In Conversation with Bill Bensley : Discussing the future of high-end travel | Centurion Magazine

He designed the St. Regis Bali, Four Seasons Koh Samui and the Mandarin Oriental Sanya (among others). His own hotels include Siem Reap’s Shinta Mani Angkor, Shinta Mani Shack and The Bensley Collection villas. Further afield in Cambodia’s Cardamom Mountains, his Shinta Mani Wild tented camp was one of the most widely anticipated hospitality openings last year. But Bill Bensley is far more than one of the world’s most beloved hotel designers – the prolific creator is also a passionate philanthropist.

Each of his projects seeks to give something back to its locale, whether that be providing education and healthcare through his Shinta Mani Foundation, protecting wildlife from poachers at Shinta Mani Wild or through Shinta Mani Hospitality School, the free hotel training programme he runs in Siem Reap.

We spoke to Bensley about how his hospitality family is faring in the wake of COVID-19 and the evacuation of tourists from Cambodia. He also shared his hopes and thoughts about the future of hospitality in the wake of a global pandemic.