I really love boutique hotels! Not only they are affordable and cozy, but also they have their own unique features and characteristics.
Up till now, my top favorite is KēsaHouse. It’s cutely located at a vibrant corner of Keong Saik road! Really nice area with countless varieties of food and bars. If you have not read my review on them, feel free to do so!
One other thing I adore about boutique hotels is that most of them are built within a repurposed, heritage building. Just like the next one we’re going to review today! I’m a history geek so this property really excites me.
The Great Madras, Singapore
Come to think about it, this review was close to not happening. After I made a booking for my stay, I realised that all their social media accounts were deactivated! Even their Instagram account is empty.
At this day and age, it’s really rare (and weird!) for someone to not have an Instagram account, let alone a hotel, managed by a well-known brand. Even my calls to the front desk was left ignored when I had doubts. Due to the pandemic, it’s really not a surprise if a hotel suddenly shut its doors and that’s what I thought had happened.
Apparently the hotel is still welcoming guests but due to a change in management, things are turning out a bit confusing at the moment but I’m glad the name stays! It has this dominating, elegant-antique feel to it.
CHECK-IN
The Great Madras hotel is located very near to Little India MRT. If you plan on getting here by train, it’s only a 10-minute walk. It’s surrounded by little convenience stores and a huge mall, so efficiency is a major factor here. The hotel comprises of only 35 rooms! It might be small, but definitely full of life and history.
At the entrance of the hotel is an educational, historical panel that tells you some facts about the heritage building that the hotel is built in. I tried finding photos of The Great Madras back in the olden days, but can’t seem to find any good ones.
From my research, the hotel was initially built as a housing building for the citizens back in 1940. It took a total of two years to revamp the old building to what you see now, a trendy-retro themed hotel. The exterior facade of the hotel is largely preserved so if you were to compare the old and current photo, there is literally no difference. It’s a great homage to the olden days, I’m glad they made the whole structure as original as it can be. It’s really heartwarming to see old buildings being brought back to life in its original state but with a new purpose.
The spiral stairs that we always see in old shophouses are also restored and preserved here. It’s out-of-bounds for guests to use when I was there, although I’m unsure whether it’s because of the pandemic restrictions or safety reasons.
The hotel lobby is really breathtaking and spectacular too. Other than going to museums, I have never really immersed myself into anything as nostalgic as this.
It’s really beautiful and antique, from the wallpaper to the furnitures. The check-in area has an open concept, it felt very airy and welcoming. Perfect vibe!
Old movie seats from the 1960s are also preserved and displayed here!
A mini library with children books is available in the lobby too! It’s decorated with the cutest little grandfather clocks on the shelves, they may look old and antique but they are still working fine. Tired-looking but full of energy! Yup, definitely sounds like me!
The books they have here really made me miss my childhood. I remember reading a similar one when I was little; it was about a little boy eating peanut butter sandwiches non-stop and guess what? I ate peanut butter non-stop then for a week! I’m not sure how they managed to retrieve all these old story books that I used to read back when I was still in kindergarten but I’m living for it! Do you find them familiar too?!
A barbershop is also seen just beside the lobby. I’m unsure why it’s even there to be honest? It just seems out of place to me but I figure, it’s to celebrate and magnify the culture of the area that is used to be super bustling with barbers and shophouses. The price for a basic, traditional cut is $30 but it’s closed now due to the pandemic.
The iconic swimming pool is located on the second level. Nothing too extravagant, the pool is not as big as the usual ones. If you’re training for the olympics, this is definitely not for you. I love how retro the whole pool area is! But then again, due to the pandemic, the pool is now closed until further notice.
ROOM
Being in this hotel makes me feel like I’m on a movie set. It’s so surreal! The neon signs really adds a lot of character to the whole hallway! Even though the corridor to the room seemed very dark and gloomy, it was somehow really captivating too. It’s like I’m on a horror show, but I know my character will still be alive till the end!
The hotel double-upgraded me to the highest room category that they have, The Great Suite.
Honestly to me, it should called The Okay-leh Suite.
It was neither that great nor bad to me. I definitely felt that the room is a bit dated and musky but I’m totally fine with that. Working all my life in heritage buildings and museums somehow makes me immunised from all of that.
I personally prefer a wide spacious area for a room but I’ve never been in an elongated, rectangular guest room before so this was something peculiar to me. Bed was alright for me, though the pillows were too soft for my liking! But I had no expectations before coming so I wasn’t really disappointed.
A work table with the amenities, like water bottles and a kettle is probably the first thing you’ll see when you enter the room. Having the room of the highest category, it’s a little sad that not even a packet of coffee or tea is provided. So I guess the kettle is to boil.. plain water?
What the hotel isn’t stingy with.. is the power plugs and USB ports. You know how much I love USB ports! I have too many gadgets on me that one head charger isn’t enough.
Not only they have 6 ports near to the television but there is 4 more near to the bed’s headboard! It’s really efficient to have those near to the bed cause I need my phone literally beside me all the time.
One feature that I find interesting in this room category is the huge, gigantic bathtub right behind the bed. I swear it can fit 5 adults in that tub, or 10 kids. I might be exaggerating but who knows?!
Separated by a tiled-half wall, you don’t have to worry about splashing water to the bed. Remember. You are not here to train for the olympics!
I think the mirror in front of the bathtub is a cool idea too. Really instagram-worthy but sadly, I didn’t take a bath this time so no swimming selfie from me!
BATHROOM
Allow me to remind you that toiletries are not provided in the room which is.. weird. Since the hotel is surrounded with little grocery stores, I decided to get mine from there. I would appreciate if the hotel were to tell me earlier in advanced so I can bring my favourite ones from home.
The most important thing.. bidet! Beat it! Bidet! Beat it!
Yes, bidet is available here and that is enough to make me and my bum bum happy.
While toothbrushes and bath caps (?) are provided; amenities like slippers, bathrobes are not. It’s contradicting to me because the photos they used in their official website showed that the room had all these basic hotel amenities. False-advertising much? This is why I rather go to Instagram pages so I can see recent updates and photos that are uploaded by the guests themselves. It’s a shame they put their social media accounts on hiatus. They really should start hiring someone to get it started! I don’t mind doing it for free. Heck, I’m literally doing free publicity for everything anyways.
If you’d ask me to give a rating of The Great Madras, I think I would give a three out of five. The hotel really has great potential! Despite being in the middle of nowhere, I believe the property has enough flair and poise to retain its reputation. It’s beautiful, inside and out. Architecture? Good! Interior design? Goood! Affordable? Goood!
The hotel is now managed by HOTEL CALMO, which is another boutique hotel in Bugis I believe. I have not been there so I can’t comment or elaborate about their culture of service yet, but I think it’s great that another management is continuing the legacy of this heritage building, rather than leaving it to dilapidate.
If you love trying something new like me, I, for sure recommend you to book a stay here! However, do try to book the highest room category cause I’ve heard from friends that the other room categories are insanely small and stuffy. I wouldn’t want that for you! You deserve the best.
To my friends and blog readers that have stayed in this hotel before, I appreciate all the reviews that you shared! I really feel that it’s amazing that we are exchanging thoughts and tips of the hotels that we stayed in. It gives me wonderful insights and what to expect before checking in! Vice versa. These kind of beneficial interactions really, is what I have been wanting to achieve when I first started blogging. Just one of the many ways to get the hotel industry up and running again! Like what I always say, we are stronger.. together.
Much love,
Aliff Daniel
Aliff Daniel 