Last Updated on Friday, 21 April, 2023 at 11:57 am by Andre Camilleri
Six Senses, one of the world’s leading hotel brands in sustainable tourism, announced it is to operate the new Comino hotel.
In a statement issued in Bangkok, the company said Six Senses Comino will feature a resort and themed spa, farm-to-table dining, and an exciting array of cultural, leisure, wellness, retreat, and sporting activities.
The project has come under attack by environmentalists, which are calling for the authorities not to approve the project.
If approved by the Planning Authority, Six Senses Comino is set to be located on the shores of San Niklaw and San Marija bays, “both enjoying sunrise aspects and linked by a coastal path”. The two distinct sites will be fully rebuilt within the existing area of the previous development using the least impacting construction methods.
“Six Senses Comino is an invitation to guests with a deep understanding and appreciation of the value of preservation and who are seeking mindful serenity,” says Six Senses CEO Neil Jacobs. “We’re doing something unique within the Maltese hospitality landscape, which is to create a sumptuous and sustainable lifestyle resort on a reduced footprint to make way for new trees and shrubs and, therefore, a thriving environment for new guests and returning wildlife.”
Rising with the light across San Niklaw Designed by Belvedere Architecture, the 71 low-rise suites will overlook the bay and enjoy easterly vistas across the Mediterranean Sea from their private decks, the company said. The natural palette of stone and timber echoes the island’s geology and garigue shrubland within comfortable and spacious accommodations that feel like an extension of Comino’s beauty.
Full-height openings and terraces blur the boundaries between outdoor and indoor space, encouraging star gazing and total immersion in nature. Double-aspect terraces on the upper two floors mean guests can follow the sun from sunrise yoga to a sunset cocktail. Infinity pools on the ground floor serve as private rock pools, inviting guests to lie back and limpet in the shallows until the turn of the tide. Resort guests will have exclusive access to San Niklaw bay as well as a large communal swimming pool and deck area served by a bar and grill.
The 1,000-square-meter Six Senses Spa is set to offer locally inspired treatments, longevity therapies, and personalized wellness programs. Six Senses Comino will also be a healing backdrop for a range of guided retreats curated by experts and spiritual and artistic communities, where guests can learn, grow, and transform through dance, yoga, emotional and physical healing, and tap into the power of the island’s extraordinary nature, the company said.
A collection of 19 standalone retreats offering two to four bedrooms will be dotted along the east-facing shoreline, with green roofing to ensure harmony between the built and natural environment and stepped to follow the natural terrain.
Each will feature a large garden and secluded central courtyard with a private pool. Enjoying access to all of the resort facilities over in San Niklaw, the retreats will also be serviced by a separate clubhouse featuring a restaurant and piazza with views over Santa Marija bay.
Six Senses Comino aims to uphold Comino’s ambitious sustainability vision through practical measures and rigorous design. For example, investors HV Hospitality, a subsidiary of Hili Ventures, has set out to respect all aspects of the Natura 2000 Management Plan through a holistic design strategy that will carefully dismantle the existing structures, regenerate important portions of disturbed land, and improve the skyline by reducing the height of the retreats to a single level, the statement said.
The use of timber ensures a sensitive and sustainable construction strategy as its low embodied energy and compatibility with prefabrication, coupled with the use of hard stone cladding, significantly participates in the resort’s low-carbon and LEED certification objectives. Energy consumption will be drastically reduced through natural cross-ventilation, thermal mass, and installation of low-consumption systems and solar thermal units.
“As one of the world’s leading hotel brands in sustainable tourism, Six Senses is the right match for the new property, and indeed for Comino,” says Hili Ventures CEO Melo Hili. “HV Hospitality has invested heavily in the design of a conscientious vision for the property, and we are delighted to entrust Six Senses with its management on completion. The brand has a track record of weaving long-term positive change into the fabric of every property, and we look forward to supporting them to deliver on this promise, especially because we share the same purpose – impact for good.”
The target open date has been set for 2027.
