Trip Report: The Westin Singapore

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I recently redeemed 12,000 SPG points for one night at The Westin Singapore. It was my only night in Singapore, and I had wanted to stay at the Marina Bay Sands to enjoy their infinity pool on the 57th floor.

As it turns out, a night there in mid-January costs about $400, but in my search for other options, I found that The Westin Singapore also has an infinity pool (not quite so) high above the city.

The Westin isn’t cheap either at 12,000 SPG points for one night, but I thought it would be a special treat, and Singapore is expensive for lodging, so I bit the bullet and booked The Westin Singapore.

We arrived at Singapore Airport at 1 PM and took an Uber straight to the hotel where we were accommodated with an early check in.

Check In

The hotel lobby is on the 32nd floor. When you enter the ground floor, you are put into an express elevator that has its last stop at the lobby. The lobby is a gorgeous open space with views of the city.

The agent in the Gold elite line–a status I have because it is a free perk of the AMEX Platinum–informed me that I had been upgraded to a corner Sea View room.

While we waited for the check in and to be given our room keys, we were served our choice of two refreshing welcome drinks.

The Room

We took a second set of elevators up to the 39th floor. The room is spacious and beautifully appointed. Ours featured several interesting views of construction of two new skyscrapers… …the infinity pool four floors below… …the marina and a tiny sliver of the Marina Bay Sands… …a massive lot of shipping containers, and the sea. The room had a king size bed, chair… …work station, safe, flat screen TV… …and a bathroom that featured a tub and shower with handheld and overhead shower heads. The room was stocked with two free bottles of water, which I squeezed into the tiny part of the in-room refrigerator reserved for guest use.

The Infinity Pool

The first afternoon we went straight to the pool to enjoy the views from the 35th floor rooftop.

I can’t compare it to the Marina Bay Sands infinity pool, but this was certainly the best pool I’ve ever been in. It was the highest, and had stunning views of downtown Singapore. I had a blast.
At least until the rain came, but I even stuck around swimming in that for a few minutes. We also went back the second morning and spent more time at the pool before we went to Chinatown and Little India. The pool was the highlight of the hotel. Unfortunately it is only open from 6 AM to 10 PM. The Park Plaza Bangkok’s roof top pool (review forthcoming) is open 24 hours. If they can do it, you can too, Westin Singapore. It’s not like you have a lifeguard on duty at any time, so your cost would be zero to leave the pool open all night.

The Rest of the Facilities

Just outside the pool entrance is the entrance to the spa and to the gym, which features several cardio machines that overlook the sea.

In the lobby were two computers attached to a printer where I printed boarding passes, my Vietnam visa on arrival letter, and my Indian visa confirmation for free.

The Elite Experience

As a Gold member, I was allowed a late check out of 4 PM, which was perfect for my 7:25 PM flight, in addition to my early check in.

I didn’t have much contact with the staff other than check in and check out, but each time I saw one they were friendly and ready to help.

The Location

The hotel has a great location. It is just 50 meters from the Downtown stop on the Singapore metro, which can get your to Chinatown in two stops or Little India in five. Or you can walk to Chinatown in 15 minutes, Boat Quay in 20, or Clark Quay in 25. The Marina Bay Sands light show is also about a 15 minute walk.

We were just a few hundred meters from the Lau Pa Sat hawker center, which the Westin’s “Experience Specialist” recommended to me when I answered her welcome email a few days before our stay with a question about the best nearby hawker centers.

I also really liked the the Downtown station of the metro connects underground to the Marina Bay Link Mall, which is a several hundred meter long underground shopping area that lets you walk most of the way from the Marina Bay Sands to Boat Quay out of the heat and rain.

The Complaints

It is a bit annoying to have to take two elevators from the street to your room with a mandatory connection in the lobby area. This only adds a few seconds to the experience, but it was my least favorite design element of the hotel.

The taxi stand at the hotel is bad. One time I didn’t order an Uber–my mistake–and tried to use it. There are no taxis waiting, so the hotel employee calls one on his app. This adds a few dollars to the fare. I asked before he called one whether I could pay with a credit card, and he said I could.

After waiting 10 minutes, the taxi showed up. I said, “Clarke Quay, and I am paying with a credit card.” When we arrived, he said his machine was broken and he hadn’t head me say that I was paying with one, which ruined my carefully made plans to leave the country with exactly zero cash. He also claimed that the guy who used an app to call for a taxi had indicated I would be paying in cash.

I don’t know how exactly to apportion the blame between the driver and the hotel, but I am annoyed at the hotel on this one.

In any case, use Uber or walk 100 meters to the taxi stand of the office building next door. Taxis wait in line for that stand, so you will get one quicker and without the charge for having called the cab.

Overall

The hotel was great for my needs–a place to spend one great night in Singapore that is close to everything and had an awesome infinity pool.