood floors, air-conditioning and cable TV.
The 107-seat Refectory offers Shan and Western dishes, and Cloister Bar serves a selection of Myanmar-brewed beers, international wines and Cuban and Dominican cigars. The resort’s Chapter House is a quiet venue with books and board games that can be transformed into a meeting space.
Sanctuary Spa is home to five treatment rooms and offers therapies including its signature Tamarind Scrub with tamarind harvested from the property, as well as hot stone massages and facials. In addition to the saltwater swimming pool, a fully-equipped gym will be ready in time for the grand opening.
To encourage exploration of the area, the resort’s team has developed eight tours ranging from a half-day cycling excursion to Red Mountain Estate winery to a full-day trip to Kakku’s ancient temples.
At 120 square kilometers and 800 meters above sea level, Inle Lake is known for its stilted wooden homes, floating vegetable gardens and fishermen, who propel their boats across the water with a singular, one-legged rowing style.
The resort is two hours by air, car and boat from Yangon.
Traditional dancers and musicians from the Shan, Intha and Pao tribes will gather on the property to mark the grand opening and celebrate a sunset barbecue buffet dinner with cocktails and candles floating around the resort’s jetty. The event will also include a fashion show of recycled garments, fireworks display on the lake, and DJ spinning the decks at the resort’s Cloister Bar.
Opening room rates start at MMK 334,470 ++ [USD 284 ++] per night.
Visit sanctum-inle-resort.com