My first EDITION!

This property was on my radar of new hotel openings to try one day but I didn’t expect it to come so soon. The trigger was someone sharing a note about how redemption slots for the property is live on Bonvoy’s system and incredibly showing rates of 40,000 and upwards. For an EDITION, that’s kind of a no-brainer especially when I have a 35k FNA to use. Game to try this property in preview mode!

Address – 38 Cuscaden Road, Singapore 249731. Website.

Contact – Email: reservations.sgedition@editionhotels.com. Tel: +65 6329 5000.

Location – Situated right at the tail end of the bustling Orchard Road stretch and straddling a spot in between Four Seasons Singapore, St Regis Singapore, and Orchard Rendezvous, the property enjoys a rather central location in the bustling area though an unsheltered way to the nearest mall.

Price – 41,000 points booked for a Standard King using 35k Free Night Award + top up of 6,000 points which honestly is such a steal for an EDITION even as I need to pay extra for breakfast.

Prior to arrival – I reached out to the property to clarify the benefits for a Titanium member as its one of those Bonvoy properties that don’t fully accord the tier benefits and below is the response for clarity.

4 days before my stay, I received the actual pre-arrival email from the same staff:

A day prior to arrival, I received an email informing that the pool would be unusable due to maintenance during my stay and the property can arrange vehicular transfers for in-house guests to use the pool at St. Regis next door if necessary. While the offered alternative was appreciated, the email was only sent after the cancellation dateline has passed, and I felt that knowing this earlier would have enabled guests to postpone their stay if that was an important enough factor. If it was an urgent matter, it would have been better if the email had included an offer to a reschedule as well.

On the day itself, I could see that I had been upgraded to a Garden Premier with a Garden View, which I see that it meant a 3-tier upgrade – cool! I was also surprised to see an in-app notification informing that my room is ready at 10:30am, though of course I wasn’t able to make it at that time.

Check In – closer to 12:30pm, I arrived at the hotel and assisted at the drop off driveway. After seeing so many pictures of the property, I have to say the lobby / public areas are actually really photogenic!

The public areas include the Lobby Bar which came with an instantaneously recognizable pink alcohol wall.

Check in happens in a corner of the hotel lobby, with 2 staffed counters handling check in/out and all other queries. It is a rather neat layout, though without a dedicated concierge counter, this spot can see a queue depending on the time of the day.

A welcome drink (pink non-alcoholic something) was presented to me during check in and I was escorted to my room after being handed the quite-cool key cards.

While nothing was really wrong, I thought there were a few ways which the check-in process can be improved for a true luxury hotel experience:

• the staff asked me if I wanted a late check out even after I’ve marked it as so for 4pm during the in-app check in process. To be fair, it’s not the first time this happened to me but nonetheless a bewildering misstep for a luxury property.
• it would have been nice if the staff explained what the welcome drink was instead of me guessing if its guava something.
• I was also not offered any info about breakfast until I asked – I thought basic info could have been proactively offered on a printed sheet especially when they are fully aware that Bonvoy elites don’t enjoy complimentary breakfast at the brand so knowing the price(s) will come in handy.

Room – I ended up liking my Garden Premier King (38SqM), Room 437, better than I thought I would! I mean, just based on pics, I had imagined the space to be rather … muji-ish. But I’m not sure how they managed to present a fancier interpretation of a minimalist theme but whatever it is, it worked!

Because of the minimalist design, the space feels larger than it is and starts with a large panel of walls to the left of the hallway as you enter – this is where you’ll find the separate closet (bathrobes + slippers) and wardrobe space (hangers, hairdryer, safe).

And I finally found a new bathrobe winner, beating ICRQ’s. These robes are so luscious (it has to be at $180++ a pop) – how have I not heard of this fancy brand called La Bottega before?

The mini bar area is well stocked and looks equally fancy with prices to match I’m sure though I didn’t check out the exact prices.

The bedroom is a generous square of white/beige washed tones with a huge comfy king bed but missing the signature fluffy / furry(?) throw on the bed.

The bedside tables are spacious and comes equipped with lighting, shutters, and blind controls, all of which are intuitive and a no-brainer to use.

