Notices
General Trip Reports Reports that don't fit in to the other categories

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
Old 6 Oct 19, 03:42 PM  
Link to this Post
#1
kateh134
Imagineer
 
kateh134's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 08
Singapore/Bali September 2019 – Mini Trip Report

We recently returned from a fabulous trip to Singapore and Bali and hope this review will be helpful to others. We had 7 nights in each destination.

Travellers – myself and OH. We retired last year and are making travel a priority and are starting to tick things off a very long bucket list. OH follows Formula 1, and has always wanted to see a live race. Singapore was on our bucket list, so we decided to combine the two. Neither of us had been to that part of the world before and we usually book everything ourselves, however we decided to use an independent travel agent this time, and she was excellent. We went in with a very vague idea that we wanted to go to Singapore to see the GP, and possibly go on somewhere else, but we didn’t know where. The next day, she e mailed us with a few suggestions, and over the next couple of days, we had booked the flights and accommodation. We booked the GP tickets ourselves.

Flights:
All flights were with Singapore Airlines (economy). The first was Heathrow to Singapore and was the longest flight we’d done (12 hours) but it went smoothly and the cabin crew were fabulous. Minimal sleep though as we were too excited and couldn’t get comfortable. The flight from Singapore to Bali was just over 2 hours and much easier to deal with. The day we came home, we had 50 minutes to make our connection at Singapore and we were a little apprehensive, but it was all OK, despite the flight from Bali boarding late. The onward connection was from the same terminal, but at the opposite end so it was a very lengthy swift walk. We had time for a wee and refill our water bottles en route, but no time for shopping!

Accommodation:
Singapore (Park Hotel, Clarke Quay) - we were somewhat disorientated when we arrived at 8am due to a combination of lack of sleep and a 7 hour time difference. We really wanted to have a nap, but we knew our room wouldn’t be ready. The reception team were excellent and gave us water, coffee and a map and suggested a walking route to help orientate us to the city. They suggested we come back at 12, by which time our room was ready. The room wasn’t very big, but it had everything we needed including a very comfortable bed and a fabulous shower! The water is safe to drink, but they also supplied bottled water daily. The hotel was close to two MRT stations and loads of restaurants with all budgets and tastes accommodated. The hotel was clean and comfortable and all of the staff were very helpful and we would happily stay there again.

Bali (Alila Seminyak) - this was an amazing hotel and we loved it! We were given an upgrade to our room and were in the main hotel, rather than the separate building which we were expecting. The room was massive and had so many amenities that we were constantly making new discoveries. We never did learn how to work the light switches though and OH had to use the torch on his phone for nocturnal trips to the loo! The only downside was that the room was at the front of the hotel which overlooked a beach bar which played loud music which could be heard in the room, even when the patio doors were shut. The music stopped in the early evening so it didn’t affect our sleep and the hotel was lovely in every other aspect and we would love to return one day.



Transfers - arranged via the travel agent. We could have used the MRT in Singapore to get to/from the airport and taxis in Bali, but the pre paid transfers were so convenient and meant we didn’t have to think about anything other than looking for our name on a board on arrival.

What we did:

We had a couple of days before and after the GP to do some sight seeing in Singapore and visited Gardens by the Bay twice, had a flight on the Singapore Flyer, drank Singapore Slings at the Long Bar at Raffles Hotel and visited the Botanic Gardens. We also walked along the river and went to a couple of shopping malls. We did an average of 16670 steps a day in Singapore, and were absolutely shattered by the time we got to Bali so we did very little here. We spent the day either on a sunbed or in the infinity pool which overlooked the beach. We ventured out of the hotel to eat every evening and marvel at the traffic chaos with scooters and cars vying for the same road space.


Highlights
F1 GP - OH absolutely loved this and described it as awesome. I’d never seen a race before and don’t plan on following the sport, but also really enjoyed it. We booked the tickets well in advance via the official website and secured a ‘Super Early Bird’ deal which reduced the cost. We had tickets for all three days in the Pit Grandstand and had a really good view. There is so much more than the race itself and the entertainment and fireworks were excellent. There are stages around the track and we thoroughly enjoyed Texas and Lighthouse Family who were on the stage nearest our seats. Fatboy Slim was also on this stage, but he’s not our thing at all and we left after 10 minutes! Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Muse were on other stages, but we were too exhausted to walk over to that area of the track. The event is so well organised and everyone we encountered was helpful. Food options were varied and reasonably priced. The loos were always clean and well stocked and the only time we had to queue was 30 minutes before the main race. We took water bottles and used the refill station.

