Kooky.

I really wouldn't recommend staying around Kallang. It morphs into Geylang and most hotels are really knocking shops. As a rule of thumb, avoid any Hotel 81s and Fragrance Hotels.

Yes, the MRT is the best way to get around. It's cheap, clean and efficient.

Englishmum

A good source for last-minute hotel deals is:

http://www.latestays.com/

and http://www.asiarooms.com/

(Prices will be high during the Formula 1 race which I think this year is in late September).

Sentosa is awful right now....a big construction site for the new casinos. Unfortunately the water music show - which used to be free - is now called 'Songs of the Sea' and you have to pay an extra charge to go and see it, although they have fireworks.

One thing which tourists never get to hear about is a trip to Pulau Ubin (probably because tourists can't spend much money there, which is no good for the tourism business lol!). It's not far from the airport...and one of the last remaining rustic places in Singapore with chickens and the odd wild pig roaming around, reminiscent of Malaysia. There are still farms and plantations there, shrines, a quarry etc.

You will get hot and sweaty but it's a lot of fun to cycle or even just go for a stroll there. I'm currently living in Singapore and always take our visitors to Pulau Ubin - plan to spend a few hours there. You could perhaps spend just one night at the Changi Village Hotel which is across the street from where you get the bum-boats, then check into an hotel in the city, or perhaps stay at the new Crowne Plaza hotel at the airport itself on your day of arrival or departure and take a short taxi ride to the Changi Point jetty.

You take a bum-boat for approx 10 mins over to this small island, then you can hire a bicycle. It has a few residents living there in their old Malay attap houses, some of them sell cold drinks and there is a roadside stand/cafe where you get get a fresh coconut to eat and drink. The village has some cafes where you can eat and drink and plenty of cycle hire places (also best to rent a helmet too).


http://www.wildsingapore.com/ubin/index.html (includes info on how to get there)

http://www.geocities.com/vwkf2000/ubin.htm

Englishmum

Also forgot to add - the Time Out website for Singapore has ideas for tourists:

http://www.timeoutsingapore.com/tourists

gmralston

It does seem a bit of red light district later on at night but it never bothered us, as we do regular stop offs here and since it's not really a proper holiday we don't won't to pay much for the rooms, which so far have been fine in Kalang. If you know any other areas where the rooms range from 50-60sgd let me know and we will give them a try.

BTW they had nearly finished a new metro line last time we were last there, central line if I remember, is it open yet? Don't know if goes anywhere of interest but we treat the mrt and buses as our hop on hop of tourist service:-) not used a taxi once

Kooky.

You can get a double with ensuite for about S$80 at the Hangout @ Mount Elizabeth (just behind Plaza Singapura) but it will be small and maybe have no window. We've booked the large double for September at just over S$100; it's a corner room with 2 windows and a decent bathroom also with a window (they're renovating at the moment, all new bathrooms I think).

Don't get me wrong, I love Geylang - we lived in the thick of it for 4 years - but I wouldn't stay in a hotel there. "Couples" coming and going at all hours. I do have a friend who stays in the Fragrance on Lorong 6 (I think it's 6) but any further up is not recommended and I wouldn't stay there with kids.

Not sure how the new line is going - it's over a year since I left. Englishmum, do you know? Can't quite recall where it's going to go - there will be an interchange at Paya Lebar IIRC, which is the top end of Geylang. SMRT website will probably tell you.

melaniee

This is an old thread I know but I need to book a hotel now and wondered what people thought of the following (or if you have any others ?)

Pan Pacific (is there two ?)
Shangri La
Swissotel The Stamford
Want to be close to shopping and a good pool !

Is it the Pan Pacific that has a good Indian restaurant ?! Although of course we'll be heading to Little India !! Can't wait for a decent curry !!!!

Evelin

I lived more or less across Pulau Ubin in the late 70ties, Ponggol Point. We used to take the boat across. My inlaws lived right on the water. Everything has been demolished, there was a Malay village.

Genevieve

We loved Swissotel the Stamford - it actually has a MRT station directly below it. Fantastic spot! We had high tea in their restaurant on the 70th floor on Christmas Day 2008, with a window seat - my poor hubby was completely freaked out!! (he doesn't like heights)

I can recommend it as a spot to stay if you've not been to Singapore before.

The other place for unbelievable food is Chinatown. Far and away the best Asian food I've ever had.

Kooky.

They're all good hotels and, yes, the Pan Pacific has a fanastic restaurant, Rang Mahal. Not yer average 6 pints and a curry place I really miss Little India.

By Shangri La I assume you mean the one on ?Orange Grove Road? (sorry, rusty) at the top end of Orchard, not the Rasa on Sentosa.

