Located in the midst of all the mambo jambo is the Novotel Clark Quay. The property is literally a stone's throw away from the bars, clubs and restaurants surrounding the Singapore River. Visitors who love to party will find the hotel the most ideal base to start your night out.
Taking center stage in the heart of clark quay makes locating the hotel easily. The facade may not seem much but as the saying goes do not judge a book by its cover. Liang court is just below the hotel so you are getting the convenience of tasty food options and a huge Japanese supermarket.
Getting to the reception area is a bit of a chore. It is disconnected with the concierge which is the first point of contact upon entering the hotel. You will need to take a lift up for check in similarly like the Grand Park Orchard.
There is a dedicated queue for Accor members which is welcoming for those loyal to the group. That being said, we are not sure if the staff actually verify those that join the line. Check in is not the quickest and queues tend to form during busy periods. We asked about the possibilities of late check out and were told to come back the next morning which was not the most pleasant. We eventually got 230pm which can definitely be better.
The reception area is nothing to shout about with a few seating areas and the bar and restaurant close by.
To keep children entertained, there is a kids corner when you can find xbox and there are also some scheduled events which parents can bring their kids to participate in.
To get to our rooms, we need to get up another set of lifts which meant more time wasted.
Upon entering the room, you will notice how spacious it is. at 32sqm, it is one of the larger 4 star hotels you can find in Singapore. This probably the only good part of being situated in an older building.
The decor seem to have not kept up with the times and making a 1990s movie will not go very out of place. To give the hotel some credit, the use of earthly tones provided a cosy atmosphere.
Should the provided pillows be less welcoming than you expect. there is a small pillow menu to get alternatives.
The wardroom is pretty standard and comes with the usual business essentials like iron and ironing board. The security features like safe works well. Bath robes are decent but nothing much to complain about.
Unlike many properties that have done away with stocking the mini bar, Novotel continued the tradition. The provided tea is just the standard lipton which we thought they could have done better. 2 bottles of water are provided if you are uncomfortable drinking the perfectly safe tap water.
The room is large enough to accommodate a couch which was look a little out of tune with the decor. Being beside the balcony makes it a great spot to relax and read your morning newspaper.
The television stuck with the retro decor with its thick frames that will have been fashionable 10 years ago when HD television got popular.
A DVD player is the surprise package but with netflix these days, who uses this anymore?
With the lack of modern hardware, Novotel went for the technological update from the software front. You can order amenities from the TV and there is also an option to request for someone to open the balcony so you can have access too. Service speed is rather slow in the evening but our request were met pretty quickly during the daytime.
From the balcony, we can get nice views of the city and we saw Marina Bay Sands in the distance.
Check out the panoramic shot from our balcony.
During our 2nd visit, we stayed at a higher floor and get the chance to see fireworks in the distance during the national day celebration.
The Novotel branded ammentites are adequate and we like the use of different colours to differentiate the various products.
The bathroom is large enough to accommodate a separate shower stall and bathtub like the St Regis which is very rare in any of the 4 stars hotel in Singapore.
The reward of all that is a nice lap pool which has a pretty deep 3.5m at one end. Parents and casual swimmers might want to pay a close attention to that.
What better one to chill by the pool and getting some food along the way, press the buttons on the menu for service and you are set.
For those looking for a tan, the pool gets the afternoon sun which will be perfect but for those that will like to avoid the UV rays while swimming, it is quite a disaster.
The gym is rather small and not very well stocked. Having more than 5 people in the gym will be quite a terrible idea.
Next morning the breakfast is conducted at The Square restaurant which is not the biggest for such a large hotel. Long waits can be expected during busy times but there is a good selection of international and local cuisines. I will let the pictures do the talking.
On the whole, I have my doubts on the hotel for its services but I cannot fault it for its great location. Service can be lacking at times as we found out the hard way. Our request for wine glasses never came and during our 2nd stay, we were locked out of our room because the lock ran out of battery which render our access card useless. The maintenance crew took around one hour to arrive and fix the problem which made us feel quite stupid standing outside the room in our bathe robes (We were out swimming).
Being an Accor Gold members, I got a room upgrade up one level and 2 free drinks at the bar.
Wifi Speed:
4.28mbps
Accor Gold benefits:
Upgraded one level
2 welcome drink
Late check out till 230pm
Location: 177A River Valley Road, 179031
Telephone: +65 6338 3333
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