The ship pulled into Singapore port early this morning – the view from the upper decks and even from our balcony were amazing! We could see our hotel – the Marina Bay Sands glistening in the skyline. I could already feel the energy from this city and was excited to start exploring as soon as possible. We disembarked, picked up our luggage, went through the Singapore Customs Security check. The instructions we printed off in China said the hotel was only about 1km away, so we decided we didn’t need to catch a taxi, we could just walk with our bags…
The heat, the humidity, the roadworks and the incorrect instructions made for a fun walk! We arrived maybe 45 minutes later, absolutely drenched in sweat. We couldn’t even check into our room, as there was a strict checkin policy – so all we could do was leave our bags with the doormen (after we changed into another tshirt in the toilets) and then go for a walk. We walked through the amazing plaza with all of the high end shops and canal complete with gondolas. We eventually got to a food court and decided to get something cool to drink and just relax – it was our first internet fix in a while too – so we caught up on social media and what was going on in the world.
After a bit of a sit down, we decided we should check out the pool – after all this is one of the main reason we booked the hotel! It’s an infinity pool on top of the boat shaped part of the building, sitting 58 floors above the ground. The reception cut us a key so we could explore the pool area until our room was ready. We took the elevators to the 55th floor, where we had to scan our keys to prove we were hotel guests and then caught another lift the next 3 floors up to the pool area. The view is amazing, and definitely worth the price we paid. We sat by the pool and put our feet in the water. We were eager to get into our room, so we eventually went back down to reception a little earlier than they told us to see if we could check in, and luckily enough, a room was now available.
We went up to our room, which was HUGE! I think the whole cabin on the ship was the size of the bathroom! We relaxed in the room, got changed and then headed out on the subway (MRT) to Orchard Road – this is one of the main shopping areas in Singapore and had some major department stores and all of the major brands. We checked out quite a few stores and bought some clothes and then jumped back on the MRT to have a dip in the pool.
We took some photos along the edge of the pool with the Singapore skyline in the background – everyone was doing it – we never realised how popular ‘selfie sticks’ were until we arrived at Marina Bay Sands! After a cool down in the pool, it was shower time and then we went to a Hawker Market for dinner. We visited Makansutra Gluttons Bay which is maybe a 10-15 minute walk from the hotel. Lots of food and drinks on offer and all fairly cheap! One of the tips is look out for the health department rating on each stall – You should be looking for A’s or if you are feeling adventurous the B’s and C’s (like a school grading system).
After dinner, we went for a stroll around the bay area, taking in sites like the Merlion (above), then back to the hotel and straight to bed! What an exhausting but exciting first day in Singapore!
