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Review: Intercontinental Singapore
We arrived late to the Intercontinental after flying KLM business class from Bali. My mom was certainly surprised that we were back in Singapore. The funny thing was when we head faked my mom 5 days ago with a night at the World’s Best Airport Hotel: The Crowne Plaza Singapore Changi, it was so hot and humid she remarked, ” Oh thank heavens we aren’t staying here.” SURPRISE MOM…we’re back! LOL. I’d been to Singapore several years ago, and my dad had done business here a long time ago, but I really thought that both of them would think Singapore was really cool. We also ended up here because I wanted my folks to fly Singapore Suites and experience Singapore’s First Class check-in and Private Room. Those reviews will come soon, but it all contributed to a few days in one of my favorite cities. By the end of it…They LOVED SINGAPORE – despite the heat and humidity. We chose the Intercontinental Singapore for its location, recent renovation, and the bevy if IHG points we had. Check out our experience!
Loved the tile work in reception!
The Deets:
- When: April 2017
- Where: Singapore
- Loyalty: IHG + Ambassador
- Rate: 60k per night per room
- Upgrade: Heritage to Deluxe
- Value…$400 a night.
The Location:
As describe by the hotel:
The InterContinental® Singapore places you minutes from Marina Bay and the Central Business District, and it’s a short stroll from the National Museum, the Singapore Art Museum and other cultural institutions. Direct access to Bugis train station connects you to the city’s many shopping and entertainment precincts. You can dine on European cuisine in Ash & Elm restaurant or try Chinese dishes in Man Fu Yuan. Glimpse into Singapore’s past with the hotel’s Guided Heritage Trail walking tour.
I’ve stayed at the Grand Hyatt and The Fullerton as well..and much prefer this location to the Grand Hyatt. The Fullerton…hard to beat, but this is a great spot to stay. You’re walking distance to a great many attractions including Raffles…which is a must do.
Check In –
It was late and we arrived via blacklane. The lobby was empty and our guest relations rep was very nice, but here’s the thing: He had a TERRIBLE cold. I felt really bad for him, and in all honesty the hotel, any hotel, should have a policy that if a guest relations person is sick…they have to go home. The last thing people want to do on a trip, especially one to a far off location, is get sick. We purelled, zicammed, and anti-bacterialed everything in sight. Especially, which under normal circumstances I think is a nice touch, he accompanied us to our room. I MEAN…germy germy germmmmmmmy. The medicine bag came out that night. Luckily we didn’t get sick because that would have for sure ruined the trip.
In keeping up with the surprise theme…I’d notified the hotel ahead of time about my mom’s 75th birthday 🙂
Our Room:
We had adjoining rooms which worked pretty much the same as a suite. I asked to see a heritage room, and I believe I’d prefer to stay in the newer building. The remodel looks great. You can see from the moldings, quality of the doors, and finishes that they went for the 5star market.
The bathroom was well done and featured a soaker tub and shower with multi-heads.
The room had a solid view as well.
And on the second night a Birthday Cake was delivered.
I thought this was a very nice touch. They not only went the extra mile by providing a cake, but knew we’d be too tired on the first night to enjoy it.
The Victoria Bar has a cool vibe to it. You can have high tea there as well.
We were there only a couple days after Easter and the presentation was still on display.
I ordered food one night from Ash & Elm…here’s the weird thing
I just wanted to order a pizza to go. That’s it. No big deal, but I didn’t want to sit down etc etc.
The host told me that that was impossible.
Me: “Wait, what?”
Host: “I’m sorry, the restaurant doesn’t allow you to take food away.”
I said, “well, I’m staying in the hotel and I just want to take it to the room.”
Host, ” oh, well you can order it from room service.”
Me, ” I realize that, but I’m here right now and I don’t want to go upstairs to order, then wait, and pay a delivery fee, etc. I’d just like to order it to go.”
Host, “That can’t be done. I can place a room service order for you now, but it will have to be delivered.”
Me, ” I’ve traveled quite a bit, and this is the first place I’ve ever been to that the hotel restaurant won’t let a guest order food to go. You’re sure this is the policy?”
Host, ” I’m sorry, it’s just the policy.”
Me, ” Fair enough, one other question. If I were to sit down, not finish my pizza, and wanted to take it upstairs, do you have to go boxes? Or there’s just no ‘to-go’ available.”
Host, ” Yes, if you were to sit down and order the pizza and didn’t finish it we have to-go boxes.”
I just laughed and then ordered the pizza because I was hungry and had spent the last 15 minutes walking around the attached mall and found nothing appealing. He ended up discounting it for my trouble. Anyways…
Overall:
We were really heavy in IHG points so spending 60k a night wasn’t the end of the world for us, but 60k is a lot. Even if you were to buy these points when they’re onsale for half a cent…you’re tossing $300 a night at a room. That’s no small potatoes.
