Grand Hyatt, Singapore (Hotel Review)

Orchard Road is one of the busiest street in Singapore, so it isn’t a surprise that one of the iconic hotels is located here on the chaotic, shopping district.

Due to the pandemic, many branded hotels are limiting the amount of room reservations so I’m pretty glad that the next hotel I’m going to has its doors open wide, with strict pandemic restrictions of course!

GRAND HYATT, SINGAPORE

I’m sure most of us know of this hotel, particularly famous for StraitsKitchen, their halal buffet restaurant which I’ve been to; and had the greatest time of my life with my family.

Built in 1971, Grand Hyatt Singapore is definitely one of the iconic long-standing hotel in our tiny little island. The external facade of the property definitely looks dated and old but the interior is interestingly new and modern. The lobby is massive and spacious, well-lit with natural lighting through the glass doors. The check-in area is located further behind and has a slightly different setting than the lobby. It has a calming warm, dim-lit atmosphere. Somewhat romantic too, almost. The decor has a Japanese touch to it. I’m unsure what vibe they are aiming for but it’s aesthetically pleasing.

CHECK-IN

Prior to my arrival, I left my cards and wallet in my office so I literally had nothing on me. I called the front desk and asked if I could bring my passport instead for the check-in process but guess what? My passport expired, so it’s literally now a useless, 555 notebook.

But thanks to technology, our ICs are now inside our SingPass app! If you’re using an iPhone too, I’d recommend storing all your cards through Apple Pay because wow, that definitely helped the check-in process. I think they have the same thing for androids too but I’m unsure about those.

Despite my own clumsiness, check-in was really smooth. I was served by a front desk staff named Karen. She was not only polite, but bubbly and welcoming. Definitely not like those other Karens, if you know what I mean.

She laughed at my unfunny jokes, and that really meant a lot because I’m not funny! Plus, laughing along with a guest is indeed a skill that is really hard to grasp. So props to Karen!

ROOM

The room that was booked is king Bed Deluxe but one thing for sure, calling it a room is an understatement. It was more of a junior suite. What greeted us when opened the door was the living space; furnished with a work table, a sofa and a 42-inch flatscreen television. Very spacious, it’s ideal to entertain any more guests if you have. This time, I brought my siblings along! So the space is really enough for all of us.

Television wasn’t a smart TV, unlike the ones that most branded hotels are using. I have my HDMI cable with me all the time so this really isn’t a problem at the moment.

The usual morning-amenities are also provided in the living space; coffee packets, tea packets, sugar and creamer etc.

Nowadays, upscale hotels are using coffee machines in the rooms mostly from Nespresso but not for Grand Hyatt. It’s a little disappointing coming from a 5-star, high-end branded hotel. I’m not sure about you but not only using kettle for your coffee or tea is a hassle, it also isn’t really hygienic considering you share it with.. thousands of people before you. Also, you don’t really know what the previous guests use the kettle for! Have you heard the viral news about a guest boiling their panties in the hotel’s kettle? DISGUSTENG.

Separated by an opaque sliding door, the first thing you’ll see in the bedroom area is the comfy king-sized bed, complete with goose down pillows which I really love for its comfort and softness.

A 42-inch flatscreen television is also in the bedroom facing the bed, amounting to two televisions in the whole junior suite. Which is really unheard of when you book standard guest rooms in any hotels in Singapore. Not only that, some new hotels are now decreasing the room size. Just like our housing, even hotel rooms now are getting smaller but not here in Grand Hyatt! When I say I need space, this is it. Literally.

Here in the bedroom space, clothing amenities are provided as well. In the closet, there’s hangers and most importantly an iron together with its ironing board. Really ideal if you got work the next morning! Practically me, all the time. Bathrobes and slippers are also provided, for your efficiency.

BATHROOM

Just by the closet, is a sliding door which leads you to the enjoined bathroom. Like I said before, the whole vibe of the suite is, space, space and space. By that I mean, the bathroom is huge!

Equipped with all the necessities, the bathroom is separated into four closed-door sections; the shower area, the toilet area, the bathtub area and last but definitely not the very least, the vanity space. If you’re asking me about you know what, yes! There’s a bidet in the toilet. Really important!

Also, I really love how the whole bathroom is designed with marbles from top to the bottom, from side to side. It definitely adds up to the grandeur of the whole area. Just beautiful!

The bathroom amenities are made by Balmain, which is surprising to me! I vaguely remember that their amenities was from a different, less-known brand before. Definitely glad that they changed it cause this one smells absolutely amazing.

IN-ROOM DINING MENU

Prior to all my hotel stays, I’ll usually email the hotel about the menu that they offer for in-room dining. Sadly, what they sent me was really different than what was available during my stay. But you know what? In this weird, uncertain time because of the global pandemic, I do actually understand the importance of scaling down the food menu to avoid wastage. Although, I would also appreciate for them to send me an updated scaled-down menu instead of the old one because my expectations of the service definitely changed after that.

I think I’ve mentioned before about how I love ordering food in, because not only it is efficient but, you can judge and review the hotel service too just by observing the process and of course, the taste and presentation of the food.

For breakfast, my brother and I ordered the American Breakfast set which goes at $40 before the usual extra charges.

While some may say the price is steep, don’t fret because it’s very worthy of the price. For $40, the service staff will come by to your room with the fully-equipped food trolley that has a food warmer attached underneath it. Not only there’s different variety of food on the trolly, but your food will arrive still hot and toasty.

The food presentation? Appealing. The taste? Perfection. Expectations? Exceeded. Hotel? Trivago.

CHECK-OUT

I usually do my reviews on a weekday and it’s absolutely great that way, considering the occupancy of the hotels are usually low. Hence, you can actually get the perks out of it which this time, it’s the late check-out timing for me.

I normally do not ask for late check-out timings but my siblings and I were having so much fun in our room, it’s pretty hard to say goodbye!

Our stay was genuinely a great one. Not perfect, but great definitely. Many things for the hotel to improve om but of course, they are not the worst I’ve experienced.

Will I recommend this hotel to you? One-hundred percent! The room is massive, I’m still confused as to whether they categorize it as their standard rooms or suite. I’ll suggest you to call them up and ask before booking to avoid disappointments. It’s really a huge property with enormous rooms to accommodate your family if you need to. Do remember though, only 3 guests are allowed to stay overnight.

Looking forward to share with you where #AliffStays next! Again, if you have any hotels that you want me to review prior to your stay, don’t be shy to say hi.

See you soon!

Aliff Daniel.