Luxury hotel brand Rosewood is coming to Phnom Penh, seeking to occupy the top 14 floors of the Vattanac Capital Tower by 2015, the company said in a statement yesterday.

“Rosewood Phnom Penh will offer a panoramic view of the city and the fabled Mekong River from its position within the tallest building in the capital, whose architectural form takes the fluid shape of a rising dragon oriented towards the East,” Rosewood said in the statement.

Boasting some of the largest hotel guest rooms in Phnom Penh, the 148-room hotel will include 27 luxury, serviced residences for long-stay visitors, meeting facilities, dining options and a sky bar. The luxury brand also brings in a spa with five treatment rooms, a 20-metre swimming pool on the 33rd floor and a fully equipped fitness centre, according to the statement.

Property developer Vattanac Properties appointed Rosewood Hotels & Resorts to manage Rosewood Phnom Penh, yesterday’s statement said.

Rosewood declined to comment on a specific date or investment figure for the project.

In Cambodia, luxury travel is still a new segment of the tourism industry.

According to Ho Vandy, co-chair of the government-private sector working group on tourism, promoting luxury tourism in Cambodia is still a challenge faced by the government and the private sector.

However, he said he had faith in luxury hotel investors in Cambodia, adding that “they know the trend well”.

Earlier this month, the senior vice president of Sofitel Asia Pacific, Markland Blaiklock, told the Post that Sofitel was interested in a beach resort property in the country.

Vattanac properties could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Rosewood Hotels & Resorts manages 18 luxury properties in nine countries.