Savor capital town: Where the past, present, and future meet
MANILA, Philippines — When you’re visiting San Fernando, Pampanga, you have to take a step back in time to unravel its charm. A stroll around the city can transport you to a Neoclassical past. Picture historical landmarks that have outlived the century. But at the same time, underneath its vibrant, sunny skies, this city pulsates with life, as it takes us to a future we’ve always dreamed of.
Savoy Hotel Capital Town is all about the past, the present, and the future. It makes history as the first-ever hotel development in Northern Luzon by property giant Megaworld Hotels and Resorts, rising inside its 35.6-hectare Capital Town in the City of San Fernando, Pampanga, a gateway to the North, strategically located in the heart of Central Luzon and barely an hour’s drive from Metro Manila.
Rooms with a romantic view
A sneak peek at the 16-story hotel with 374 rooms reveals its Neo-Baroque architecture that reminds you of the amorous city of Madrid in Spain, decorative moldings, precast concrete ledges, curved facade, and lighting that highlights the details from the podium all the way to the roof deck.
“Is that in the Philippines?” That’s the question people ask when they see Savoy Hotel Capital Town,” relates Cleofe Albiso, Megaworld Hotels and Resorts managing director.
You get that European vibe as you step inside the hotel’s elaborate, high-ceilinged lobby with its Western Colonial and industrial-style interiors inspired by PASUDECO (Pampanga Sugar Development Company), the first Filipino-financed sugar central in Pampanga that dates back to 1921. Such a charming homage to the cultural heritage of Capital Town!
“We can trace our history from our colonial past, the Spaniards colonizing us for many, many years,” notes Harold C. Geronimo, Megaworld vice president for public relations and media affairs. “So, in this development in San Fernando, particularly at Capital Town, we’re incorporating Kapampangan with our colonial lifestyle.”
“It’s fronting the iconic Plaza Pasudeco,” notes Eugene Em Lozano, Megaworld Pampanga senior vice president for sales and marketing. “We were inspired by the plaza hotels in Madrid. We saw the beauty of just going down and staying in the al fresco side of the dining selections on the ground floor of the hotel, right in front of the plaza.”
Lots of local flavor
“We’re excited because there will be a lot of elements and local flavors that will be present in the property,” says Albiso. “In fact, we had an incubation just to have a feel of the market, to make sure we offer the best of Pampanga, especially in San Fernando. We’ve already looked into some furniture; here in Pampanga, we’ve got one of the best productions of furniture in the Philippines, like in Betis.”
Of course, Pampanga is the famed culinary capital of the Philippines. Most definitely, the ginormous kitchen of Savoy Hotel Capital Town will be brimming with the aroma of food, glorious Kapampangan food, to warm the heart and feed the soul. Care for sisig, morcon, menudo, caldereta, bringhe, tocino?
The delightful news is that Savoy Hotel Capital Town will have four F&B outlets, which include a specialty restaurant, a 112-seater all-day dining restaurant with al fresco areas, a Zabana bar and lounge, and a pool grill bar with outdoor dining that can accommodate up to 60 persons.
The second floor will have a high-ceilinged ballroom, with pre-function areas for 160 persons, three function rooms for 108 people combined, meeting rooms, a business center, and an executive lounge exclusively for VIPs and guests booked in the larger suites.
“Now is the perfect time to bring in Megaworld’s homegrown, award-winning brand to Capital Town,” Lozano stresses. “The emerging tourism scene in this side of Pampanga is evident in the overwhelming support we are receiving from locals and guests coming to our township. With Savoy Hotel Capital Town, we are once again fulfilling our promise to the Kapampangans to bring the Megaworld signature live-work-play-learn lifestyle.”
Things are looking brighter than ever in San Fernando, Pampanga, known as the Christmas Capital of the Philippines with its colorful, giant parols. “Looking forward, we see a confluence of these different periods, but altogether, we have a very contemporary development at the heart of San Fernando that we would like to see would be able to compete at the international level, something we could be proud of, not just as Kapampangans but also as Filipinos,” says a beaming Ma. Lourdes Carmella Jade Pangilinan, San Fernando City Tourism & Investment Promotion officer.
Indeed, the past and the future will always be present at Capital Town, San Fernando, Pampanga!
