“There’s gold in them thar hills.”
-Dr Matthew Fleming Stephenson trying to convince locals to stay and mine Georgia gold rather than head west.

It wasn’t always known as Fort Canning Hill.

Before that, it was “Bukit Larangan” (“Forbidden Hill” in Malay), and it was the seat of power of the “five Malay kings” during the 14th century. After that, it became “Government Hill” when Sir Raffles Stamford and other governors took up residence. It took on the current appellation in 1861, when the British built a military fort and named it after Viscount Charles John Canning.

But on this hill are the bones of the British empire, weathered by tropical modernity. It was a building constructed in 1926 by the British during World War II. Known as the British Far East Command Headquarters, the structure wears its colonial classicism proudly. Low-slung and symmetrical, the edifice is set by a whitewashed façade, long colonnades, and repeating arches.

The establishment was Shanghaied by the Japanese Military during the occupation of Singapore in 1942. After Singapore gained independence, the building was commandeered by the Singapore Command and Staff College and then was reoutfitted to be Hotel Fort Canning, after which, the Sunset Hospitality Group took over the reins and launched METT Singapore.

Due to the building’s historical and architectural significance, its look is conserved under Singapore’s heritage guidelines. Key elements like the exterior, proportions, and defining architectural features must be preserved. When it was the Fort Canning Hotel in the 2010s, much of that design was preserved.

What METT Singapore now represents is less a rebuild and more a repositioning. You have the same skeleton of its heritage, and it’s injected with a newer,—and dare I say—youthful, contemporary identity.

Within are 84 rooms and suites designed by Jeffrey Wilkes. High ceilings dominate the rooms, a sense of spatial calm fills the interiors. The windows offer a view that ping-pongs between dense greenery and the city’s steel-and-glass skyline.

Napoleon once opined that an army marches on its stomach. That is the same for METT Singapore, where its operations revolve around its dining table.

Under the watchful eye of Daniele Sperindio, the hotel’s culinary programme leads with L’Amo Bistrò del Mare, a love letter to Italian coastal cooking. When we dined, a lively piano performance was occurring. The restaurant prides itself on procuring fresh ingredients, which were evident in the Tonno Rosso (Bluefin tuna carpaccio, candied tomato petals, citrus fruits). Pastas like the Spaghettone Cacio & Pepe (spaghetti, pecorino cheese, black pepper), while a simple Italian staple is cooked with any overreach.

For your after-dinner tipple, the Canning Bar & Lounge offers cocktails with the ease of a well-rehearsed host. In the months ahead, Sperindio’s own Art di Daniele Sperindio will relocate here, while HANU, a modern Korean dining, promises a high-gloss take on the Korean grill.

Beyond the rooms and restaurants, it is also a playground for the socially inclined and the wellness-obsessed. Two outdoor pools are available for languid afternoons, while a Technogym-equipped fitness centre reads more like a private club than a hotel gym. There are boutique classes, if you wish, with classes like TRX and aerial yoga and always with an instructor to guide you through them.

At the point of visitation, certain areas of the hotel were still under construction. A ballroom to fit up to 800 was still in the works, as well as the padel and pickleball courts and the recovery room, where we were told would house cold plunges, saunas, and steam rooms.

There was even an ambitious undertaking of the Madison House Singapore, an upcoming new private members’ club. It will host The Longevity Suite, a European biohacking and anti-ageing clinic that offers cryotherapy, longevity programmes and other frontier-breaking medical initiatives. 

METT Singapore is located at 11 Canning Walk, Singapore 178881