In the corners are a surprisingly relaxing solo chair + ottoman and a dining table + chairs + wall-mounted TV which swivels out to be angled for in-bed TV-ing when need be. On the TV is my elite welcome gift – kaya donuts accompanied by a welcome note.

I also very much loved the bathroom – thoroughly spacious and fitted with classy brass finishings, with the double sinks spread out the entire length. Toiletries are La Labo’s specially curated ones for EDITION hotels – they are super nice! The tissue box and the amenity box can be found on the lower deck of this space but feel free to move them up where necessary.

The shower area is also decked out in a similar color tone and has so much space that it could fit a second tub! The bathtub fills pretty quickly, although I wish the water pressure from the rainshower is stronger for a better shower experience.

The toilet is in its separate space and super spacious for whatever it is for stuff people do in toilets. And yes, the toilet peeps will be pleased to know that it comes with bidet functions.

The ‘garden view’ that came with my room

Room Service – I don’t do this very often but I feel I have to give a shout to the room service menu because the prices are actually quite decent and I would actually give it a try (if there is a) next time!

The food menu with prices:

The drinks menu with prices:

Turndown service here, other than the usual clearing of trash and placement of water by the bedside, meant housekeeping will remove the thinnish throw and replace it with a proper duvet.

Breakfast – served at Fysh at EDITION from 6:30am-10:30am, the space was invitingly peaceful at 7am on a Sunday and I had this gorgeous space (and the undivided attention of the staff) all to myself for a good hour!

Breakfast is semi-buffet style and costs $59++ per pax (breakfast table + main dish) or $40++ per pax (just the breakfast table). Their signature dishes looked like something I don’t mind trying!

After perusing the breakfast table however, I decided that it was plenty enough for me – a smallish but quality spread of morning options including a delicious mezze selection.

I must have looked very forlorn eating alone however, as not long after, Theo came along and offered to make me their Egg Royale at no extra costs. Yay. My 2-hour breakfast affair here was accompanied 2 cups of pleasantly strong coffee which always rock.

Facilities – Level 2 houses the property’s spa and fitness centre and has the most zen entrance where I was welcomed by the staff and walked through the facilities available.

The very new gym which still has the new rubber smell to it. The space is very well equipped and comes with a separate space for what the staff said would be fitness classes to be launched. Also, rower alert!

Because this was a super chillax staycay, I spent some time using their rather cosy wet facilities space which is available for all in-house guests even without a spa treatment. I tried the steam room (barely hot), a sauna, an ice bath (so fun!), an experience shower (cold waters everywhere!), and the looks-fancy-but -lukewarm whirlpool. Not the biggest space though so best to attempt usage during off-peak hours.

Part of this facility includes a relaxation room where 4 solo couches sit separated by sheer blinds – there is also water and simple snacks in one corner

Then I spotted a Dyson in the locker room! Why is this not in the room I wonder?

Finally, the property also has a Rooftop Bar located on level R and looks surprisingly simple. Perhaps its meant to be a mere sidekick to the supposedly photogenic rooftop pool (which I didn’t get pics of since it was not in operation).

Service – Best service during my stay happened during breakfast at Fysh while the rest of my experience felt just okay – perhaps it’s me but I expected to be a little more wow-ed by an EDITION (why is the name in caps anyway). Nothing bad but nothing spectacular at the same time.

To their credit, the property did end up offering me a goodwill compensation of $10,000 points after I gave feedback about the last pool maintenance notice – a generous gesture which I appreciated.

Lastly, I also encountered an inconsiderate act by some self-entitled pax who apparently thought that they would dirty my doorway with their trash instead of soiling their own. Seriously??! I saw it when I left my room for breakfast at 7am and it was strangely enough still not cleared when I returned to my room at 9am – a quick visit to the front desk was met with a wait but I bumped into Theo from Fysh (poor guy haha) and he said he will get someone to clear it which was sorted eventually.

Check Out – seamlessly done at 3pm on a Sunday with payment only required for my breakfast and my folio emailed to me even before I left the property.

In summary,

what a great way to knock off my 35K FNA – a quick check saw the cash rate for the same room type would cost me over SGD1,000. Gulp.

Currently unsure if I would revisit the brand but never say never!