MRT - what’s not to like; it’s cheap, clean, easy to navigate, efficient and part of the ‘mind the gap’ announcement sounds like they’re saying ‘happy happy’! It's really 'ber-hati hati' but it will always be 'happy happy' to us. We bought Singapore Tourist Pass tickets for unlimited use, and had we done more research beforehand, we would have linked our Post Office Credit Cards to the app before we went. We tried to do this once we were in Singapore, but failed.

Raffles - this has been on my bucket list for a very long time and we loved it! It wasn’t cheap, but the drinks were amazing and it was a wonderful experience.

Gardens by the Bay - we went twice; once during the day when we visited the domes which were fabulous, and again at night to see the sound and light show. Simply beautiful.





Singapore Flyer - we booked an evening flight with Singapore Slings (for comparison purposes!) and it was a great way to see Singapore. We also saw otters in the water around the site.



Botanic gardens - these are very beautiful and the orchids are stunning.



Not really a low, but the heat and humidity really impacted on the amount we felt able to do. We would have loved to have done more, particularly on the 3 days we went to the GP, but we quickly realised we couldn’t go sightseeing in the morning and then go to the GP. There is lots to see and do in Singapore and we barely scratched the surface. Australia is also on our bucket list, so we’ll return on either the outward or return leg to break up the journey.

We felt very safe in Singapore and Bali and everyone we encountered was very willing to help. We ate some lovely food, in beautiful surroundings and can highly recommend both destinations.

Our next trip is in a few weeks and we have 6 nights at Cabana Bay followed by 10 nights in a villa in Cape Coral. We haven’t been to Universal for a few years and have never visited City Walk at night so this will be new for us. We’ve also never been to Cape Coral before.

Thanks for reading.
__________________
Kate
kateh134 is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 6 Oct 19, 09:06 PM  
Link to this Post
#2
Melbatb
Imagineer
 
Melbatb's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 13
It sounds like a wonderful trip!

Enjoy Florida.
__________________

Index of my trip reports
2016 Quebec - Kuala Lumpar - New York City 2017 Dubai - Eurocamps France - Ontario and Quebec - So-Cal 2018 Montreal - Bangkok - New England 2019 Argentina - Quebec City - Hong Kong - 2020 Switzerland 2022 Arizona - Costa Med Cruise - Oslo 2023 Hong Kong - Gothenburg
Melbatb is offline Girl Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Old 13 Oct 19, 11:56 AM  
Link to this Post
#3
Nesbits
Very Serious Dibber
 
Nesbits's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 06
Food for thought. Thanks for posting. I would like to see Singapore, I didn’t know there was so much to do at a Grand Prix. X
Nesbits is offline Boy Mouse Click to view Members Trip Plans Add Member to Ignore List
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Forum Jump


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 12:45 AM.


Powered by vBulletin - Copyright © 2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
DIBB Savings
AttractionTickets.com

Get £10 off each Disney Ticket with the code ATDIBB10

Get up to £50 off per room at Disney or Universal with the code DIBBHOTELS


theDIBB Blog
One of the the five worlds found in Epic Universe, How to Train Your Dragon... Read More »
Disney announced that a new nighttime show, “Disney Dreams That Soar,” will run nightly at... Read More »
Walt Disney World Resort guests can get ready to have a “glowing’’ good time when... Read More »


theDIBB Menu


Exchange Rates
US Dollar Rates
ASDA  $1.2354
CaxtonFX  $1.2308
Covent Garden FX  $1.2544
FAIRFX  $1.2350
John Lewis  $1.2380
M&S  $1.2178
Sainsburys  $1.2354
TESCO  $1.2364
Travelex  $1.2353
Updated: 23:30 28/03/2024
Euro Rates
ASDA  €1.1447
CaxtonFX  €1.1406
Covent Garden FX  €1.1511
FAIRFX  €1.1432
John Lewis  €1.1457
M&S  €1.1263
Sainsburys  €1.1440
TESCO  €1.1445
Travelex  €1.1435
Updated: 23:30 28/03/2024

DIBB Premium Membership
Did you know you can help support theDIBB with Premium Membership?

Check out this link for more information and benefits, such as...

"No adverts on theDIBB Forums"

Upgrade Now



X