Raffles Hotel Suite Treat staycation: Free second night (SRV-eligible)

It’s a testament to the legendary brand of the Raffles Hotel that even amidst an unprecedented global pandemic, it’s still able to price itself as one of the most expensive hotels in Singapore. 

That’s not to say rates haven’t come down though. Last year, we saw an incredible 1-for-1 Suite Life offer that enticed me to have my first-ever stay at the Raffles (not flawless, but still sublime). Raffles has now brought back a similar-sounding offer called Suite Treat, which is available for bookings and stays up till 30 April 2021.

I’ve received a lot of questions as to whether this is a good deal, and the short answer is “yes, but not as good as what we saw last year”. 

Here’s why. 

Raffles Hotel Suite Treat Package

A Suite Treat Package

The Raffles Suite Treat package is available for bookings and stays made between 1 February to 30 April 2021. Guests will enjoy the following benefits and inclusions:

• Complimentary 2nd night
• Breakfast for two
• S$50 credit for Raffles Boutique
• 15% off F&B, spa, boutique and floral boutique

I’m not listing other perks that are standard for all Raffles Hotel guests anyway, such as complimentary welcome Singapore Slings, the famous history tour and free parking. 

Rates start at S$950++ (S$1,118 nett) for two nights in a State Room Suite (the lead-in category), although that assumes you’re able to stay during a weekday. If you want the weekend, the rate goes up to S$1,250++ (S$1,471 nett). 

While bookings will be eligible for Accor points and elite credits (you can also redeem your points for this package; simply email the reservations team), they’re strictly non-cancellable. 

When you consider the fact that a single night at the Raffles can cost upwards of S$900, this looks like a fantastic deal. And in a way, it is. Outside of a black swan event like COVID-19, there’s no way you’d ever be able to spend the night here at this price. 

But the key question is this: how does it measure up to last year’s deal?

Suite Treat vs Suite Life

When the Raffles Hotel first reopened for staycations in July last year, it launched the Suite Life package: two nights for S$795++ (S$936 nett), with breakfast and hotel credits. 

Let’s compare that side-by-side to the current Suite Treat:

Straight off the bat, you can see that the Suite Life package was a sensational deal. In fact, it was so popular it created service issues, the likes of which had never been heard of at the Raffles. Some guests arrived early for their “guaranteed” 11 a.m check-in, only to be kept waiting till 7 p.m or later due to room unavailability. Others were asked to delay their arrival until the evening, for which they received extended check-out equal to the lost time, or 20% off the cost of the stay.

There were many unhappy campers, and Raffles eventually modified the Suite Life package to remove the guaranteed early check-in and late check-out. Instead, a bonus S$50 F&B credit was added for stays from Sunday to Wednesday, to help spread out the bookings. 

That bit of history aside, it’s clear the former Suite Life package is superior to the current Suite Treat one. It’s cheaper, there’s a room upgrade, there’s more hotel credit (and fewer restrictions about where it can be used), and you could even get guaranteed early check-in/late check-out if you booked the first iteration of the deal. 

But here’s the thing: if you’re waiting for a similar package to come around again, I don’t think you’ll ever get to stay at the Raffles. I’m of the opinion that was a one-time offer, launched amidst an unprecedented global pandemic where foreign arrivals dropped to almost zero and staycation demand was uncertain.

Seven months on, things look a bit brighter, the government’s propped up the hospitality industry, and the appetite for staycations has proved voracious. Simply put, it’s not the same buyer’s market it was last July. 

So my take is that if the Raffles Hotel is on your bucket list and you missed out on Suite Life, then Suite Treat is a decent second bite at the cherry. No point dwelling in the past. 

Can I use my SRV to book this?

While I couldn’t find the Suite Treat package on Klook or Traveloka, Trip.com does show availability. The catch is I’m only able to find Courtyard Suites, one category up from the regular State Room Suites. Maybe you’ll have better luck than me, but if not it means you’ll have to pay for a more expensive room if you want to use your SingapoRediscovers Vouchers (SRV). 

Suite Treat on Trip.com

The consolation is that you’ll be able to stack other Trip.com promo codes with your SRV to take a little more sting out of the price. The best one I’m aware of now is DBSHTL15, which knocks S$15 off the cost with DBS cards (min. spend S$100), but we’ve previously seen other flash deals for up to S$60 off. 

That barely puts a dent in a four-digit staycation but still…

Conclusion

While the Suite Treat package is nowhere near the honking good deal that Suite Life was, it’s water under the bridge by now. I’m just grateful I managed to get Raffles Hotel out of my system under the previous deal, and don’t think I’ll be going back for a very long time. 

Be sure to check out my full review of the Raffles Hotel here.