The Shangri-La Group marks its 50th anniversary with the book “From the Heart: Celebrating 50 Years in Asia” which pays tribute to the region and the people who contributed to its dynamic growth.

The limited edition tome captures the spirit of Asian hospitality fostered by Shangri-La Group founder Robert Kuok.

According to Shangri-La Group chairman Hui Kuok, the book is the hospitality firm’s love letter to the region: a celebration of the welcoming hospitality, sense of innovation, and perseverance that helped define the region’s transformation over half a century.

This, in turn, paved the way for the Shangri-La Group’s own journey towards becoming the illustrious entity it is today.

Kuok said: “This is the Asian hospitality we believe in: anticipating a guest’s needs before they are even voiced, creating a world where you feel warmly welcomed and genuinely cared for. [It is a hospitality] we are proud and honoured to celebrate with this book.”

A storied journey

This book begins with a chapter by Robert Kuok which commemorates 50 years of Shangri-La’s affection for Asia. 

While the Group has expanded to over 75 destinations around the world in the last 50 years, the book features six locations, which were selected as integral to the Group’s story: Singapore, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing, Hangzhou and the Philippines. 

From these locations, local hosts from luminaries in business to inventive chefs to culture emissaries reminisce about their favourite spots and the unforgettable Shangri-La moments they experienced over the years. 

Among those sharing their stories of the destinations they call home are food writer Violet Oon and entrepreneur Forrest Li in Singapore; Allan Zeman, known as “the Father of Lan Kwai Fong” in Hong Kong; renowned interior designer and architect André Fu; engineering professor Li Zexiang from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology; award-winning actress Tang Wei; documentary filmmaker Chen Xiaoqing; globally acclaimed pianist Lang Lang; Zeng Fanzhi, one of China’s foremost contemporary artists; James Liang, co-founder of Trip.com; distinguished conductor Yu Long in China; and entrepreneur Ramon S Ang in the Philippines. 

Singapore’s former Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong was also invited to contribute a foreword.

As long-time friends of Shangri-La, they share their personal connections to the hotels and discuss the distinctly Asian approach to heartfelt hospitality the Group has refined over the course of five decades.