Get Insights into Local Culture with the Personalized Peninsula Academy Program

Feng shui, private guided tours, Thai cooking classes, kite flying in Tiananmen Square... These are just a few of the examples of the marvelous offerings available to guests at Peninsula Hotels worldwide. The Peninsula Academy Programs were created to give guests a personalized introduction to key aspects of local culture, lifestyle, cuisine, arts, and history-- through individualized classes, tours, and activities in each Peninsula location. Programs are available with just a few days notice, so guests can choose activities according to their own interests and travel schedules. It all started with the Peninsula Hong Kong, whose Peninsula Academy programs won the Government Award for Tourism Services. The range of activities is staggering: Chinese brush writing, Tai Chi, introduction to Chinese Herbal Medicine- you name it. At the Peninsula New York, you can have breakfast at Van Cleef & Arpels, get a private tour of MOMA, and indulge in a Couture Shopping Outing. Younger guests love the Kids Academy; in Chicago they can attend the Little Bakers Class or enjoy a Scavenger Hunt while the 'rents take a cooking class at the hotel's renowned restaurant. In Tokyo, you can take a Tsukiji Fish Market Tour or take a Tea Flavors Master Class. Not to be outdone, the Peninsula Bangkok offers a choice of a la carte programs in the Peninsula Academy: Thai Flower Arranging, Fruit and Veggie Carving, Canal Tour along the Chao Phraya River, and more. And with the Peninsula Beijing, you can uncover the secrets of the Chinese capital with tours of the hutongs and the "Wild" Great Wall.