I remembered a great stay back in 2019 so this became my choice for burning off my expiring D$50, even if it means by then hotel prices have already gone way back to pre-COVID. But there was in fact no other option to spend the expiring D$ outside of a stay, so here goes.
Address – 7500 Beach Road Singapore 199591. Website.
Contact – Tel: +65 6296 3600. Email: enquiry.prsin@parkroyalhotels.com.
Location – the property is located along Beach Road, right opposite Haji Lane and its neighbouring alleys. Concourse is right next door which gives you access to a comparatively sad handful of F&B. Then you get The Plaza which is the smallish block of F&B located to the behind of the hotel. But all these places are un-sheltered access which means rain will cause plenty inconvenience. Nearest major mall will be Suntec City which is about 10-mins unsheltered walk away.
Price – $240++ = $282nett booked for a Superior King under the Discovery Breakfast Exclusive Offer. Given that I had D$159 in my account with D$50 expiring, I was looking forward to only paying $80 all in. Recent datapoints hinted that there was no loss in not getting club access so I was happy with the booking and particularly excited to try the revamped Ginger Restaurant – it looks so fresh!
Prior to Arrival – I received a upsell nudge 6days prior to my stay and nothing else so I proactively reached out to request for early check in and late check out.
Check In – I arrived to a rather populated lobby on a weekday afternoon and was attended to after standing around abit. My check was slightly bumpy as there seems to be a glitch in the system showing I had more than 1 room but that was sorted out eventually. I was also informed that I have been accorded a 2-tier upgrade to a Club Deluxe King (but no club access) and a 4pm late check out for being a Titanium.
The 2 staff who attended to me seems relatively new so the entire process felt a little slower than what I would have liked. I also was not proactively informed of breakfast timings until I asked. Not critical but could be more seamless.
Meanwhile, I really liked the refreshed lobby – the bright color tones and greenery rocks!
I realized thereafter that there was a Discovery desk but it was un-attended when I arrived so ah wells.
Room – My Club Deluxe King (35SqM), 690, was located on the same floor as the Parkroyal Club. The room is an unfortunate stark contrast to the fancy lobby – many much brown tones as how I remembered to be, only feels more aged. I wish they had paid as much attention to the rooms during the refurbishment.
That being said, everything is functional in the space. The blockish layout opens up the whole space at once, with the wardrobe to your left (thin robes and slippers as expected).
Beside this is a very basic mini bar though equipped with a Nespresso.
The bathroom is to the right of the entrance – cosy but function. The toilet is in the middle of the spot, and the shower space are equipped with body wash + a conditioning shampoo (no separate conditioner). Toiletries are Appelles branded which is a rather nice touch.
The main space is spacious, with the king bed + generous bedside tables facing a giant TV, and a chilling corner containing a velvet couch with its own lamp.
BUT this spot turned out to be the bane of the stay as my routine wipedown of the couch turned up random hairs, a half-eaten chip, and just…. dirt. It was disturbing enough for me to haul the proof of shoddy housekeeping to the font desk to ask for a room change. To their credit, the staff was immediately apologetic, apologized that there is no other rooms of the same category available, invited me to wait at the lounge while they promised to do a thorough cleaning, and said they will inform me once they are done. After a ~20-mins wait, the Duty Manager came to bring me to the room and offered club access for the rest of my stay which was very nice of them.
Upon stepping into the now nice-smelling room, I found that they had also given a Titanium welcome gift alongside a welcome note & welcome letter.
PARKROYAL Club Exclusive Privileges (website):
- Personalised check-in and check-out
- Daily breakfast at Ginger
- Light refreshments from 11:00am to 4:00pm at Club Lounge
- Evening Cocktails from 6:00pm to 8:00pm at Club Lounge
The lounge is just as I remembered – cheery modern cosy interiors with natural lightings from the windows. A handful of 2-seaters by the window are the choice seats for couples, while other spots offer space for larger groups.
Light Refreshments (11:00am to 4:00pm): This saw cookies, biscotti, with the usual spread of non alcoholic drinks eg coffee/tea, soda water, juices etc.
Evening Cocktails (6:00pm to 8:00pm): This session saw a decent offering of 2 hot dishes alongside cheeses, nuts, simple salads, and desserts. Nothing fantastic in terms of taste but makes for a simple enough dinner. Service was pleasant throughout although last calls were made at 20mins prior to the end time which I felt was too early.
Alcohol selections saw perfectly drinkable red / white wines and a small selection of spirits.
Breakfast – served at Ginger from 6:00am – 10:30am, the space was quite sparsely populated at 7am on a weekday but gradually filled up thereafter. The space follows the modern garden theme from the lobby which I really liked.
Food wise, there were a decent amount of quantity but I felt the quality of everything could be better – eggs and muesli were my choice if I have to eat again. Decent coffee though.
Facilities – nothing has changed about the gym and the pool so check out my previous pics here.
Service – Although unfortunate, I appreciated very much the great service recovery from the dirty couch.
Check Out – Painlessly completed at the Club reception desk although the process took longer than ideal due to the need to offset part of my bill with my D$. I ended up paying only $57 all in due to the favorable exchange rate which was a bonus.
In summary,
I’m happy that my shaky start translated to a rather nice stay with the swift service recovery. I do feel that the gross value was still slightly overpriced for the room if that’s what you are looking for, but if considering that I paid $57 nett out of pocket, I have no complaints.