What’s it like? Like the Merlion statue and spiky Esplanade arts centre, this IM Pei-designed 70-storey cylinder has become one of Singapore’s most recognisable icons. Together with its petite sister Raffles The Plaza, the hotel makes up part of the multi-use Raffles Convention Centre. One arrives at a central hall linking both properties but each has its own dedicated check-in lobby, unless you’re booked in an Executive Room or Suite, then you merit a personal escort and conclude the paperwork ensconced in a plump sofa sipping the coffee you ordered.
Before the staff left, they asked if I required anything special, which I did: soy milk for breakfast and a wake-up call for the early Monday departure (0400!).
Where is it? In the Marina Bay, sitting on top of a subway interchange and cheek by jowl with a mall, office tower, convention centre and the aforementioned Raffles The Plaza. An underground link with retail and dining leads to more buildings in the area.
How many rooms? 1,261 guestrooms, including 29 suites, branded Stamford Crest occupying floors 64 to 66.
Room facilities: An average guestroom measures 33.5sq m, which goes up to 70sq m in the Stamford Crest. This tasteful self-contained unit lends itself to cocooning, especially when it’s pouring outside and one is tucked up in the king-sized bed. Glass doors, running the span from living room to bedroom, provide a front seat to the gleaming landmarks of Singapore’s new CBD.
Louvered doors clearly delineate work and retreat spaces. The living room setup is ideal for intimate gatherings, either of a serious or social nature. By the desk, a console, equipped with a fax-laser printer-copier machine and phone socket for a computer modem, stands ready to be used. BlackBerry owners are offered an extra service of having attachments to email messages printed out if they send them to a special email address provided by the hotel.
The bedroom, though not overly large, gives an impression of spaciousness once the panels by the tub are opened up. Aromatherapy products in generously sized bottles from the hotel’s Amrita Spa are real treats which we need no persuasion to use, and do so at the first opportunity. Other amenities include the personal Lavazza coffee machine and Bose sound system.
Restaurants: If you decide to surface for air, try at least one of the establishments at the Equinox Complex located on the 70th floor, which is accessible by a private lift. Equinox Restaurant features Western and Asian fare served in one of the most dramatic seating experiences, while Jaan has Chef Matthew Miller whose take on French contemporary cuisine always yields surprises – we couldn’t get enough of his grilled Wagyu beef with White Coco Bean and Yellow Chantarelle. But scattered around the hotel premises are more options: Japanese, Sichuan, Singaporean hawker fare (Kopi Tiam’s char kueh teow is a must have for me) and Swiss inspired at the newly opened Café Swiss.
Bars: Equinox has three of the city’s most atmospheric – Introbar, City Space and New Asia Bar, all with the views. Do your people watching at The Lobby Court.
Business facilities: Executive Room and Stamford Crest guests can rely on the staff of the club lounge of their respective floors – Swiss Executive Club and The Living Room respectively – to handle any requests. On level four is the Raffles Convention Centre offering 27 function rooms and a ballroom for 3,200.
Leisure facilities: The 4,600-square-metre Raffles Amrita Spa specialises in renewal and detox programmes. A circular shaped pool and gym round up the hotel’s chill-out options.
Verdict: If it wasn’t for some unavoidable engagements, I would much rather have preferred to stay in, but alas, it wasn’t to be. How the staff always managed to remember what I needed – like the warm soy milk appearing at brekkie or the schedule of Sunday Mass – was impressive. The wake-up call may have come a day earlier than I requested, but that hardly caused a ripple in what was overall an absolutely relaxing stay.
Price: Internet rates for a two-night stay in late November start from US$341 for a Swiss Deluxe King Room.
Contact: 2 Stamford Road, Singapore 178882, tel 65 6338 8585, fax 65 6338 2862, www.singapore-stamford.swissotel.com
Margie T Logarta
