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Savoy Hotel Manila is a 4-star airport located within the Newport City some 350 meters from NAIA Terminal 3 |
With the Sampaguita Project implemented starting August 2023, I have always look forward to personally experiencing it with my stay at any of the Megaworld Hotels and Resorts (MHR) properties in the country.
I have had my chance to stay at Richmonde Hotel Eastwood, Belmont Hotel Manila, and Belmont Boracay in July, August, and September 2023 but the project was still about to take off. You see I was more than excited for the project having the first to write about it for Hospitality News in July 2023. (Read: The best of a sensory journey: Megaworld Hotels & Resorts ushers in the Sampaguita brand of experience – Hospitality News Philippines)
The long wait was finally over with the “Greener Together: A Gathering of Media Advocates for Sustainable Tourism,” event by Savoy Hotel Manila (SHM) through the coordination of travel writer cum book author Benjamin "Benjie" Layug who spearheaded the creation of The Isabela Media Club, a group of professionals across all media platforms. They bonded together while covering the festivals in Isabela province, thus the name Isabela Media Club.
The non-profit club includes bloggers, vloggers, bilingual writers (English and Pilipino), drone specialists, motoring enthusiasts, and photographers who share the love of travel, food, motoring, and adventures and the passion for telling stories via the written word, photographs and videos.
The media gathering for sustainable tourism was set on April 10-11, 2025, with no less than SMH General Manager Ferdinand “Den” Navarro, Director of Marketing & Communications Ma Theresa “Thessa” Dela Paz and Compliance & Sustainability Manager Karlo Evangelista warmly welcoming us.
The big bosses along with hotel employees conspicuously wear the ‘Pambansang Bulaklak’ pin on their left chest symbolizing love for work and service to others. The especially designed gold Sampaguita pin comes with five petals including the Philippine Flag on it and serves as an emblem or a constant reminder for all MHR associates for them to “EMBRACE our culture, UPHOLD our values, EDUCATE our guests, and CELEBRATE our uniqueness.”
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On hand to welcome the media representatives were SMH Compliance & Sustainability Manager Karlo Evangelista, Director of Marketing & Communications Ma. Theresa “Thessa” Dela Paz, GM Ferdinand “Den” Navarro, and Assistant Manager for Engineering James Luna. |
The get-to-know-you meeting kicked off with the welcome drink of the sampaguita-infused SampaLamigulaman amid a specially concocted scent of sampaguita (with a blend of fresh herbs, eucalyptus and peppermint) at the hotel lobby -- with an added bonus -- traditional and nostalgic kundiman instrumental music on the background while waiting for our keys for check-in.
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The ‘Pambansang Bulaklak’ is pinned on their left chest of all Megaworld executives and staff symbolizing love for work and service to others |
Proud advocate of sustainable tourism
SHM is an official signatory of the Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action in Tourism in November 2021. The declaration’s goals include cutting greenhouse gas emissions by half by 2030, achieving Net Zero by 2050 or earlier, and annually reporting progress on climate action plans.
Media attendees posed with SMH executives at the Vertical Garden overlooking the swimming pool
The hotel’s WeSave Sustainability Program aligns with the sustainability campaign of Megaworld Corporation, MEGreen, in contributing to greener townships. In November 2022, the program received a “Badge of Honor” from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). Additionally, the program’s dedication to reducing food waste earned it the “Guardians of the Grub Badge” from the UK-based Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), a testament to the hotel’s commitment to sustainability.
Most recently, Savoy Hotel Manila was named one of the top six finalists in the Business Marketing category of the Green Destinations Story Awards 2024 at the ITB Berlin tourism conference. Their Good Travel Story, “WeSave – Empowering Sustainability, Transforming Lives in Pasay City,” has also been nominated for the 2024 “People’s Choice Award,” allowing the public to vote for their favorite destination and Good Practice Story from the 2023 Green Destinations Top 100 competition.