Is the hotel worth it?
It’s a very good hotel in a VERY expensive city so I understand it being priced at the top of the scale. Comparing it to say…the Grand Hyatt, at 15k points per night, off Orchard Road, I’m not sure the Intercontinental is worth the point premium. Or…an even closer comparison…the JW Marriott which is about a 5 minute walk from the Intercontinental, brand spanking new, and is 40k per night ( or 13,333 SPG – remember you can convert 3:1) and if you stay 4 nights you get the 5th free. That’s a hard choice.
We had a great time, and the hotel worked for us. If we were to go back…I think maybe we’d check out the JW Marriott. It looks to have an INSANE infinity pool overlooking the city, and with status you’d get club level. That’s hard to beat.
You don’t have to stop here. Check out how we paid $5k and took a $125k Surprise trip Around The World to celebrate my Mom’s 75th
Flights:
- Boston to Beijing
- Beijing to Singapore
- Singapore to Bali Roundtrip
- Singapore to Dubai
- Singapore Airlines First Class 777-300ER Singapore to Dubai ($4k)
- Abu Dhabi to Cannes, France
- Etihad Airways First Class Apartment A380 Abu Dhabi to London ($8k)
- Etihad Airways Business Studio A380 Abu Dhabi to London ( $3500-5k)
- British Airways Club Europe A321 London to Nice
- Cannes, France to Dallas
- Lufthansa Business Class A321 Nice to Frankfurt ($10k)
- Lufthansa First Class A330 Frankfurt to Dallas
Hotels:
- Boston
- Beijing
- JW Marriott Beijing, 1 Bedroom Suite ($450 for 5 nights)
- Club King ($250)
- Singapore
- Bali
- Singapore
- Dubai
- JW Marriott Marquis Dubai, 1 Bedroom Executive Suite ($450)
- Abu Dhabi
- Ritz Carlton Abu Dhabi ($300)
- Cannes, France
- Intercontinental Carlton Cannes, France ($300)
- Dallas
- Grand Hyatt DFW ($150
- JW Marriott Beijing, 1 Bedroom Suite ($450 for 5 nights)
Lounges
- Boston
- Hong Kong
- Beijing
- Singapore
- Bali
- Singapore
- Singapore Airlines First Class Check-In
- Singapore Airlines Business Class Lounge SIN
- Singapore Airlines First Class Lounge SIN
- Singapore Airlines Private Room SIN
- Abu Dhabi
- Etihad First Class Lounge
- Etihad Business Class Lounge
- Etihad Shave Experience
- London
- British Airways First Class Lounge LHR Terminal 5
- Nice
- Living Room Azur
- Frankfurt
- Lufthansa First Class Lounge Frankfurt Terminal A
Afternoon Tea
- Peninsula, Beijing
- Raffles, Singapore
- Burj Khalifa, Dubai
- Emirates Palace, Abu Dhabi
TIPS:
Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Welcome Offer
Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
Annual Fee
$95
Points Earned
Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards
- 5x on all travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3x on dining, including eligible delivery services for takeout & dining out
- 3x on select streaming services
- 3x on online grocery purchases
- (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
- $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit via Chase Travel℠
- The begins immediately for new cardmembers and after your account anniversary for existing cardmembers
- 2x on all other travel
- 10% Anniversary Bonus
- Every year you keep the card, your total spend will yield a 10% points bonus. If you spend $10k in a year, you’ll get 1k bonus points
- Chase Sapphire Preferred continues to redeem at 1.25c in the Chase Travel℠ and the slew of other benefits remain in tact including Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver ( primary ), purchase protections, etc.
- Points are transferrable to 14 Ultimate Rewards partners
- Redeem in Chase Travel℠ for 1.25 cents per point
- No foreign transaction fees
- Suite of Travel and Purchase Coverage
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver is my favorite
- Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2027.
- $95 Annual Fee
We keep an up to date spreadsheet that lists the best ever offers: You can find that spreadsheet here.
Historically 80k is a very, very good offer and hit in both 2022 and 2023. In 2021, we saw the offer hit an all time high of 100k. Who knows if that will ever come back.
Main Cast:
Cards that earn flexible points and should be used on the bulk of your purchases.
Supporting Cast:
Cards that earn fixed points in the currency of the airline/hotel and can not be transferred at attractive rates. These cards yield benefits that make it worth keeping, but not necessarily worth putting a lot of your everyday spend on.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® is exceptional starter card and offers transferrable Ultimate Rewards, and pairs well with other Chase cards.
If you carry this card alongside Chase’s cashback cards like the Chase Freedom Flex® and Chase Freedom Unlimited® or the business versions: Ink Business Cash® , Ink Business Unlimited® you can combine the points into Preferred account and transfer into hotel and airline partners
Annual fee is quite low at $95 a year + you get a 10% anniversary bonus on points + $50 hotel credit in Chase travel.
The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.