RichardInSF

The old thread is located here"

Best Luxury Hotel in Singapore? (consolidated thread)

Kilian Zoll

Far from controversial -- it has been pretty well established in the 78 pages of this (edit: the previous) thread that there are very few, if any, good options in Singapore in the true luxury segment. In fact I would say dropping $10k on a suite at Raffles you'll still have to deal with the sluggish and aloof service that has always plagued this (and many other) properties in this city.

On a different note -- I had a stay at the Parkroyal Pickering to re-qualify for GHA Titanium status this past weekend, and was pleasantly surprised. Hardly a luxury property by any stretch of the imagination (even though the price might suggest so -- luckily Amex are running a $100 cashback offer at the moment, coupled with GHA running both 2x and 3x D$ stackable offers), but especially the service was very well intentioned and staff really tried their best to go above and beyond. I had emailed a head to get a sense of which room I should be booking to improve my chances to get a club room -- they responded that they don't upgrade into club rooms as a policy, but would be happy to extend club access anyway as a goodwill gesture. Maybe a valuable data point for GHA Titaniums on here. We ended up booking a Lifestyle room and received an upgrade to a nice (albeit small) Urban Suite.

pwhite8314

I agree Kilian Zoll , although entirely based on the prior thread, not on personal experience - aside from flying through SIN, I've not been there since I lived there as a small kid, so things have changed.

I'll be out there at the end of January before hopping over to Thailand, my shortlist is still Capella or Fullerton Bay. The latter most likely, since it seems to be better location, a nice mix of old and new, not decided on the room type though.Raffles would be on the list for ol' times sake, but too pricey for the nicer rooms.

Capella and Raffles made the Top 50 Hotels list, 28 and 17 respectively, which is interesting, but I've stayed at others on that list and wouldn't put them in the Top 50.

Dave510

Would not give any credence to that list, after looking at the voting methodology. It's a popularity contest; if a hotel at a popular destination has more of the voters visit, due to its location and marketing, then they will automatically have a vastly improved chance of ranking highly, even if only a small portion of the guests votes for it.

Complimentary and press stays are also not excluded, so once again, all about marketing and giving "judges" free stays.

bigdog2

Why do all hotels in Singapore seem to be...not great? With respect to their room rates. Ffs the Ritz Carlton Millenia's Colony dinner buffet didn't even serve the famous mud crab. They swapped the mud crab in the "Singapore Chilli Crab" for cheap soft shell crabs. Why is this type of corner cutting so prevalent in Singapore hotels.

Kilian Zoll

From what I understand from people in the (local) industry -- because they don't need to be. Singapore hotels routinely have the highest occupancy rates in the world, hence can charge high rates (which diminishes the sense of 'value' if standards and service aren't great) and aren't really incentivized to provide excellent service or do frequent renovations etc. The international dining scene (NOT including local food/hawker fare which is excellent) is similar with very high prices and - generally speaking (of course there are exceptions) - mediocre quality of both food and service given the price point.

john_ny

There's a lot of luxurious hotels in Singapore because it is one of the most expensive place. Go check around Resort world Sentosa. Just try Sky park hotel, it has infinity pool and the view there is so stunning.

pwhite8314

I know in the previous thread the (general) consensus was The Fullerton Bay Hotel good, The Fullerton Hotel, bad. Looking at the larger rooms, aside from being a bit stuff in terms of decor, they seem spacial, have club access, and (sometimes) a balcony, which is something I want for our stay. Trip Advisor rates in 4.5 blobs. We don't care about the pool, but space, location, balcony and club access is all good, so why a people a bit down on this hotel? Genuinely curious, I've still not booked, still mostly short-listed to Raffles, Fullerton Bay or Capella, but none of those are a stand-out choice for me.

Dave510

Fullerton Bay is newer, and more importantly, has the best view of the bay. The older Fullerton isn't a bad hotel though, preferences are personal and if you feel that meets your needs better, I'd say just go for it.

Aventine

This.

Mediocrity rules in their ultra luxury hotels. Just no desire or incentive to do better when folks fill your beds and pay your rack rates.

bigdog2

Trust me when I say mediocrity rules in their low, mid range offerings too. Scratch mediocrity, some of them are barely even habitable.
Next time I'll try the JW. Or just go back to the Westin, where I've actually come to appreciate the location with the new Downtown Line.

Aventine

I know it too but was just keeping it relevant to this forum.

DJ_Iceman

I had a really great stay at the JW earlier this year. Guest service seemed more like a Ritz-Carlton to me, and the hard product isn't at all shabby either.

luxefarer

I'm not sure what else is in the pipework for the city, but the confirmed projects aren't so exciting to me i.e. Artyzen, Edition, Standard...

I would love to see something new/niche, sort of what Raffles offered to Boston.
Something like Baccarat, La Reserve or Fouquets, would compliment the city well and perhaps mean a better soft product.... dare I say maybe even another city AMAN?..............

Otherwise would be nice to see Rosewood or a Bulgari (not in Sentosa).

pwhite8314

I'd add Langham to the wish-list. Never had anything other that a great experience at their properties.