By Kristiano Ang
Parkroyal Hotels Resorts
The Parkroyal on Pickering
Stays explores Asia’s new and noteworthy hotels and resorts. See previous articles
Parkroyal Hotels Resorts is known more for function than style, offering comfortable, if uninspired, lodgings geared toward business travelers. For its latest outpost, however, the Asian hospitality group has taken a different tack, enlisting a hip local architecture firm to create a property that embraces Singapore’s “garden city” moniker. The result, Parkroyal on Pickering, opened early this year.
The Design: WOHA, the architecture practice behind landmarks such as Singapore’s School of the Arts, was tasked with creating a space that feels like a “garden in a city.” A wooden footbridge takes guests from the check-in area to the lift lobby, and shimmery mirrors overhead are reminiscent of reflected water. Across the hotel are dark-green carpets edged by bunches of fabric that resemble moss, and wall-mounted latticework structures akin to creeping ivy.
Visible from both inside and outside the building’s three towers are multi-story vertical gardens that span more than 15,000 square meters. On the fifth floor, colorful birdcage-like cabanas are situated around the infinity pool, which overlooks neighboring Hong Lim Park.
The Rooms: The hotel has 367 rooms, ranging from 29 to 110 square meters in size. All have a minimalist feel, with blond-wood tables and cabinets contrasting against darker, lime-hued carpets and bed headboards, and aluminum bedside swivel lamps to allow guests to read at night without craning their heads. Technology is subtly, and intelligently, incorporated into the experience: Wi-Fi is complimentary, and guests can stream content from the 40-inch TV sets to their mobile devices and vice versa.
In a nod to the environment, the complimentary water comes in glassware instead of plastic bottles and is purified on-site. Bathrooms are equipped with amenities from local spa brand St. Gregory, though the hotel says it is exploring more eco-friendly packaging options.
The Location: The property is situated on the edge of both the financial district and the rapidly gentrifying Chinatown neighborhood. For quality dining, head to Keong Saik road, a former red-light zone in Chinatown, where chic restaurants and watering holes have cropped up amid the seedy karaoke lounges. Many corporate offices are either walkable from the hotel or a short cab ride away.
Our Tip: Taxis can be hard to find in Singapore during the regular tropical afternoon showers, so take advantage of the hotel’s soon-to-operate shuttle, which stops at major office buildings, shopping thoroughfare Orchard Road, and the Marina Bay Sands resort. The service will be introduced this month.
Getting There: Changi Airport is about a 25-minute taxi ride. The hotel can arrange for limousine transport from 110 Singapore dollars (roughly $88).
Parkroyal on Pickering, 3 Upper Pickering St., Singapore; Tel.: +65 6809 8888. Rooms from S$300 a night.
Follow Kristiano Ang on Twitter @Kristiano
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