YTL Hotels’ newest UK property Monkey Island Estate is aiming to open its doors at the end of May, as the hotel announces a new partnership with Small Luxury Hotels.

At a press preview event held this morning in London, executive director for YTL, Dato Mark Yeoh said that he was ‘excited’ and ‘privileged’ that SLH CEO Filip Boyen had welcomed the new 30-bedroom boutique hotel set across seven acres in Bray-on-Thames into the portfolio.

Monkey Island Estate, which has a colourful history dating back 800 years, will open in just a few months’ time, having been acquired by YTL Corporation in May 2015, but Yeoh admitted that he had long been a fan of the property and the area of Bray for the last decade.

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He said now was the task to bring the Grade-I listed building ‘back to life’ and although he admitted planning took some time, the redesign is well on its way to completion, headed up by New York-based renowned Champalimaud Design.

The food and beverage experience will be at the heart of the hotel Yeoh added, with a new head chef announced within the coming few weeks who is working on a ‘very special’ F&B offering.

The area of Bray is a real foodie hub, with four Michelin star establishments; Monkey Island Estate will have the likes of Heston Blumenthal’s The Fat Duck and The Waterside Inn as neighbours, who Yeoh says it was be ‘foolish to try and compete with’.

The Estate has been undergoing a transformation since June 2017 and alongside the 27 bedrooms and three deluxe suites, will be home to a brasserie, a luxury spa, plus a monkey lounge with a secret staircase leading up to a whiskey snug.

Lee Kelly, former F&B director at The Savoy joined the property at the end of last year as general manager and told BH that the property will aim to target a range of clientele, with leisure driving the weekend business, and corporate guests being the focus mid-week.

He also said the hotel is looking to work with activities companies, as well as looking at ideas such as shepherd huts.

YTL Hotels also owns other UK properties such as 2017 AA Hotel of the Year Gainsborough Bath Spa, The Glasshouse in Edinburgh and The Threadneedles Hotel in London.