Genevieve, I used to take all our visitors to the top of the Stamford for sundowners In fact I partied on the very top of it, on the helipad, one Chinese New Year. Let me tell you, it was blowing a gale and fireworks look rubbish from above.

koalakim

LOVE Singapore! It's one of my favourite places in the world. It is a love it or hate it type of place but we've always felt very comfortable there and everyone is small so I feel really at home!

For our first trip we only slept at the hotel as we were out all day as there is quite a lot to do. Now we try to get a hotel with a good pool for a bit of a rest in between shoe shopping

Singapore is great for shopping but if you are anything bigger than a size 12 then you may struggle with clothes even in those distance days when I was a size 8 I was considered "large"! It also has the most wonderful shoe shops and so cheap, I nearly fell over when I had to go and buy a pair of shoes in Oz!

Watch out for the weather, downpours are very tropical - they are supposed to be short and sharp but on our first trip we got very well acquianted with the zoo's Komodo Dragon whilst we were stuck by it's enclosure for over an hour before making a dash to see another animal! Also sometimes if the rain sets in it can go on all day - usually on a day which I've allocated to sitting by the pool, then we have to go shopping and then it gets expensive

Definitely go to the zoo and the night safari, the bird park is good. Sentosa is always being rebuilt and is always a mess, I don't think I've seen it finished in the number of years I've been visiting.

Get out and about around Chinatown although it has become a bit touristy in the last couple of years, but also take a walk behind Orchard Road to see the old Perakan houses. The great thing about Singapore is that you can walk through all the ethnic areas without any fear. If you get hassled just say a polite no and then they don't bother you.

You should also do a Hawker Center meal which is great, manic but great cheap food. There is a great curry restaurant on the East Coast Beach called the Mango Tree, it's right on the beach and should be good as we were the only white people in there but its quite hot food!

If you have the time and want a better beach then you can get direct flights from Singapore to Penang and Langkawi in Malaysia. KL is also nice for a stop over, bit cheaper than Singapore, bit more manic and rough as Seasider says but a great place and a completely different feel to it.

We've stayed at the Pan Pacific (there is also one on Orchard Rd now) two or three times and last time (last year) the service was fantastic, it was No1 on Trip Advisor, I also got a great deal direct from the hotels website. It was quite last minute as we were supposed to be staying with friends but they double booked us. The Swissotel Stamford is also a nice hotel with a great pool area and a fantastic view if you can get one of the upper rooms over looking the city. The Shang-ri la, I've only been to a "do" there but used to be considered Singapore's top hotel but I've usually avoided it because it's right up the far end of Orchard Road and there is no MRT near it.
The Swissotel is great because it has the MRT outside the front door.

Singapore hotels haven't been cheap for sometime, we stayed at the Rendevouz which was average and good if you just want to get your head down. It has a pool but it lost the sun a lunchtime but it was in a good spot between Orchard Road and Raffles City. We didn't bother with hotel brekkis and found a Dome cafe 5 mins walk away.

The best place to stay is Raffles - managed to do it a couple of times before the great Aussie adventure.

Oooo I want to go again........

Hope this helps!

KK

datamile

Universal Singapore is also openning very shortly. The hotels have just opened, and the theme park will open over the next few months.

It's based on Sentosa.

http://www.rwsentosa.com/

bcworld

Tick for the Stamford for both of those.

It sits right on top of a shopping mall with a decent food court (it's been a while, but I assume this is still the case?). You don't even have to go outside to access the mall.

Kooky.

The mall is Raffles City, and is atop City Hall MRT which is an interchange so very handy. There's still a food court (or at least was last Sep, and I can't imagine it going) and also tons of fast-ish food joints in the newish extension in the basement. You can also walk underground to Suntec from there - it's longer than above ground but very handy in midday heat or rain.

The Stamford shares pools with The Fairmont Singapore, that used to be Raffles The Plaza, and something else before that (I think I've said all this on the thread linked in my sig). It has a great spa, now called Willow Stream. I used to be a member of the gym and use all the spa facilities several times a week. Went back there for a massage and facial in Sep, still good.

(The BA/Qantas crew stay in the Stamford so it's great for eye candy round the pools.)

Wol

As it happens we are doing a shopping trip to Singapore on the 2nd Feb, staying at the Stamford. (The Stamford and the connected Fairmont used to be the Westin: better then but still good.)

The Singapore Air Show is apparently on around that time, which made accommodation a bit tight - anyone know what it involves?

livinginreality

Hi I just posted a similar thread I think the week before under the Singapore section.had some good replies too,might be worth tracking down the thread.