StarwoodGuy: Around the World With Starwood Hotels in 30 Days - Days 7 and 8 Sheraton Hotel and Towers Singapore

The Bali airport was another amazing transformation from my last visit to the island. When I had been to Bali previously it was a small, hot and dingy airport but that had almost been part of the fun. Now it was still quite warm, but there were amazing shops throughout the brand new modern terminal with Gucci and Prada next to a Starbucks. There was a large shared lounge for several airlines which I worked in for a few hours having quite a late flight out. A thunderstorm rolled in prior to take off and the lounge had a little leakage issue from the ceiling, but this was very familiar to me having seen large storms at the airport in Puerto Vallarta. The lounge was good but typical of a shared lounge, nothing outstanding, but the food consisting of mini sandwiches, crackers and cheese, as well as Indonesian chicken fried rice was good. The lack of AC was not great but there was self-serve wine and beer along with working wifi so it did the trick. My flight was on KLM. It was in their new Business Class, a 2 - 3 - 2 configuration on a 777 service that flies Bali to Singapore and then carries right on to Amsterdam. My mother taught me if you do not have anything nice to say do not say anything at all, but since I am blogging about travel…it was pretty bad. Many years ago I had a few terrible experiences on Lufthansa (a great deal of attitude even when paying for First or Business Class) but apparently this has changed with many reviews saying there has been large improvements. It may have been that on this KLM flight we were the short leg before the long stretch to come, but either way, the staff was cold and almost abrasive in comparison to the Cathay or JAL attendants, much more in keeping with what I am accustomed to on some US carriers. It was almost as though they were doing us a favor by being on the plane. The new pods already seemed dated and were not as good as the JAL or Cathay ones, but I was fortunate that my three seats in the middle of Business were shared with a great Dutch/Singaporean couple and we chatted for most of our two hour flight. The food was pretty terrible, I opted for chicken which was very chewy and fatty (I would hate to see their economy offerings). They did hand out very basic amenity kits and after a few drinks and some compliments in their direction we managed to get the flight attendants to warm up a little.

Upon arrival in Singapore there was no APEC lane but the airport was empty and I sped through immigration and customs. I grabbed an Uber which arrived promptly, a wonderful 5 Series BMW, and within twenty-five minutes I was at the Sheraton Hotel and Towers in the heart of Singapore. I had not been given an upgrade by app and now at midnight I did not get one ether, nor did I ask. My room was a standard room, adequate for my needs but it did seem sad after having lived in suites for the past few days. I went right to bed, and in the morning I went to the nice gym right off of the pool, and then had breakfast in the busy Towers Lounge. The food area was much too small to maneuver in, but the offerings and service by the three attendants was quite good, again an Asian and Western breakfast mix. The one large plus was the bathroom products which I loved the scent of, the moisturizer was the one product I decided to squish into my carry-on luggage’s mini-liquids case. Turn down service each night consisted of fruit and ice brought to the room with my robe and slippers laid out for me.

I missed out on many other things at the hotel since I have good friends who live in Singapore and they took me out for the day. I was only eight years old when I first came to Singapore, but now many years later it was amazing to see the transformation in this city-state. The country’s founding father, Lee Kuan Yew had only recently died, and there was much nostalgia and reminiscing on the miraculous vision and subsequent transformation his leadership had brought in turning a poor country into an economic leader and financial center. The master plan he laid out has seen much land reclaimed to add more space for the city and the people have been rewarded with amazing infrastructure and amenities throughout the futuristic city. The Gardens by the Bay are unlike garden complex I have even seen, an indoor and outdoor park with massive artificial trees, two domes containing different plants, and beautiful park space. The tulip festival was on with a fairy tale theme which the many kids running around loved. Right next door is the Singapore Flyer, a massive Ferris or observation wheel. There is also the impressive Marina Bay Sands Casino, with a shopping mall consisting of high end stores with an indoor skating rink, the massive hotel, and the very impressive casino. Evidently this casino is making up for losses by the parent company in other less successful markets. Singaporeans are charged to enter here in an effort to keep them from squandering their money, but tourists are encouraged to gamble, just make sure to bring your passport for entry. We stopped off for delicious satay and sugar cane juice in a traditional restaurant area before I was dropped off in the Orchard Road shopping area with more high end stores. That evening we went out to dinner on the water at a wonderful seafood restaurant. The prices are high in Singapore compared to many other Asian countries, especially the delicious crayfish we had for dinner. On the day of my departure I opted for breakfast downstairs since the lobby is beautiful with an amazing waterfall vista and as a platinum member this was included as well. After check out I jumped in a cab and headed off for the airport. I did not have a chance to see the Aquarium or the zoo, both of which are apparently just as impressive, but one thing was certain Singapore had changed immensely since my first visit but it is an amazing city with much to see and do.