InterContinental Singapore

For my third stay at this property I’d opted to book a Club Deluxe room in the hotel’s modern tower, one category higher than the base Club Heritage room in the ‘traditional’ low-rise wing. The usual one-category Ambassador upgrade from a Club Deluxe room would be to a Club Grand Deluxe room, although on this occasion I was pleasantly surprised to be further upgraded to a Premier Suite. I reviewed this property fully last year here and so won’t go into any great detail about my experience this time around, other than to reflect on the different room category and offer some updated imagery of what was another excellent InterContinental experience.













There was a short wait to check-in as housekeeping were still making my suite ready; I was invited to take a seat in the attractive floral-scented lobby, although could’ve opted to visit the Club lounge had I not been in quite such pressing need of a shower. Check-in was conducted on a tablet in a nod to the environment, although I query the true sustainability of a property where orange juice at breakfast in the Club lounge comes in small plastic bottles from a fridge. The same principle applied on checkout with the traditional printed invoice replaced by an email.

















I was offered a fairly weak welcome gift of IC Singapore-branded collar stiffeners and handed a non-personalised welcome letter detailing Club InterContinental benefits.





One of the four main hotel lifts had been refurbished since my previous stay, although it remained the case that the two lift banks operate independently from one another, which often resulted in an impatient push of the button on both sides of the lobby.









Whilst it didn’t have the views of the city my 13th-floor Club Deluxe room had last year, this year’s 6th-floor Premier Suite was very spacious, with two good-sized rooms and a large bathroom. The interior design exuded sophistication in a classic yet modern way with traditional Peranakan touches such as the design of the minibar console and living room table lamp bases.

































The suite featured a number of thoughtful design features such as hallway lighting that remained on for a short period after the master switch was turned off, USB charging ports by the bed (albeit on one side only) and by the desk, TVs with intuitive menus and channels that stayed put when turned off, and that holy grail of an anti-steam mirror in the bathroom.













Both TVs in the living room and bedroom featured AirPlay connectivity, although this required a separate wifi network to work which meant streaming from the internet wasn’t possible, somewhat defeating the point.

At the time of reservation, I’d requested some bananas in the room on arrival; this request wasn’t fulfilled, and my attempt to request one in the Club lounge (to take away for later in the day) backfired significantly when said banana promptly arrived pre-chopped on a plate! This attention to detail is quite typical of the excellent Singaporean service culture.

As I was unpacking, the Ambassador mineral water and fruit plate was delivered to the room; the fruit plate (and the welcome gift) has since been enhanced from the list of Ambassador benefits, although many properties will still offer it in my experience.



After a brief evening stroll down to Raffles City shopping centre, I returned to the InterContinental for evening canapés and a well-deserved rest. Turndown service was offered, although the customary slippers and mat placed by the bed never made an appearance, and there was no sign of any chocolates (which let’s face it is the only true reason that turndown service exists). Housekeeping on the whole was excellent, with many items that are often overlooked (such as water glasses) refreshed daily, and the room refreshed on the day of checkout.

The elegant first-floor Club InterContinental lounge, comprehensively reviewed last year, was my first stop for breakfast the next morning. Service, as I’ve come to expect, was top-notch, notwithstanding a slight dip during a busy Sunday afternoon tea service where empty plates took a little longer to be cleared away than perhaps is usual.

























A classic Eggs Royale on English muffin can’t be beaten, accompanied by crispy bacon and some notably divine mushrooms in creamy sauce. In addition to the made-to-order menu (that remained the same throughout my stay), there is of course a sumptuous buffet available.













My first full day in the Garden City started rather aptly with an early morning stroll through the Botanic Gardens, including the Keppel Discovery Wetlands. I didn’t pop into the National Orchid Garden this time around, but first-time visitors should definitely ensure this is on their itinerary.











After lunch with friends in Toa Payoh (one of Singapore’s predominately residential districts) and afternoon tea back in the Club lounge, I headed out past the nearly reopened Raffles hotel to the downtown core and the National Gallery, home to the Southeast Asian Art Museum. I was lucky enough to be visiting on a day when entry to the Gallery was free of charge, and was impressed with the variety and quality of the exhibitions.



























Canapés in the Club lounge, accompanied by the de rigueur Singapore Sling, followed by a light in-room dining snack of satay concluded the evening.







The dawn of day two held a more traditional breakfast experience than I usually opt for; the so-called ‘oriental’ breakfast of chicken congee and dim sum platter was surprisingly filling.





A stroll through the downtown core took me to the ferry terminal for the trip across to the Southern Islands; I can’t recommend either Kusu Island or St John’s Island as offering any notably interesting scenery, although I can imagine for locals the islands provide a welcome respite from the bustle of the city. The view of the Singapore skyline from the ferry is, however, quite impressive.





















Before heading back to the IC, I took a detour through the Marina Bay Sands and Gardens by the Bay complex to visit the Cloud Forest. This spectacular indoor rainforest was closed for maintenance on my visit to the Gardens the previous year, so I was thankful for the opportunity to spend a good hour or so wandering through the huge greenhouse, a much more impressive structure than the larger adjacent Flower Dome. Annoyingly, tickets for individual attractions aren’t available, so I had to purchase one to access both greenhouses despite having no desire to revisit the Flower Dome.