(CNN) – Ask most new parents what they would like most, and perhaps say help with the baby, prepared meals or a good night’s sleep.
At Kai Suites, a luxury hotel for birth mothers in Singapore, they can get all these things – for a price.
The hotel, ironically located in a place once inhabited by a maternity hospital, starts at $ 18,000S ($ 13,650) for a two-week stay.
Kevin Kwee, the hotel’s owner and operator, tells CNN Travel that his own experiences as a new parent gave him the idea to open Kai Suites.
“As a father of four children and traveling with my wife through various birth experiences, I understand the importance of prenatal education, recovery and recovery after birth, as well as the care needed for both mother and baby during this golden age – not just not physically, but also mentally and emotionally. ‘
Prospective parents usually book their rooms as soon as they are approximately 6-8 weeks from the estimated delivery date. Once mom and baby are pulled out of the hospital, a “gas relations officer” and a nurse will meet them at the exit, sit in a limo and escort them to Kai Suites to settle them.
The whole process is similar to a luxury all-inclusive, but with more medical staff.
So far, almost all of the guests have been residents of Singapore – which can be expected during a pandemic where travel is mostly off-limits – but Kwee makes no secret of his hopes of attracting international clients in the future.
A typical room at Kai Suites.
Thanks to Kai Suites / Gastro Sense
Kai Suites has 18 private suites, and although extended families are welcome to visit, only partners and spouses are encouraged to stay overnight – all the better for families.
Another request from new parents is that they want to meet other people who are in the same situation. Kai has set up shared spaces where guests can meet and mingle with each other – of course between massages, doctor visits and afternoon naps.
Although this post-natal hotel is a new concept in Singapore, the practice has a rich history in Asia. In China and Chinese-speaking communities around the world, the term zuo yue zi, or sit the lunar cycle, is still widely used.
During this first month after childbirth, women who have given birth are often cared for in specific ways by their families so that they have so much time and energy to take care of themselves and their babies. These can include drinking specialty teas and eating healthy foods that help restore their bodies and increase their iron levels.
While some more modern Chinese consider it a relic of a time when women had less access to health care and were more likely to die from sepsis or other ailments after childbirth, today’s “confinement centers” are still widely used and can be used. tens of thousands of food. of dollars.
Other centers, such as Nadora in the Malaysian state of Selangor and Gem Care in Taipei, combine modern hotel facilities with traditional practices.
Kai Suites seems to practice the combination of traditional care and modern captivity.
Although the hotel only opened in November 2020, Kwee is already looking to the future. He plans to expand the brand by launching a range of foods, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and health and beauty products aimed at new moms.