Hotel Review: Marina Mandarin Singapore by Meritus Staycation | Thirty Years on, still a charm

Posted on July 16, 2017 by theRantingPanda in Hotel Review

The Place Located at the Marina Bay vicinity, Marina Mandarin Singapore has been around since the late 1980s. Opened as part of the Marina Square project, which saw two other hotels opening then too, Pan Pacific Singapore and Mandarin Oriental Singapore. With the bay area having evolved much over the last 3 decades, Marina Mandarin Singapore has very much been able to kept itself relevant and yet retain some of its 80s features including the ever-popular Peach Blossoms restaurant. The song birds hang around the corridors of the hotel, giving guests their much needed tranquillity from the busy urban city.

With 575 rooms located across the 21-storey building, check-ins are done at the main lobby located on the third floor of the hotel, to which we were unfortunately attended to by a single available counter, resulting in a rather long waiting time. Having said that, the service crews were all ready to attend to all guests with their utmost attention, and we were all set to check into our room.

The Room Located at the top 2 floors of the hotel, the club rooms give guests exclusive access to the Meritus Club Lounge. The Meritus Club Marina Bay View Room boasts a splendid view of the Marina Bay area. We also have some of the best top-down view of the hotel’s architecture from the top floors.

Spotting a modern dark-wood look, the room takes on a more business hotel vibe catering to its main clientele. A spacious 32sqm size room, with a small balcony for you to get some fresh air, you can enjoy this view while sipping coffee from the in-room Nespresso coffee maker.

Another feature of the rooms here is the smartphone available for all its guests, where you can explore the city with unlimited 4G data and make both local and international calls readily!

The shower room comes with both bathtub and standing showers, and most importantly, comes stock with L’Occitane en Provence toiletries.

The Facilities You get your fitness centre and swimming pool here at Marina Mandarin. Perhaps the only qualms will be the slightly dated swimming pool here, although from the pool, you do get a sweeping view of the city skyline and well, it is a natural mineral water-filled pool – if that matters to you.

For Club Access, the Meritus Club Lounge serves up a decent spread during the evening cocktail hours, which include Mumm Champagne.

The Restaurants Food-wise, there’s really nothing you can rant about here. Selections includes the ever-popular Peach Blossoms, to the family favourite halal-certified buffet restaurant, Aquamarine. Breakfast during the stay will be served at Aquamarine, and you can expect a good spread and decent offering. For Club Room guests, there is the option of having your breakfast at the Meritus Club Lounge, which is definitely a more private and quite space to enjoy your breakfast.

Another popular restaurant here is the US steakhouse chain, Ruth’s Chris Prime Steak. We have unfortunately not managed to give this restaurant a review yet, but if you have been to Morton’s The Steakhouse, this is perhaps its biggest competitor for the USDA Prime Steak served here in Singapore.

Rants The property hit the right notes on many fronts, but failed to meet the expectations from its seemingly overcrowded buffet breakfast at Aquamarine, and the aging swimming pool. Of course, the former will be a way easier issue to manage and they should.

Overall Experience Been to the hotel on many occasions, and this being our first stay. We were pleasantly surprised that the property has held itself well despite the almost three decades of operations and amidst the steep competition in the vicinity. Its top-notch and centralised location, coupled with its proximity to the Esplanade MRT Station is another plus for locals and tourists.