The Shangri-La Rasa Sentosa is a luxurious family-friendly stay in Singapore. Nicole Descalsota for Insider Accommodations in Singapore include everything from budget-friendly hostels to upscale resorts. Here are a local’s 10 favorite hotels and places to stay in Singapore for every kind of visitor.
Visit Insider’s hub for travel guides, tips, and recommendations. For a small island, Singapore has an impressive number of hotels. It’s also one of the world’s most expensive cities, where accommodations can easily cost thousands of dollars a night.
As a local, I’ve given friends and visitors countless hotel recommendations over the years that range from budget-friendly to all-out luxury. Before deciding where to stay in Singapore, I recommend setting a budget and picking a neighborhood where you want to be based. If you want malls, shopping, and don’t mind glitzy skyscrapers and crowds, the Orchard neighborhood is for you; whereas if you prefer stand-alone indie boutique shops and a more chilled-out vibe, you’re better off staying around the Bugis area.
If you’re someone who loves the sun, sand, and sea and wants to be away — but not too far away — from the mainland, pick Sentosa for its endless attractions and cool beach clubs. Those looking for a “self-contained” district where there’s a little bit of everything, from hip cafés serving all types of cuisine to quaint stores selling handcrafted, locally made goods, choose the Katong/Joo Chiat area. Narrowing down this list was tough, but here are my 10 favorite places to stay for every type of budget.
Hotel IndigoHotel Indigo is inspired by Peranakan culture and offers expansive views of east Singapore. Marielle Descalsota for InsiderIf you want to base yourself in the east side of Singapore (there’s a local saying that goes “East side, best side,” so good on you), look no further than Hotel Indigo. This boutique hotel is in Katong and pays homage to Peranakan culture of Straits-born people of Chinese and Malay/Indonesian heritage.
Rooms are vibrant and warm with touches of wood and intricate patterns, and the in-house Peranakan restaurant, Baba Chews, serves dishes like chili crab cakes and spare ribs marinated in kopi, a local coffee. My favorite thing about the hotel is the rooftop infinity pool, a place for relaxing and overlooking heritage buildings and bustling shops. Rucksack InnIf you’re on a tight budget when visiting Singapore, there’s a large concentration of hostels in districts like Little India, Lavender/Jalan Besar, and Chinatown, and they’re all generally very clean and well-maintained.
Of the many hostels available, I recommend checking out Rucksack Inn. You’d be hard-pressed to find more affordable rooms in Singapore: For a room with four to six beds, you can expect to pay SG$30 to $35, and private rooms that house three to six people range from SG$120 to $160. The Tyrwhitt Road location provides hair dryers and is newly renovated, so I’d probably choose to stay there.
The Great MadrasIn front of the Great Madras boutique hotel. Sam DoveyThe Great Madras is a mid-range, aesthetic-forward hotel in Little India. It gives some serious Wes Anderson vibes with its quirky interiors and bold pops of color.
Everything here is Instagram-worthy, from the bistro, which serves Halal food, to the pool. There are 35 rooms, with all-female and coed hostels on the ground floor, and private hotel rooms on the second. Spaces run a little small — the Great Suite, which comes with a bathtub, is only 20 square meters.
I recommend requesting the Courtyard Room for both a balcony and courtyard if you want more fresh air. M SocialIf you’re looking for an area with a younger crowd, the modern M Social hotel is right for you. Marielle Descalsota for InsiderOver in Robertson Quay, a little enclave along the Singapore River that’s chock-full of bars and eateries, look into M Social.
It’s a contemporary, modern, young stay with loft-style rooms, and there’s a pool and in-house restaurant, Beast & Butterflies — which serves a delicious pork-knuckle dish. Philippe Starck, a French architect and designer, did the interiors, where things get techy: Think mini robots making your eggs at breakfast and performing room-service duties. Lloyd’s InnFor a nature filled, serene stay in Singapore, look no further than Lloyd’s Inn.
Nicole Descalsota for InsiderThose who want their hotel stay to be an escape from the hustle and bustle of the city should go for Lloyd’s Inn. The minimalist boutique hotel is just off Orchard Road, so you can get some peace and quiet without sacrificing the conveniences of a prime district. Lush greenery surrounds the property and the rooms get a lot of natural light.
