A beacon rising above the water

It's Cebu's NU-west star, and in many ways, the Philippines', too. In the midst of the election campaign, NUSTAR Hotel had a proclamation of its own. "NUSTAR is like a beacon rising above the water, which is guiding travelers coming to Cebu," said its general manager Roel Constantino.

- JOANNE RAE M. RAMIREZ

Roel, a veteran hotelier who has been posted in Fiji, Thailand and China, isn't exaggerating. NUSTAR juts out of the sea and into the sea—soon, it will have a cantilevered, glass-floored roof deck flirting with the sea beyond. Set to open later this year, the open-air Skydeck has far-reaching unobstructed views.

Top of mind, it was the butler service that left an indelible impression on me after my three-day stay in the hotel for its inauguration and the third anniversary of the NUSTAR Resort and Casino complex (which already includes Fili Hotel, a mall and soon, another hotel).

"The opening of NUSTAR heralds, apart from premium accommodation and a magnificent property, the return of butler service," Roel said in an interview with PeopleAsia. "Our butlers here at NUSTAR were especially trained by Heilbron Hospitality, one of the world's most respected training institutions for hospitality service. I say we launched a butler service, yes, but in a contemporary context, and what do I mean by that? Today's modern butlers, apart from offering traditional butler service, are now proficient in leveraging technology, in coordinating internal arrangements for the customer, as well as meeting the evolving needs of our clients."