robyng

Is Australia in the west? I always thought of it as perhaps in the east - definitely in the south (in terms of hemisphere) - not in the west. No matter where it is though - I suspect most of the blogs will be written in English (which makes it easy for me!).

I've never been to Hong Kong - probably never will get there. Should have taken more of these very long trips when we were younger - and much more able to tolerate 13 hour flight segments in economy (our total trip time on this trip will be 30 hours). OTOH - I've never developed an attachment to any hotel in any particular place (although there are some that I've liked/loved - others that I've disliked/hated). Mostly because we only get to a particular place once (in terms of leisure trips). Also - even when we've been to a particular place multiple times on leisure trips - our trips are usually years apart. Properties can and do change in various ways (including prices). My husband and I did a fair amount of business travel before we retired. But to such thrilling places as Tallahassee Florida and Midland Michigan. Not quite in the Hong Kong category .

Note that our trip isn't until September. So I will read about your food/hotel experiences before you read about mine . Let us know what you think of the Fullerton Bay. Have booked now because the best FF business/first class availability for September/October (at least on the airline where I had the most miles) is now. Have a great trip! Robyn

Baghoarder

"The West" is really more of a cultural than a geographic reference. Australia is a "western" developed economy with English colonial and western European cultural roots overlaid on an ancient indigenous culture (which we have a poor history of recognising and valuing). We have a very diverse population with a multi-cultural outlook. Of course, these days we increasingly understand and focus on our links with Asia.

roverkt

Yes it was quite surprising for me to see those signs essentially kowtowing to the Chinese at the Melbourne airport just past immigration when I went there last month. And strangely after that, customs treat people like semi criminals by lining them up and setting the sniffdog on them, albeit a cute one. I had difficulty reconciling the two.

In terms of local food, I think both SIN and HKG have strong offerings that are must tries, although I'd say the hawker centers in the former offer a more affordable, authentic experience (avoid Newton that's always mentioned in tourism brochures as it's become a tourist trap).

As for fine dining/celebrity chef restaurants, some can be found in both cities but it depends on whether you like the kind of food being offered. Some try too hard in my opinion.

Baghoarder

LOL! You're only a criminal if the cute sniffer beagle detects prohibited items on you! We have strict quarantine laws here, for good reason. But we're way OT now

Ericka

The beagle brigade!

Pausanias

Nice joke:

Inspecting an immigration form at Sydney airport the official asks the new arrival, "Do you have a prison record?"

And the reply: "Is that still necessary?"

Kettering Northants QC

Do you have any reliable evidence to support what some may interpret as bigotted remarks?

Describing a whole group of people's alleged characteristics with words like "appalling" and then encouraging people to take action to make fun of people is IMO out of order.

glennaa11

wow, this thread is all over the place.

I was recently in Singapore for a first visit and really enjoyed it overall. Except the humidity which was oppressive. But there is certainly plenty to do for a week long visit.

I stayed at the Parkroyal on Pickering. It's under a year old so brand new by hotel standards. The physical plant is gorgeous. But the service let it down in my case, which was a real shame. Location is great, right around the corner from Chinatown MRT and an easy walk to most of the touristy things. Short walk to Marina Bay which I really liked for the night time views. The subway is cheap, clean, and cool.

I really liked the Singapore City Gallery. If you are at all interested in urban planning it is a must. I liked the Asian Civilisations Museum too. Took the Mt. Faber cable car one evening as well. Peaceful place with nice views and after dark everything is all lit up to the south which was quite nice. The cable cars flash like fireflies.

RichardInSF

Once again, I am reminding everyone that this is the luxury hotels forum. If you want to talk about more general topics for a particular area, the right place is the geographic forum for that area.

Going forward, I will most likely stop warning and start deleting posts that are off-topic for this forum.

Thanks in advance for your co-operation.

RichardInSF, moderator, luxury hotels

Goodmorning2U

We were in Singapore several years ago, during SARS, and our experience was so positive at the Four Seasons that we'd book there again in a heart beat. The rooms were not the most modern but the hotel was elegant, the food in the main restaurant delicious, and the service perfect. We particularly enjoyed swimming in the roof top pool at night looking out over Singapore. The best experience I have ever had with a concierge, her name was Angel, was at this hotel. She seamlessly and effortlessly changed our flights around without batting an eye, a task which would have taken hours for me to accomplish.

Robyn, a must do is the night zoo tour, which is perfect for those suffering from jet lag from the east coast of the US. You are driven in modern open air trams with a guide through the zoo. It is cool and comfortable at night and there is enough light that you can clearly see the active animals. The guides were knowledgeable and their tour entertaining.

I also strongly recommend avoiding the Newton Hawking center, as it is truly a tourist trap with some, I'm sad to report, dishonest vendors.

Overwhelmingly, Singapore is a lovely city and we have fond memories of our visit. I hope to return one day.

FlyerEC

+1
190 , their restaurant has just been refreshed. The bar is being done & should be open any time now.
The covered aircondioned corridor connected to Hilton is a handy short cut to Orchard Road. Often hosts art exhibitions too so makes it even more pleasant.

Newton hawker centre should be avoided , many others to explore . Deciding which one is always difficult if one has a time constraint .
FYI , TANGs , department store , attached to Marriott has just opened a ' market place ' with some favourite local foods on offer . It is within walking distance , actually a number of food courts are.

Love the night safari.
Plus, the river safari is opening this month
There's the zoo as well as Jurong Bird Park.

Shangri La's Valley wing is also a decent choice for the Orchard vicinity .
( Though , think I mentioned in some other posts , that if some head of state is visiting , they invariably opt to stay there. Security then will be a pain . Even worse if ministerial summits , royalty & the like are based there )

Heard good reports of St Regis, visited but not stayed .

Have not been back to Raffles for awhile , very decent service when we last stayed.
A spectrum of restaurants to be enjoyed ..
Even stayed in the old one - was it in the 60s/70s ??!!

robyng

Thank you for this useful information and your report about the Four Seasons. I like cutting edge design. I just don't care to sit on it or sleep on it . And - to me - assuming everything in a hotel room works and the room is comfy/well-appointed/polished - the service component of a hotel is perhaps the most important thing. Especially when you're far away from home and/or caught up in some kind of emergency situation. It's good to hear that FS Singapore delivered in terms of service based on your visit there.

FWIW - something that no one has mentioned yet IIRC is that some luxury hotels in Singapore have world class art collections (like the Bellagio Las Vegas had - at least when Steve Wynn owned it). E.g.,

http://content.time.com/time/travel/...845573,00.html

And you don't have to be a hotel guest to explore at least some of them. Wouldn't be a compelling reason for me to stay at a particular hotel - but it would be a very good reason for me to visit a hotel I wasn't staying at. Robyn

mike_la_jolla

Huh? The pool at the FS Singapore is on the lowest floor. It isn't on the roof. And it isn't a very nice pool.

MANCHESTER

Errr, there are 2. Next time in town, check out the top floor

luxury

There is a family pool on the 20th floor.

http://www.fourseasons.com/singapore...menities/pool/