Known endearingly as the Pen, the Peninsula Manila stands for much more than just a luxury hotel. Its history was inexplicably interwoven with that of Manila and the Philippines.

My Rendezvous with the Peninsula Manila

Here’s my confession: I was a squatter at the Pen in this Philippines trip. My friend was going to Manila for business, and she offered to take me in. But free accommodation was not the reason why I signed up for it. The reason was that my friend was going. I simply did not want to travel to the Philippines alone for the first time.

When she told me that we were staying at the Pen, my heart skipped a beat. The Peninsula!

First Impressions of the Peninsula Manila

The first impression of a hotel sets the tone for a traveler’s experience. My friend and I marched into the lobby in a grand entry fashion (perhaps a bit paler than Colin Powell’s entry in 2002). In my typical sarcasm, I muttered to myself, “here comes my bubble of luxury!”

Surely, the people that frequented the hotel lobby were presentable. Filipinos and foreigners alike were all well dressed. I observed no one that was out of place at the Pen. People moved about with a kind of grace that one would associate with a higher social echelon. The Pen is the kind of place where you run into characters of world fame.

“Nothing out of the (high class) ordinary here,” I thought. Realizing how I dressed myself between a backpacker and a budget traveler, “maybe I am the only exception here.”

The Peninsula Manila’s signature art piece, the Sunburst, is hung as the centerpiece on the ceiling since 1994. The sun rays in this art work extend 12 meters in its longest width. With 21 rays and 33 spears, Philippine National Artist for Sculpture Napoleon Abueva brings forth a creativity that infuses corporate branding with elegance and meaning. The décor of the dome above is the work of Hong Kong based artist, Paola Dindo. It stages the perfect accompaniment for this masterpiece, with silver leaf lining as its motif.

“It is a bit old,” my friend said when we checked in to our room. She was referencing the Shangri La, where she usually stayed. I thought the amenities and the fixtures were fine. They were indeed a bit aged, but it felt classy, as what the Peninsula brand is known for.

The Corregidor tour took me to Bataan for two days. When I returned, the Pen unveiled a two-board, petite exhibition celebrating its 50 years of history. I was intrigued. The original Peninsula, which was established in 1928 in Hong Kong, is steeped in history too. Amongst its decorated stories, the Hong Kong Peninsula was the venue where Britain surrendered Hong Kong to the Japanese on December 25^th, 1941.

But what is the history of the Peninsula Manila?

The Beginning

Textile magnate P.L. Lim and industrialist Carlos Palanca were good friends. In 1974, Lim approached Horace Kadoorie, the Chairman of the Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels, Limited, asking simply that, “we need a Peninsula Hotel in Manila.” Although with some hesitation initially, Mr. Kadoorie was persuaded by Lim. Palanca would serve as the Chairman of the Board for the Peninsula Manila in its first chapter.

In 1976, Manila was buzzing with excitement, for the IMF and World Bank Convention was being held in the Philippines. The Peninsula Manila opened its doors in that year as the official host to the World Bank and IMF delegates for the 1976 Convention in the Philippines. It is also the second Peninsula Hotel in the world.

Over those 50 years, the Pen has made several traditions of its own. From food and catering to concerts and weddings, it was always the venue of choice for the most significant events within Manila. Its Christmas Tree lighting is the most celebrated in the city’s holidays calendar. In 2008, the much-loved Christmas Concert became a fundraising event for Make-a-Wish Philippines.

But in the Pen’s history, there are guns as they are roses.

It is no news that Philippines politics was unstable after the country gained independence post WWII. The political upheavals have had significant impact on the Pen in many occasions. For example, the most severe coup attempt against President Corazon Aquino in 1989 caused 600 hotel guests to be stranded at the Pen. Even the streets of Makati were not spared as the violence raged. The “bubble of luxury,” so to speak, is a created reality that depended on many, many dedicated staff that would make personal sacrifices to make sure that the hotel guests were safe and provided for, in good days and bad days.

The Siege of 2007

The Siege of the Peninsula Manila goes down history as one of the most significant crises at the hotel. The Wikipedia summarizes the incident as follows:

The Manila Peninsula siege occurred on November 29, 2007, at The Peninsula Manila hotel in Makati, Philippines. Senator Antonio Trillanes IV, Brigadier General Danilo Lim, and 25 other Magdalo Group officers walked out of their trial for the 2003 Oakwood mutiny coup attempt and marched through the streets of Makati. The mutineers called for the ousting of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, and seized the Rizal function room on the second floor of the Manila Peninsula Hotel along Ayala Avenue. Former Vice-president Teofisto Guingona, Jr. as well as some of the soldiers from the Armed Forces of the Philippines joined the march to the hotel.  After several hours, Trillanes and Lim surrendered to government forces after a military armored personnel carrier barged into the glass door of the hotel lobby and the hotel walls and windows sustained weapons damage. Trillanes and the mutineers were arrested while several journalists covering the event were detained. The journalists were subsequently released. 

The View from the Peninsula Manila

In one of the captions at the Pen’s exhibition, it is said that the hotel came up with a small volume of 30 stories, featuring some of its workers and their lives during the COVID-19 pandemic. I went boldly to the concierge and requested a copy, to which the hotel so kindly agreed. I spent a couple hours reading those stories, and I enjoyed them very much.

If you ask the Peninsula Manila, they might tell you that COVID-19 presented a greater crisis than the 2007 Siege. The Pen was shuttered in four separate occasions during the pandemic, the longest stretch of which was nearly eight months. The 2007 Siege only shut down the hotel for four days.

The book speaks of ordinary heroism. From the head of the security office, who shuttered the hotel for the first lockdown, to the chef that oversaw the wildly popular “The Peninsula experience” takeout menu, which brought in 2 million pesos of revenue in the first month of launching, the tales of survival are powerful reminders that no one, rich or poor, was left untouched by a worldwide disaster.

In this collection of reflective stories, I saw a spirit of humility, ingenuity and faith that brings forth the inseverable strands of individual and collective success, of which the Pen is proud. This little book is the Peninsula Manila’s celebration of its people, and shows me that even in the prime bubble of luxury, the experience is as human, and as real, as it is anywhere else. Throughout the whole pandemic, the Peninsula has retained all its staff. Nobody was asked to leave.

The Pen is hands down the most amazing bubble of luxury I have ever experienced.

Sources

The Peninsula Manila’s Facebook page.

The View from the Peninsula Manila (2026).

The Wikipedia on the Manila Peninsula Siege.