Singapore - to Marina Sands Bay or Not?

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Lynda2475

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Hi AFF gurus,

Visiting Singpaore next year for 3 nights in June for the first time in 17 years (not counting times i never left the airport) and am contemplating where best to stay?

This is a solo leisure trip on route to London then New York, so I have no need to have office facilities, I just want to have a comfortable air conditioned room with wifi (preferably a walk in shower over a shower tub combo) in a safe central area with 24hr check-in and easy access to the subway. Ability to store my luggage after check-out is also a must as flight to LHR is late night on departure day.

I'm a foodie so want to be easily able to try the best of the hawker markets

Good friends who recently visited say I simply must stay at least 1 night at the Marina Bay Sands for early access to the roof top pool. Rates seem to be AUD $440 a night, which isnt out of the question but is it really worth it, or is there equally premium experiences to be had elsewhere for better value?

Many trip advisor reviews says apart from the awesome pool, the hotel is overrate with long lines for taxis etc.

If not Marina Bay Sands - where would you stay?

Thanks.
 
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It's an expensive swim!
The hotel itself is a bit meh.

I did the Club Room when it first opened which was pretty good - the Club Lounge is on the rooftop as well
 
I think the experience of the pool should be done once but after that, I wont return to MBS.

We had a club room, quite high. I found check in, different counter, hot, crowded and had to wait far too long for what we were paying per night.

Wait for the elevators, some days with all the stops for other floors, felt like I should take a packed snack.

The hotel itself, big, echos and impersonal. Like walking through Westfields with the crowds and noise.

Room cleaning. EVERY morning we would leave approx 9am and hit the "Clean our room" button and EVERY afternoon we would return approx 4pm or later and no room service. A couple of late afternoons, we turned room cleaning away as we wanted to nap or it was so late in the afternoon, why bother at that point.

Club room came with breakfast, snacks, canapes ect. Dont think we got our monies worth but the view from the pool or spa was great.

But. The pool - its a once only experience and we really enjoyed it. We had a room overlooking the bay, the bath (walk in shower and separate tub) was wonderful. I really enjoyed soaking in the bathtub and having a swim.
 
100% yes.
Hands down one of the best hotels I've ever stayed in.

The view from the pool and hot tubs at night are amazing

Our room had a walk in shower and a bath tub seperate, this was in a suite so I can't say for other rooms.

Our check in was a breeze as we were asked for details the day before we checked in. Maybe they have improved that since @Denali stayed our maybe it was the package I booked I'm not sure.

We are heading back to Singapore next year and we are staying at the MBS again for sure.
 
The challenge of opting to stay 1 night is, on arrival day I land too late to use the pool that night, which means waking up super early to use the pool the next day, so that can then shower and pack for check-out.

That said would seem to be a better option than last night, given the bad reviews about wait for transport back to the airport - although has advantage of being able to go to pool in evening or morning.

What other the other great hotels?
 
We considered staying there but took a leaf out of Karl Pilkingtons book and stayed at the place that overlooks it instead:
Swissotel The Stamford - Luxury Hotel In Singapore - Swissôtel Hotels And Resorts
Totally happy with that decision.

Recommend a high floor harbour view room. Very convenient, nice rooms (though I can't recall the bathroom of the room we stayed in, and I see they're renovating some). Fantastic view, subway station directly underneath and also directly under it an excellent airconditioned food court. Walking distance (we only walked one way) to MBS to check it out, and next door to Raffles which may be open again by the time you travel.
 
The first hotel we stayed at was rendezvous in Singapore, and I only booked this because we landed at 10pm and they had late checkout at 4pm the following day.

The room was clean and nice and check in /check out was a breeze. And quite cheap from memory, but I booked it soo long ago. I posted a few pixs from both the MBS and rendezvous in my trip report:
A surprise Birthday. OOOPS we meant a wedding
 
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MBS is a very meh hotel when held to the standards of good, five-star hotels. The hotel is impersonal, incredibly touristy and rooms average in size with limited amenities. However as others have said, it is worth staying at one time - for infinity pool access.

I personally find Raffles and The Fullerton Bay to be far better hotels in almost every respect (and in the case of the latter, you get views of MBS, which arguably 'completes' the view). They're far less touristy, but then again that's because they're more upmarket.

Hawker centres rule; I too am a foodie :D. In fact, I wouldn't visit SG if it wasn't for its food culture.
 
The Fairmont is in the same complex as the Swissotel, which is a fantastic location for sightseeing. Last time I stayed at the Fairmont I got put in a room with a lot of electrical problems - all fine after I got moved to a different room.

I also like the Hyatt, which is very close to Orchard Road.

The Shangri La is lovely but is a bit of a walk to the nearest MRT.
 
The question is between do you want a hotel or a rooftop pool?
Many people indicate that the pool is great but the rest of the MBS experience is so so.
I stay at the Conrad and like it. Convenient for MRT also.
 
We considered staying there but took a leaf out of Karl Pilkingtons book and stayed at the place that overlooks it instead:
Swissotel The Stamford - Luxury Hotel In Singapore - Swissôtel Hotels And Resorts
Totally happy with that decision.

