Recently, I had the chance to relax in The Ritz-Carlton Millenia Singapore located at Marina Bay. It was a one-night stay (sadly) but it really blew me away. Initially I was rather hesitant to do a proper review of The Ritz-Carlton Millenia Singapore but my stay there was so good that I just had to do a review of the hotel.
Introduction
The Ritz-Carlton Millenia Singapore is situated beside Marina Square in the Marina Bay district. If you’re arriving by MRT, Promenade would be the closest station followed by Esplanade. Both of these are on the Circle Line while Promenade can be accessed by the Downtown Line as well. If you’re driving, parking is complimentary for in-house guests.
Although the Ritz-Carlton is under the Marriott group, having Marriott Rewards/Starwood Preferred Guest/Ritz-Carlton Rewards Elite Status will not get you any benefits at this hotel as it does not participate in the program.
Check In
I arrived at The Ritz-Carlton by public transport and accessed the hotel via the side door which was on the walkway between Marina Square and Millenia Walk. To get to the check-in desk, you had to walk past their restaurant Colony and the mouth-watering pastries and desserts which were on display.
As I arrived at approximately 5 in the evening, my room was already ready for me. After the standard formalities of ID checks, I was given my key cards and off I went to the lifts.
My room rate did not come with breakfast but if you wanted to have it at Colony in the morning, it would cost you S$48++ per person per day. If you’re in the mood to splurge for a Club Lounge upgrade, this would cost you a whopping S$280++ per night for two adults.
Grand Kallang Room
My room was located on the 12th floor of the hotel. Exiting the lift, the corridor leading to the rooms are bathed in warm yellow light and were laid out with thick carpets. Access to the rooms were via RFID key cards and for the first time in my life, the key cards weren’t scratched and these made for good souvenirs for tourists and locals alike.
The room category which I was booked in was the lowest category at The Ritz-Carlton Millenia Singapore, I had booked the Deluxe Kallang but when I entered the room, I got a pleasant surprise when I realized I had been given a Grand Kallang Room instead.
The difference between a Grand Kallangย Room and a Deluxe Kallang Room is that the Grand Kallang Room features a daybed-cum-sofa while the Deluxe Kallang Room only had a sofa set. I was very thankful for the daybed as that provided a space for a quick nap without dirtying the bed.
The room itself was gorgeous, with high windows which flooded the room with natural light. Do pardon me if my photos aren’t as great as my other reviews as most of them were taken after dark and on my mobile phone.
The wardrobe area was located just beside the door and inside it hung a bathrobe and had extra pillows. The in-room safe and ironing board are located inside here as well.
As I was sleeping alone in the room, I had requested for a King Bed and man it was the most comfortable bed I have ever slept on in a hotel. The bed came with 4 pillows and of course I had to make a pillow fortress with them. Stop judging. Two small cute pillows were also available, thus bringing the total pillow count to 6.
Reading lights are available on each side of the bed and these made for excellent lighting as well to showcase the bed.
On each side of the bed were tables and what’s interesting about them is that pulling open the “drawers” revealed a universal power socket on each side of the bed, as well as light switches so that you can conveniently switch off the lights in the room. The guest telephone is also touchscreen-enabled. Cool.ย
The blinds of the room can also be controlled from the bedside.
Moving on from the bed, I was very thankful that The Ritz-Carlton Millenia still has full-sized work tables in the room, making it perfect for catching up on work or even watching Netflix while soaking in the excellent views of the Kallang Bay area.
On the desk itself was another guest phone along with another notepad. There was a LAN port available but no LAN cable was to be found in the room. But that wasn’t an issue at all as the Wi-Fi wasย blazing fast. I was hitting 200mbps for both download and upload speeds via Speedtest. I forgot to take a screenshot but you’ll have to take my word for it. A postcard and a Ritz-Carlton Spa discount voucher was also on the desk. If you wish to send the postcard back home, the Concierge will gladly do it for you.
Ahh, the joy of receiving paper letters these days.
Additional stationery in the form of an A4 writing pad as well as envelopes are located in the drawer alongside a Ritz-Carlton branded pencil. It tickled me that there was a runner’s wristband which had a little map on running routes around the vicinity.
The television in the room is a Samsung LED TV and images were crisp and bright, one issue I faced was that since it was an IPTV there were times where there would be no signal and the TV would just show an error message before “locating” the signal again. Below the TV is the mini-bar cupboard which was called an Honor Bar.
The mini-fridge is nicely hidden inside the cupboard. There are a good selection of liquor and soft drinks along with snacks available for purchase but of course they were super expensive. Four complimentary bottles of water are also provided but you could always request for more by calling Housekeeping.