For its Sampaguita Initiative -- revitalizing the sampaguita industry by incorporating the Philippines’ national flower into its branding -- and thereby supporting communities in San Pedro, Laguna, once known as the “Sampaguita Capital of the Philippines.” Megaworld also maintains a 9-hectare, solar-powered Central Nursery in Tanza, Cavite, opened in 2016, that propagates sampaguita as well as provides all of the tree seedlings, plants and flowers for their Luzon townships.
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| The Premier Deluxe Room, our home away from home for night |
Discovering the Sampaguita brand of experience and more
After some rest in our well-appointed rooms, SHM’s executive trio (Navarro, Dela Paz, and Evangelista) gathered us at the pool area to embark on the hotel’s sustainability journey. The Poolside vertical garden itself is a site to behold, telling every guest that gardening -- and cleaning the air -- is fun even with a limited space available.
The rooftop garden is another proof that one can enjoy fresh, unlimited herbs, fruits, and veggies. For the hotel, it’s a sure way of reducing its dependence on external food sources.
SHM’s hybrid farming system gathers hotel waste, including AC algae, and are turned into compost. They reuse and plant seeds and cuttings from the herbs, fruits, and veggies purchased outside and replant them on repurposed laundry detergent containers from the housekeeping team.
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SMH sustainability champ Karlo explains the property’s hybrid farming system |
Who would have thought that an airport hotel in Manila grows its own cherry tomatoes, lettuce, eggplants, cucumber, red amaranth, eggplants and other herbs? Even the planter boxes are made from scrap materials, and they’ve added a rainwater-catching system to cut down on both water usage and labor.
Another vertical garden on the 3rd floor boasts of a combination of ornamental plants, herbs, sampaguita, and a variety of palm and coconut trees living in harmony together.
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The “graduation ceremony” with the herbal plants as special token from SHM |
No wonder, SHM only uses 100% live and real plants like Green pothos, Peace Lily, Areca palms, Monstera deliciosa, and some with a combination of sweet-smelling herbs, to decorate its lobby, dining and coffee shop, and other common areas. To end the immersive garden and sustainability tour, we were more than happy to receive our token of oregano plants knowing they were fully taken care of by the hotel’s sustainability champ Karlo and his dedicated team. Further, SHM donated sampaguita seedlings in each of our names to be planted at the Project PEARLS Learning Center in Bocaue, Bulacan -- a simple yet powerful gesture toward a greener tomorrow and stronger local communities.
Our day was capped with a sumptuous dinner at the Poolside Bar featuring a buffet of grilled favorites, accompanied by live vocal performances.
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Sampaguita-Rubbed Pork and Pan-Seared Sea Bass with Rice Pilaf |
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A selection of sweet treats and pastries |
We were served with refreshing and sampaguita-infused Tamarind Mojito (tamarind juice with fresh mint leaves, fresh lime, panutsa syrup, Sprite and fresh sampaguita) and the Sampaguita Bliss (honey fresh lemon juice with sampaguita syrup, passion fruit syrup, jasmine tea and butterfly pea tea). Then we had a serving of Sampaguita Tartine, an appetizer of toast with smoked salmon, cheese, onion, capers and dehydrated sampaguita.
It was followed by Pan-Seared Sea Bass with Rice Pilaf (local sea bass with sampaguita rice pilaf, mango salsa and dried sampaguita) and the Sampaguita Rubbed Pork Barbecue (smoky, tender slices of pork belly smothered with their homemade barbecue sauce).
A selection of dessert including the creamy Tres Leches Sampaguita, was a crowd favorite among diners.
Later in the evening, we were treated, within the comfort of their rooms, to a relaxing one-hour long Sampaguita Signature Massage, so named for the healing sampaguita oil used in the massage. The soothing Sampaguita Massage is included in the hotel’s Wellness Staycation Package for PHP 6,300 which is available up to December 2025.
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Sampaguita massage |
We had a good night's sleep and woke up refreshed the following day ready for the new adventure.
Savoy Hotel Manila: 101 Andrews Ave., Newport City, 1309 Pasay City. Tel: +63 (02) 5317-2869. E-mail:stay@savoymanila.com.Website:www.savoyhotelmanila.com.
Credit: with photos by George Buid
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