On paper, Amara Singapore ticks all the right boxes. Hotel was fully revamped (or so I thought) almost a year ago, located super near to Tanjong Pagar MRT and the lobby is just fresh and stunning. But let’s get real, my stay was not smooth even before I checked in.

Before we start, let me get things straight, I’m easily impressed but at the same time, I take pride in writing whatever’s real and genuine. Everyone’s paying for their hotel stays with their hard earned money and I am here to help you make the right decision.

As I arrive to the entrance of Amara Singapore, it was not that busy. Lobby was just beautiful, decked with wood furnishes and beautiful lighting. I was with a heavy bag-pack and a big carry-on but no assistance was offered. I miss the service in Bali, where they will instantly make you feel welcome to their property. Smiles and the service is just genuine and honest.

The past weeks reviewing hotels in Singapore, and as a hotelier myself, it’s heartbreaking to say that our service standards is never up to par with our neighbouring countries.

Check-in was rather slow and while pleasant, staff was unfortunately not engaging at all. He did however, welcomed me to the property which is standard and basic for all hotels. Also, for a hotel with so many rooms, having just two or three check-in counters felt kind of strange. After discussing with his colleague on which rooms to assign, I was then given a room on the 6th floor.

At this point, nothing was shared to me about the facilities, information about the hotel which again, super weird for a 5-star property.

And then, the agony came.

I opened the door to the room they assigned me to, and I let out a deep gasp. Shocked was an understatement. I was like Woah? Am I really in a 5-star property?

I felt disgusted and so disrespected. With the amount of money guests are paying, I could not believe the hotel is actually offering this room to the public. Everything was wrong with it, it smelled wrong even.

Windows were perched up to the ceiling, making it seem like the room is sinking in the basement. Chair in the room was stained with water stains that I don’t even wanna know where it came from. Air-conditioning was leaking, it was just terrible.

If you zoom into the photo of the window, there was even construction materials being stored there. Am I supposed to build my dream hotel room myself? Well, hold on. Let me get my drill!

I instantly called the operator, and god, I have never engaged or spoke to a team that is so incompetent before. Without checking, they confirmed that the room provided is the BEST one available. It took me minutes to calm down and called them again, to speak to a manager. It was refused and I was then being told again that this deteriorated room is in fact, the best room available for me.

This couldn’t be it, it really felt like a nightmare. I didn’t came for a budget hotel, I came for a 5 star service to pamper myself. The fact that I emailed them prior to my stay and this was happening, I was so disappointed. I then called a friend whom I just remembered was working there under some department, expressed my agony and my room was subsequently changed.

Mind you, this whole process took almost two hours. Two hours to change me into a room, a room that they themselves said was not available at all. I guess it’s magic? Maybe they have Elphaba in their team?

Maybe they used the construction materials from my old room and made a whole new floor.

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The new room given to me was everything I would want and more. It was just beautiful. This is what I came for.

If you have ever been to the Crowne Plaza in Kuala Lumpur, this one looks super similar.

It was spacious, it was naturally bright and the lighting of the room makes everything more appealing.

Bed was on the hard side, but pillows were soft and comfy.

I loved how they have power sockets on both sides of the bed, really convenient.

In this room category, a coffee machine and capsules are provided.

The living area has a sofa that is great to accommodate a group of people if you have guests. The space is just amazing.

The hotel eliminates the traditional wardrobe and embraces the open-concept wardrobe instead. It looks incredible! The sink is also outside of the bathroom which is a tad different from the standard hotel layout.

The bathroom was fully clad in sleek white marble tiles, giving it a clean and modern look.

Toiletries provided is from Appelles, which is one of my favourite amenity brands in a hotel. I am so into the smell of lemongrass and vanilla, these ones are just perfect.

Like most modern hotels, an automated bidet is installed on their toilet. While I prefer the traditional “spray” bidets, I am super glad that hotels are now implementing these in Singapore now. Can we just end the debate and agree that water is cleaner than just tissues?

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The gym and pool is located on the 6th floor, where the dingy old rooms are.

The gym looks a little dilapidated but the machines are working just fine. I have been told that while other parts of the hotel are fully revamped – only the 6th floor remains untouched.

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So if you booked a stay here and is assigned a room on this miserable level, have courage and most importantly, patience to talk to their team.

Like I previously mentioned, I take pride in writing what’s real and genuine. People have this misconception that when I do reviews, hotels instantly give me the best rooms. While it partly may be true, some hotels do not care. I definitely felt bullied and disrespected for this one.

The fact that their reputation isn’t the best to begin with, through words of mouth even and I’m here to always find something great to talk about – the way everything was handled just left me dumbfounded.