I like the concept that The Ritz-Carlton Millenia uses for daily housekeeping with the Amenity Request Card. It was rather useless for me since I was only there for a night but for those who will be staying longer than a night, you can write down the extra amenities you require on the card the night before. When housekeeping cleans the room the next morning, they will simply look at the card and place the additional amenities as requested in your room.
You can request for additional toiletries, water, bathroom slippers and many more with the card. Of course you can still request for these extra amenities over the phone whenever you want them.
Inside the mini-fridge is your standard selection of soft drinks and beer. Unfortunately I forgot to take a picture of the interior but there was still space to store your own drinks if you have bought some from outside.
To be very honest, I was very disappointed to not find a Nespresso machine in the room or even better quality coffee. Having Nescafe Classic at a property such as The Ritz-Carlton Millenia doesn’t exactly scream “luxury hotel”.
Now onto my favourite part of the room, the bathroom. It was just breathtaking. I took a short nap in the bath tub because well, I could. There was also a standing shower with a rain shower if you are not a bubble bath person.
The mirror was huge and perfect for taking group selfies, the toilet has its own door and provided a peaceful sanctuary to collect your thoughts while answering the call of nature. Another bathrobe was hanging inside the bathroom as well. Four bath towels are provided alongside 2 sets of hand and face towels and these were fluffy and absorbent.
The shower pressure was excellent but a minor issue I had was with the knob to alternate between the rain shower and the normal shower head, the markings weren’t clear and it was a trial and error process to make the rain shower turn on. But that’s really me nitpicking.
Now onto the view you’ve been waiting for. *drum roll*. The bathtub.
It was actually raining when I took this shot so here’s another shot of the Kallang Bay area when it wasn’t raining. Man I’m really in love with the view.
If you so wish, there are blinds which can be lowered beside the bath tub but honestly, why would you ever lower them?
There wasn’t a shortage of toiletries in the bathroom and a small bottle of mouthwash is also provided. Shaving kits were Schick branded and Colgate toothpaste were inside the dental kits instead of the normal generic stuff. It’s really these small details which take the guest experience up a notch when it comes to bath amenities.
Shower amenities are Asprey branded and I loved the scent of them. I might have brought home a few more sets. Oops.
Hotel Amenities
After getting bored of watching the Royals getting married, I decided to check out the gym which was located in Basement 2 of the hotel together with the swimming pool. The public meeting rooms were also on this level but access to the swimming pool and gym are via key card.
The swimming pool at night is just gorgeous and it felt like you were at a resort instead of a city centre hotel. Deck chairs were plentiful and in the day there should be a manned bar.
The gym at the Ritz-Carlton Millenia Singapore is beautiful and has a good mix of machines as well as barbells. What impressed me the most was that on every machine as well as the free weights area, there is a towel and bottle of water thoughtfully placed onย each machine. If you do not wish to use their plastic water bottles, a water dispenser is also available in the gym.
I did not have breakfast in the hotel as I decided to have a breakfast wrap at McDonald’s instead but would love to try it the next time I’m back.
Concluding Thoughts
The Ritz-Carlton Millenia Singapore is definitely an excellent place to have a staycation or to put up visiting relatives or guests in. Room rates normally start above S$400++ a night for a Deluxe Kallang Room and I can certainly see why it can command such a premium. The rooms were spacious and everything inside it were maintained to a very high standard. Although the rooms were last revamped back in 2011, it certainly did not show its age.
The staff in the hotel were also very friendly, proactive, and maintained a high level of service. During check-out we were presented a small box of pralines and a handwritten note apologizing for the long wait at check-in but to be very honest we didn’t notice that the wait was long at all. The pralines were delicious by the way.
While the Kallang facing rooms provided a nice view of the surrounding area, I feel it might just be worth to splash out a bit more to get a room facing the Floating Platform, especially if you’re staying over the National Day preview weekends or even on National Day itself. If you’re planning a staycation during the Formula 1 weekend, paying that little bit more for a room facing Marina Bay might be worth it as that portion of the track just behind the Floating Platform sees plenty of action on race day.
I would definitely return to The Ritz-Carlton Millenia Singapore in the future and hopefully, I’ll get to try out the much raved about Club Lounge the next time I’m back.
The Ritz-Carlton Millenia Singapore
7 Raffles Avenue
Singapore,ย 039799ย Singapore
Tel: +6563378888
Matthew paid for his stay at The Ritz-Carlton Millenia Singapore
