A lodge designed for travellers by travelers
By Margaret Apau

WHILE budget air-travel has opened the door for tourists of various incomes to travel abroad, many may not truly appreciate how much this has changed the face of the overall tourist industry.

With increased influx of tourists into Sarawak, we not only see the solitary backpacker or senior citizens holidaying here but also families, younger touring groups and even students on school trips.

Combine increased travel with increased itinerary awareness via the internet and tourists would expect more than the sleek cultural show before retiring to their five-star hotel — they’re looking for an experience they can’t get holed up in a sensory-insulated room.

As such, the guesthouse or hostel industry in Kuching has become a desirable go-to for a new age of tourists — the flashpackers.

“People still think most tourists staying at guesthouses are backpackers school-leavers travelling on a shoestring budget,” said Marina Tan, one of the prime movers behind the successful family-run business — the internationally acclaimed Singgahsana Lodge at Temple Street, Kuching.

Since opening their guesthouse three years ago, Marina and her husband Donald have seen a whole host of tourists stepping across their threshold — from students on a school trip to corporate figures. Their cosy and friendly communal-style lodging offers something that upscale hotels don’t — novelty.

On any given day, Singgahsana is home to at least 50 to 80 guests.

“You see a lot of the baby boomers in their late 20s, 30s, and 40s travelling abroad and staying at guesthouses nowadays,” Donald said, debunking the misconception that guesthouses are only taken up by low-income tourists.

“Some are corporate figures in their own right but because they’re on holiday, they don’t want to see the inside of another five-star hotel because they see it when they go on business trips, and so it’s become too predictable.”

What the guesthouse represents nowadays is alternative accommodation — something the Tans completely identify with.

As serious travellers and avid photographers, they go on trips that always take them a step off the beaten path in their search for authenticity.

So the inspiration and driving motivation behind Singgahsana Lodge came from their own experiences staying in foreign guesthouses. Like any travelling experience, there’s always the bitter along with the sweet — which gave them a clearer insight on their own vision for Singgahsana.

“Our stays at guesthouses — both good and bad — gave us an idea of what’s out there in terms of hospitality and services, and also what the tourist market is like.

“We figured you don’t have to be a four-star or five-star hotel or put in a lot of money for the guesthouse to be successful — you just have to do it right,” Donald added.

‘Doing it right’ is an idea that has spurred Singgahsana on to worldwide acclaim. From being included in the tourist bible ‘Lonely Planet’ to glowing reviews from other widely-read travel journals like The Rough Guide, Stefan Loose Guide and the Footprints Guide, their most recent commendation is being voted by Hostelworld.com customers as the Top Rated Hostel — a rating requiring an 80 percent approval rate from all those who voted.

It’s a tribute Donald and Marina owe to the warmth, eagerness and cooperation of their hostel crew.

“It’s not just the physical space that attracts the tourists — it’s the people and the crew who run it. As such, we encourage our crew members to engage with our guests,” Donald said, explaining that the Singgahsana is run like a co-operative, not a centralised business that operates from the management down.

“As a business owner, you can’t hold onto the reins the whole time, otherwise you’ll be locked in the office taking charge of everything. We give the crew certain autonomy and a number of responsibilities in the way they maintain the business and because the success of the hostel rides on all our shoulders, we give them pride and a reason to work with us.”

Shanuzie Hazami is just such an example where autonomy, encouragement and trust allow potential to flourish.

A former clerk at a law firm, she found her job as a gofer stifling and narrow.

“Macam katak di bawah tempurung — just wait for orders and do it,” she summarised with a laugh.

It was through her sister’s glowing stories about working at Singgahsana that she considered a job alternative to her daily hum-drum. “Here, I’m my own boss.”

Today, three years on as Singgahsana receptionist, she has been given her fair share of responsibilities to keep the hostel running smoothly and the exposure has given her no small chutzpah.

“At first, I wasn’t brave enough to speak English with the guests, but now I’m more outgoing and I appreciate the opportunities to make friends with them.”

For Hamka Adenan, the housekeeper, he’s only been at Singgahsana for a year or so but finds “it’s always fun, always busy” and appreciates the chances he gets to make friends with the guests who make Singgahsana their temporary home.

Besides the warm and friendly staff, the setup at Singgahsana can’t help but encourage a sense of camaraderie and friendliness. A strictly non-smoking guesthouse, it’s full of fresh smells (jasmine in an oil burner), sights and textures owing to their native art-inspired theme.

Like walking into someone’s house, you’re told to take your shoes off at the staircase. The ‘lobby area’ is a living room — there’s a small area along with a podium for you to sit cross-legged or lie down while you’re reading a book from their bookshelves.

On their bare foot policy, Donald remembers an incident from when they first opened: “An American couple had travelled all the way over here with their children — it was their first time trying out a guesthouse and the wife said “you expect me to take my shoes off, and then you want me to walk into your communal bathroom barefoot?”

Before the wife would agree to staying at Singgahsana, she had to inspect the bathroom facilities first. It passed with flying colours, “and they stayed here their whole holiday.”

It’s clear Singgahsana owes its success and good reputation to a number of things — quality and personality being top of the list.

As Donald said: “We prefer to under-sell and over-deliver.” A mantra that underscores the efforts of all the staff at Singgahsana Lodge.

From clean, well-maintained dormitories to a friendly, communal atmosphere, Singgahsana is a people-centred business that makes everybody feel at home, no matter how far they’ve travelled.