Recommend a high floor harbour view room. Very convenient, nice rooms (though I can't recall the bathroom of the room we stayed in, and I see they're renovating some). Fantastic view, subway station directly underneath and also directly under it an excellent airconditioned food court. Walking distance (we only walked one way) to MBS to check it out, and next door to Raffles which may be open again by the time you travel.

This is the bathroom of a standard room that has been refurbished. Nothing wrong with it, but nothing special either.

IMAG5090.jpg IMAG5091.jpg
 
So MBS is a bit sneaky as don't included taxes int heir rate - cheapest room works out to be AUD $492/night.

The Fullerton for same dates is $382/night and includes buffet breakfast, free coughtail and free mobile to use whilst in Singapore.

The Fullerton Bay is $492 also but includes buffet breakfast, free coughtail and free mobile to use whilst in Singapore.

The Ritz Carlton Millennia is $452/night.

Swissotel is $265/night - even though now merged with Accor Le Club cant seem to get a club rate. Definitely a bargain for the same area.

Anyone have thoughts on Fullerton (as opposed to Fullerton Bay) or The Ritz Carlton?
 
Fullerton Hotel is in old Singapore Post Office building - quite historic - and very good. I have only stayed here 1 night and booked that through Virtuoso which gave us upgrade and access to EL with free flow Perrier-Jouet and excellent canapés.

If we were not staying at Raffles or MBS this is only other SIN hotel we would stay - the Ette loves the history of the place.
 
So by a foodie do you mean eating at only hawker markets or wish to go upmarket as well?
If both I dont rate MBS as a really central locaton unless you want to go to Tetsuya's restaurant.Most of the "named"restaurants there are overpriced cough.
We have just stayed at the Marriott Tang Dynasty.We wouldn't stay again as the room only had a walk in shower.So for you no problems.You also can often get it cheaply on a Luxury Escapes deal.
An underground short walk to the Orchard MRT station and so easy access to many hawker centres.
However we have tried 3 Michelin starred restaurants in very close distance to the Marriott.Iggys in the Hilton we have been to many times.The degustation menu now ~ $85.The owner has taken over as the sommelier and he now has a Spanish chef.The owner first worked in a fish and chip shop in Ipswich.
Alma we have just visited.Again a Spanish chef and the 3 course lunch is $39 though some dishes have a $9 surcharge.We loved it.Just next door basically.
And across the road is Les Amis-french style.Excellent.Not sure of current prices but we will return.
At the top of the Ion centre(above Orchard MRT) is Luke Mangan's Salt restaurant.Very reasonable prices.
But also great area for shopping.
 
So by a foodie do you mean eating at only hawker markets or wish to go upmarket as well?

I like to mix it up, authentic local food and up market. I'll often do a food tour too.

The last Michelin star restaurant I dined at was LD Restaurant in Korcula, Croatia.

I've heard Uber is pretty inexpensive in Singapore and there is the MRT so I dont have to be super close to everywhere i visit.

I expect to most of my shopping in the US on the way home, doubt there would be much in my size in Singapore.
 
Fullerton Hotel is in old Singapore Post Office building - quite historic

Yeah im leaning toward 1 night at MBS to say I've done the pool, followed by two at Fullerton, save some $ for a fancier dinner. Unfortunately Raffles isn't taking bookings yet, even though i would have expected it to have reopened by June, so cant compare rates.
 
I've heard Uber is pretty inexpensive in Singapore and there is the MRT so I dont have to be super close to everywhere i visit.

Uber has actually pulled out of SEA as of May this year. The current top dog of ride sharing is Grab. Prices are generally competitive if not better than Uber (back when it was around).

As for food, I generally try and eat what the region is known for. While I've been to the French fine diners in SG I would still prefer to eat French on French soil. If you don't have many 'meal slots' (always a problem when I travel) I would suggest Restaurant Labyrinth - it is one of the few, if only, fine dining-esque restaurants that reinterprets SEA/Peranakan cuisine. Still, for a bit of a low down on the higher-end scene in SG (eating out is literally an unpaid part time job for me - I mean it):

Jaan - you're going for the views as much as for the food. That is, it's good, but I'd be surprised if it took out the gong for 'best French'.
Les Amis - great restaurant. Purely French - little to no SEA influence.
Waku Ghin (Tetsuya's SG restaurant) is insanely-priced for what it is.
Iggys - good restaurant. Recommend.
Sushi Kimura - probably the best sushi in Singapore
Shinji by Kanesaka - probably second best. Parent is in Tokyo so not a must-visit
Burnt Ends - probably my favourite restaurant in SG full stop. Aussie expat chef too for bonus points. The cooking here is just insane.
Odette - probably the best Italian in SG.
Imperial Treasure - pretty good Chinese. But you're better off getting chilli crab ;)
Labyrinth - as mentioned, one of a kind.
Cheek by Jowl - oddly enough, this place describes itself as Modern Australian. It's quite good - think Quay in Sydney except actually really good (yeah, not a fan of Quay).
Tippling Club - good if you like Adria-esque food (molecular gastro)

Man, I could keep going but I'll stop now haha.
 
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