The outdoor pool is reminiscent of Bali (an Indonesian province), and is next to a rooftop terrace. There’s a vending machine on-site, but if you want proper hot food you’ll have to walk five minutes or less to the main Orchard/River Valley area. MET A Space PodIf privacy is your priority, there’s MET A Space Pod on Arab Street, which brought the Japanese concept of capsule-style rooms to Singapore in 2017.
As a capsule — or pod — hotel, MET A Space features small “rooms” which are arranged in rows of tiny spaces stacked on top of each other — think bunk beds but cocooned. Each room is designed to look like the inside of a spaceship, creating a simple place for you to get some shut-eye. There’s free high-speed WiFi, and each capsule comes with controls for air-conditioning and lights, has USB-charging ports and foldable tables, and most have a TV.
The Vagabond ClubThe Vagabond Club is an elegant, regal stay in the heart of Singapore’s Little India. The Vagabond Club, a Tribute Portfolio HotelSingapore’s large variety of luxury hotels will spoil bigger spenders, but to steer clear of boring, try The Vagabond Club in Little India. When I first stepped into the lobby, I was in awe.
Few colors exude royalty and opulence like red and gold put together, but throw in life-size animal sculptures (including a rhino) and six floor-to-ceiling brass banyan trees in a Parisian-style salon, and it’s a whole new level of glamor. Rooms have a sultry French look and feel, with floral details on the wall and framed pictures of everything from majestic landscapes to portraits of people (all from Satinder Garcha’s, the hotel owner’s, travels). The one unmissable highlight is the whiskey bar that houses a collection of 1,000 bottles of the spirit and hosts specially curated jazz nights, musical showcases, intimate theater sessions, and more.
The Capitol Kempinski HotelThe Capital Kempinski Hotel is the picture of luxurious Singapore lodging. Capitol Kempinski Hotel SingaporeSpeaking of theater, there’s a hotel in Singapore that actually houses one. Set in an eclectic neoclassical building in Singapore’s civic-and-cultural district, the Capitol Kempinski Hotel is as grand as it gets.
Guest rooms are classy, following the building’s colonial art-deco and Victorian aesthetics, and the property also features an outdoor saltwater-relaxation pool. There’s a signature restaurant that Alvin Leung, a British-born Michelin-starred chef and television personality, heads. The hotel also hosts the Capitol Theater, a historic cinema that citizens regarded as one of Singapore’s finest theaters in the 1930s.
Today, it’s an event space for performances, concerts, and movie screenings. Shangri-La Rasa SentosaShangri-La Rasa Sentosa is a hotel option that’s fun for the whole family. Nicole Descalsota for InsiderIf you’re traveling with little ones in tow, you can’t go wrong with Shangri-La Rasa Sentosa.
Situated on the island of Sentosa — a local resort island with many entertainment options and world-class attractions — is filled with kid-friendly amenities and facilities. With race-car simulators, art-activity rooms, waterslides, and an outdoor playground featuring 17 play sections, it’ll be hard for children to pick even one thing to do. Rooms also have kid-friendly touches such as kids’ toiletries, bath toys, beach toys, coloring supplies, and more.
Raffles HotelRaffles Hotel is a Singapore landmark, so be sure to check out the famous hotel even if you aren’t checking in. Raffles HotelI think it’s impossible to write about Singapore accommodations without mentioning Raffles Hotel. Undoubtedly the most famous hotel in the country, it’s named after Singapore’s founder, Sir Stamford Raffles, and many big names have spent nights here, from Queen Elizabeth II to Charlie Chaplin.
Showcasing neo-Renaissance architecture, Raffles Hotel is a sight to behold — even visitors who aren’t staying in the hotel should drop by to check it out for its history and aesthetics. Swing by the hotel’s Long Bar to sample the Singapore Sling, right where a bartender named Ngiam Tong Boon invented it in 1915. View Insider’s comprehensive guide to visiting Singapore.
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From: insider
URL: https://www.insider.com/where-to-stay-in-singapore-best-hotels
