Singapore’s Peninsula Excelsior Hotel
On one of my vacations in Singapore, I stayed at Peninsula Excelsior Hotel, a member of YTC Hotels. The hotel is conveniently located at a 5-minute walk from the City Hall MRT.
My first consideration for booking a hotel is its location. While public transportation in Singapore is great and places are pretty much accessible, I wanted to minimize the travel time and the need to transfer between platforms. The hotel must also be close to the MRT station in case I’ll be buying and carrying a lot of stuff. After checking hotel reviews and evaluating the location on Google Maps, I thought that Peninsula Excelsior Hotel would be a good choice this time.
Booking Peninsula Excelsior Hotel on AsiaTravel
I booked the hotel through AsiaTravel since there was on-going promo with my Citibank Credit Card. Aside from the lower rates on travel websites (such as Agoda and Booking), paying with Citibank slashed an additional 15% off on my total bill. There are a few terms to this though, such as not being able to rebook or refund so you have to check carefully.
Getting to Peninsula Excelsior Hotel and Checking-In
To get to the hotel, take the MRT from Changi Airport and alight at City Hall MRT station. Exit at the gate closest to St. Andrews Cathedral and start walking. Peninusla Excelsior is just 1 block away, across Peninsula Plaza and right next to Funan Digital Life Mall (currently undergoing renovation).
Once inside the building, proceed directly to the 6th floor since that’s where their reception desk is. You can also find their amenities such as function rooms, the gym, and the pool on the same floor. The check-in process was really fast and didn’t take more than 5 minutes.
Staying at the Hotel
I booked the Superior room with WiFi. However, the WiFi was only for use inside the room. There wasn’t any mobile device that you could use as a hot-spot outside such as the one provided by Concorde Hotel. The room was spacious for my own use and was also clean. The view from the window was that of Funan’s renovation so it wasn’t anything good.
Your usual complimentary water and coffee. There’s also the mini-bar which you can “purchase” drinks from.
The bathroom was rather small and didn’t have a bath tub, although that isn’t much of a priority. Majority of the area was clean except for some nooks and crannies that were a bit moldy. For some reason, the bathroom was also on an elevated platform so you’d have to be careful when going in there.
Free toiletries were also provided such as the toothbrush, tooth paste, shampoo & conditioner, shower gel, hand soap, shaving set, a comb and a shower cap. A sewing kit is likewise available in the cabinet, where the bathrobes are also placed.
Overall Experience
Staying at Peninsula Excelsior hotel was nice, although not particularly astounding. I do like how they really won’t disturb you when the sign is on, unlike in Concorde Hotel. With that said, I’ll try to stay at other hotels in Singapore next time.
