NIHI Rote & Hospitality Academy opened its doors in May 2026 on Indonesia’s southernmost island, the second property from the brand behind NIHI Sumba. Five months later, the resort is in its first full season, and this week it made the hire that signals the soft opening is over: Puspa Anggareni has been appointed general manager.
Anggareni arrives with more than two decades in Indonesian luxury hospitality. She was previously director of Banyan Tree Experience, where she led the award-winning Buahan, a Banyan Tree Escape, and before that she opened Capella Ubud’s tented camp as director of rooms. At NIHI Rote she will oversee all resort operations and the Hospitality Academy, the training program woven into the property that gives local Rotenese students hands-on instruction across every facet of running a resort.
The academy is the property’s defining idea. NIHI describes it as integrated into the fabric of the resort, creating the connection between guests and the local community that the brand trades on. It is already producing graduates: the resort’s own channels celebrate Gilberd, a local Rotenese who joined the academy without speaking English and now works as a bartender at the resort. The program was developed by investor Michael Schwab in collaboration with Nobel Peace Prize laureate and Timor-Leste president José Ramos-Horta.
Twenty-one villas, one wave
The resort pairs 21 design-forward villas and duplex estates, each with a private plunge pool, with the Bo’a Barrel, the wave that put Rote on the surf map. The property frames itself as barefoot luxury: horses wander past the villas, the Indian Ocean is steps from every door, and the experience list runs from surfing and foiling to free diving at more than fifteen sites, mountain biking, mangrove paddleboarding, and the Telaga Nirwana lagoon with its heart-shaped coral formation.
The first season is deliberately unfinished. NIHI’s own site describes the property as a canvas still being painted, with service, cuisine, and daily moments shaped in real time. This fall the resort is scheduled to debut its signature restaurant Savu, the main pool, the spa and expanded wellness amenities, and sports facilities. Anggareni’s appointment reads as the operational backbone for that second wave: the buildings are open, and now the institution gets built.
The recognition arrived early
The industry noticed fast. In its first year, NIHI Rote was named to Robb Report’s 50 Greatest Luxury Hotels on Earth for 2026 and included in the MICHELIN Guide 2026, alongside anticipated-opening lists from AFAR, Time Out, Matador Network, PaperCity, and Country & Town House. For a property that opened five months ago on one of the most remote islands in the Indonesian archipelago, that is a remarkable opening run.
The context for the bet is NIHI Sumba, the brand’s first property and the resort that established the NIHI name. Rote is the second act, and the brand is explicit that the formula is the same: a remote island, a strong local community, and the academy as the bridge between the two. The difference is the candor. Where most openings stage-manage perfection from day one, NIHI Rote is selling the becoming itself, with horses wandering past the villas while the team figures out what the place wants to be.
“I’m honored to join NIHI Rote & Hospitality Academy at such an exciting moment in its journey,” said Anggareni in the appointment announcement. “What makes NIHI Rote so special is its commitment to creating extraordinary guest experiences while investing in the people and traditions that make this island unique.”
The activity sheet reads like a second resort in itself. Beyond the surf, the program runs to foiling, which the resort frames as a meditative practice rather than a speed sport, private fishing boat days on the island’s open waters, and diving across more than fifteen sites. The throughline is the one the brand keeps returning to: Rote’s nature, experienced slowly, with academy graduates as the guides.
The honest context: Rote is not an easy arrival. The island sits at Indonesia’s southern edge, and the journey is part of the proposition, with NIHI arranging seamless transfers as part of the stay. What the first season suggests is that the formula that made NIHI Sumba a legend, remoteness plus genuine community integration, translates. The academy is the proof of concept. If it keeps producing graduates like Gilberd, the second NIHI may outlast the novelty of being new.
Photography: NIHI
