Waiting for Travel: The Staycation Plan for the rest of 2021

With Singapore well on track to fully vaccinate 80% of its population by September, the prospect of SHN-free travel in Q4 is tantalizingly close (who needs the ATB?). In fact, we recently received word about eight countries (including Canada, South Korea and Switzerland) that will be first in line for eased restrictions, with more to come hopefully. 

In the meantime, however, staycations will continue to be the primary way of staving off cabin fever. Since Phase 2 kicked off in July 2020, I’ve stayed at 25 different hotels, running the gamut from the Raffles (where everyone knows your name) to a Hotel 81 (where no one does, and that’s just fine).

Here’s what I have lined up for the rest of 2021. 

August

Goodwood Park Hotel

Yes, the Goodwood Park Hotel’s older than Cher, but I’m rather chuffed about the deal I scored. Last weekend, Trip.com was running a special on this hotel, with a one-night stay in a Deluxe Premier Room going for S$218 nett, inclusive of S$99 F&B credits.

To sweeten the deal, you could take S$56 off the price with DBS/UOB coupons, and there were even certain dates which threw in breakfast as well. After all the discounts, I ended up paying just S$153.60 nett- pretty sensational, if you don’t mind me saying. 

I’m hoping that Goodwood Park turns out to be more Raffles Hotel lite and less Villa Samadhi plus, and for what it’s worth, the Deluxe Premier Room I booked was supposedly refurbished in 2021. 

PARKROYAL COLLECTION Marina Bay

Remember how the National Day parade was unexpectedly moved to 21 August? That news broke rather late on a Thursday night, and the next few hours were a feeding frenzy as everyone rushed to book rooms before hotels could re-block their inventory. 

In the ensuing melee, I managed to secure a bay-facing club room at the PARKROYAL COLLECTION Marina Bay on NDP night for just S$458 nett, which is pretty much the regular weekend rate. This skyrocketed to the four figure range shortly after, and I gather that others managed to score similar deals at hotels around the bay area. 

Although the PARKROYAL COLLECTION Marina Bay isn’t quite as close to the floating platform as the Mandarin Oriental or Ritz-Carlton (which is closed for SHNs anyway), it should still provide a good enough vantage point to catch the festivities and fireworks. 

While Matthew’s already reviewed the newly-renovated PARKROYAL COLLECTION Marina Bay, I’m eager to experience the property for myself. With the hotel running at maximum occupancy, this will be a good opportunity to see how it performs in a stress-test situation. 

Fullerton Bay Hotel

Back in July, Traveloka quietly launched a 20% off coupon for hotels as part of its NDP offerings. It didn’t last long, but I used this opportunity to lock in a stay at The Fullerton Bay Hotel for S$480 nett, inclusive of breakfast, S$50 F&B credit, late check-out and a room upgrade. 

Since I’m staying in the middle of the week, I’m hoping to get upgraded to at least a Bay View Room. A Bay View Room with a jacuzzi would be sensational, although that’s probably a bridge too far. 

September

Oasia Sentosa Resort

The Oasia Sentosa Resort is set to have its soft launch on 1 September, as the successor to ill-fated Le Meridien Sentosa. This property will have 191 rooms spread across the Imbiah and Palawan wings, although only the former will be open initially. 

While I do have my concerns about this hotel (particularly regarding how much renovations were done, since the rooms look practically identical to their Le Meridien days), I’ve nonetheless gone and booked a two-night stay under the opening promotion for AMEX Platinum cardholders. For S$688 nett, I get two nights in a 48 sqm Junior Suite, with breakfast, a complimentary spa treatment, and a one-way limo transfer.

If you’re not an AMEX Platinum member (and in any case, this rate seems to have been fully booked), you may still be able to find a S$588 nett Oasian Escape package with similar inclusions, just that it’s two nights in a 40 sqm Premier Room instead. 

Ritz-Carlton Millenia Singapore

I was originally supposed to stay at the Ritz-Carlton in August, but the hotel further extended its SHN stint and is now only accepting stays from 4 September onwards. So I rebooked myself to mid September, and the main question is whether to pay S$275++ (S$324 nett) for a regular room or S$525++ (S$618 nett) for a club room (these are Healthcare Hero rates using the HJH code- bookable by virtue of The Milelioness). 

On the one hand, I know the club is the main point of a Ritz-Carlton stay, on the other, I find it difficult to pay S$294 for the privilege. Yes, there’s supposedly good food and wine and great service, but S$294 is practically the cost of another staycation.

I’ll ruminate on this further, but if you know a compelling reason to opt for one over the other do let me know. 

November

JW Marriott South Beach

I’ve been eyeing the JW Marriott for a while now, but the hotel’s been in and out of the SHN program, making it hard to plan. Its latest SHN stint is set to end on 3 November 2021, although there’s no guarantee that won’t be further extended. 

Earlier this year, this hotel was offering 3 nights for S$660 nett, inclusive of breakfast and a US$100 hotel credit. I doubt I’ll want to stay that long, but I still fancy the possibility of landing a sub-S$300 rate on a weekday. Unfortunately, I’m no longer a Marriott Platinum, so I’ll need to look at HoteLux rates in order to score some benefits. 

December

Westin Singapore

I’ve stayed at the Westin Singapore before, but The Milelioness hasn’t- and she really wants to, so that settles that. 

The Westin reopened for staycations in December 2020, but subsequently returned to doing SHNs only in May this year. As it stands, they’re set to reopen for leisure bookings from 5 December, and I’m hoping they’ll run some reopening specials again.

Last year we saw a S$250 nett deal for a one-night stay with S$100 of F&B credits. This was even more of a no-brainer if you were a Platinum member or higher, since you’d get free breakfast too. It’s a similar story here as with the JW Marriott- since I’m effectively status-less, I’ll have to book via HoteLux if I want to score some perks. 

Hopefully by end 2021

Regent Singapore

Ah, the Regent Singapore. Back in June 2020, they ran an excellent sale on staycation vouchers, with one package going for S$330 nett inclusive of a Regent Club Premium Room and S$288 of F&B credit (turns out they forgot to add the ++, but honored it anyway). 

Vouchers were valid for 12 months initially, but the hotel’s been on de-facto permanent SHN ever since. The vouchers were therefore extended till the end of 2021, and I’m really hoping they don’t have to do a second extension. 

I know the Regent’s an old hotel, but I’m hoping their excellent F&B and service can make up for it. A pre-COVID review makes me hopeful, but we’ll have to see. 

Conclusion

Are there other hotels on my to-do list? Certainly, but I just don’t see how some of them will happen. 

The Hotel Indigo and InterContinental Robertson Quay have been doing SHNs since time immemorial, the Capella Hotel continues to command astronomical rates, and I feel disinclined to burn Bonvoy points for the St Regis since I’d have squat-all benefits. 

I suppose there’s always the possibility of a Fragrance/Hotel 81 showdown…

Are there any other Singapore hotels you’d like to see reviewed?