Love at first sight—that is how Dr. Henry O. Chusuey describes the first time he set eyes on the island of Boracay a few decades back. And 1,789 rooms and nine hotels and resorts later, the love he felt for his muse is as strong as ever.
“Its beautiful white-sand beach—I have not seen anything like that elsewhere,” says the chairman of the Henann Group of Resorts, when he first laid eyes on the island.
So enamored was Henry Chusuey by Boracay that he visited the island often—and eventually thought about building a home there so that he could enjoy it with family and friends. “At first, I was thinking of putting up a rest house,” he recalls to PeopleAsia. “But I realized that if I did that, I would be spending for a caretaker, security and the like. I said, ‘Why not put up a small hotel?’ Aside from earning from it, I’d be able to stay for free.”
With this vision in mind, the businessman opened the Boracay Regency Beach Resort in 1998. A Mediterranean-inspired destination now called the Henann Regency Resort & Spa, the property has now 302 rooms, landscaped gardens, and a generous view of, and access to, the beach front. After more than two decades, the group opened five more resorts on the Boracay island, with work underway on the sixth resort destination in Boracay.
“What’s important is that guests get value for their money,” the executive says, stressing that they make sure international standards are met in every location. “Cleanliness, from beddings to air-conditioning units, should always be looked after. I always tell my staff that every room should always look like it’s just a year old. You have to pay attention to small details. If there’s a need to fix something, repair it. If there are scratches, repaint it.
“The service should also be good. It’s pointless to have a nice room if service is terrible,” Henry underscores. “I went around and studied hotels on my own. I then guide our staff; I strongly believe that it’s important that I do. I get satisfaction from training them myself.”
The real estate developer combines his business acumen with insights from his experiences as a hotel guest in different destinations around the world. “You have to analyze what people want—it’s part of giving guests value for money,” he asserts. “If you overcharge, it’s no good no matter how nice your hotel is. I put myself in the place of the guests and think about what I want. What do I want to have in my room? There should be choices. These are all part of giving guests value for money.”
In Boracay, the Henann Group of Resorts also own Trip Advisor “Traveler’s Choice” awardees such as the Asian and modern-inspired Henann Lagoon Resort, which won the award in 2017; and Henann Prime Beach Resort, which bagged the same recognition in 2019. There’s also the Henann Garden Resort that is located in the heart
Boracay’s Station 2; the 188-room beachfront property Henann Crystal Sands Resort; and the Henann Palm Beach Resort, which is known for its modern beach club vibe and swimming pools—including a sky pool located with the beach and sea in full view.
The company’s next Boracay venture, the Henann Park Resort, will offer additional 232 signature hotel rooms. The group has expanded further in the Visayas region with two Bohol properties to date. The Henann Resort Alona Beach is a 6.5-hectare resort located on Panglao Island that opened in 2015. Henry Chusuey shares that the province’s good infrastructure and big, four-lane highways made the location inviting to invest in.
“Bohol is nine, 10 times bigger than Boracay,” he explains. “There’s a new airport right in Panglao that is five minutes away from the main Alona area. The beach is nice, and they have attractions like the Chocolate Hills, the tarsiers.”
The Henann Resort Alona Beach has been recognized multiple times for its world-class facilities and service by the World Luxury Awards, a global organization that screens luxury hotels. The property was named as “Luxury Spa Hotel and Luxury Island Resort” in 2016, and “Luxury Hotel and Conference Centre” in 2017 and 2018. The resort features 400 guest rooms and houses the largest convention center in the province that can hold up to 1,000 people. Coming soon on the group’s Bohol list of offerings in the province is Henann Tawala.
The businessman has also set his eyes on several other possible locations in the country, including Coron in Palawan, Siargao and Siquijor. “Each place has its own characteristics,” he says. “We cannot just put everything in Boracay. We need to go around and see where we find potential. Tourism is not only Boracay. Tourism is in all the beautiful spots around the country.”
The resort magnate says that he imparts the value that business expansion returns beyond profit to his children, who all play pivotal roles in the company: Alfonso Louis, Henann Group of Resorts president; Karl Hendrik, who is involved in sales and is the vice-president for marketing, and Christina Ann, an accounting graduate like Dr. Chusuey, who supports her mother, Anna Lissa, in the Iloilo head office for accounting.
“You keep expanding because when you do, people get jobs,” the hotelier says. “There’s taxes. And you help not only the people who work for you. You buy food for guests and in doing that, you support industries like poultry. You purchase from fruit producers. The more hotels you have, the more foreigners can come in and spend their money. And it helps the economy.”
All the Chusuey children have also been instilled with the value of hard work. “There’s no such thing as pure luck,” the chairman adds. “You have to be fair to your guests, your employees. You have to correct things right away. Everybody makes mistakes. I always teach my children not to be greedy and not to have pride. No pride, just fairness, and (doing) what’s correct.”
Henry is also a known philanthropist. During the six-month rehabilitation and closure of Boracay last year, his group and the Boracay Foundation donated about 3,500 gift packs to families affected by the closure. The hotelier once led the foundation as its chairman a few years back.
As a way of giving back to his alma mater, the executive donated a building to his alma mater, the University of San Agustin in Iloilo City. Named the Dr. Henry O. Chusuey International Center, the building was built to house the school’s BS Hotel and Restaurant Management and the BS Tourism programs.
He humbly says that he is just doing his part for education; the other half of the responsibility lies in the university. “They have to hire good teachers, and be practical in their subjects,” he explains, and proudly shares that the school has put up 20 hotel-like rooms for practical application. “Sometimes when you’re seated in a classroom, you cannot imagine the settings and conditions being explained to you. Then when you apply for a job and it’s your first day, it’s like you know nothing. When you apply for on-the-job training, actual practice in school will help you experience different aspects: front desk, housekeeping, the kitchen. You have an edge against the others if you are given the full experience.”
Henry says that Henann Group of Resorts will continue to expand, with plans of going into city hotels a few years from now. “Our customers are always our priority,” he declares. “We want to give them splendid accommodations, superb dining options, great facilities and efficient service set in renowned tourist destinations, with the aim of satisfying all their needs and creating new experiences for them.”
Get ready for more things in store from this visionary who once fell in love with a beautiful island—and has since never stopped from creating picturesque, memorable destinations for travelers.
