National Day Staycation Ideas

National Day is less than a month away and Singapore has definitely come a long way in 49 years of nation-building — warts and all. What better way to mark our country’s birthday than with these staycation ideas?

TO CELEBRATE OUR FOOD AND HERITAGE: FULLERTON BAY HOTEL

Did you know the Fullerton Bay Hotel, with its irregular angles and balconied rooms, is built to resemble a cruise ship? Embarking on the hotel’s Heritage Journey experience, therefore, was like boarding a slow boat and travelling in stately elegance back in time to Singapore’s neonatal days as a bustling trading port. Of course, I was seeing 19th-century Singapore through the eyes of a privileged person from the upper class, not a coolie, in the five-star hotel’s tastefully appointed Premier Bay View rooms, which come complete with colonial-style hat-and-coat racks and framed black-and-white reminders of the marina’s early days, no less. Since a Heritage Journey is supposed to be educational, the package includes a complimentary Singapore River boat ride. I also signed up for the hour-long guided tours where I discovered interesting bits of trivia: Who knew that Fullerton Hotel, which was once the General Post Office, boasted the longest postal counter in the world, at 90m; or that Clifford Pier was quite romantically known as the Red Lantern Pier? The older generation still refers to it fondly as “ang teng” (Hokkien for red lantern) because of the red oil lamps that hung from it to guide incoming ships — the originals are still there today.

Dinner was a glamorous affair at The Clifford Pier restaurant, which unveiled its beautiful new powder-blue-drawing-room look two months ago. Under the original Art Deco arches, it wasn’t hard to imagine the space in 1933 as the landing point for Singapore’s travel-weary new residents. The five-course Clifford Pier Degustation dinner paid tribute to local favourites. Our less finicky forefathers might have made do with the lacklustre chicken rice and laksa offered, but I’ve been spoilt, so thank goodness the crispy wok-fried snapper on a bed of eggplant was excellent. The popiah and satay, while well-executed, didn’t raise the bar on hawker-centre versions, but there aren’t any chandeliers or high-pile carpeting in Maxwell market, are there?If you want to, you can get all dressed up — white outfit, sun hat, leather carry-all, maybe even a parasol — and pretend you’re back in the days when docking at a pier was a real affair. A Heritage Journey like this also reminds us that although Singaporeans may have “arrived”, we should never forget the journey we took to get here. MAY SEAH

The Heritage Journey room package is available until Aug 31 (excluding Aug 8 and Aug 9). Rates from S$658++ per night, inclusive of a five-course dinner for two at The Clifford Pier Restaurant, Internet connectivity, breakfast for two and complimentary heritage tours.

TO CELEBRATE OUR FLOWERING ARTISTIC SIDE: HOTEL CLOVER THE ARTS

Pablo Picasso said the purpose of art is to wash “the dust of daily life off our souls”. I personally prefer snuggling up in a warm bed, with a particularly violent episode of Game Of Thrones and a glass of sparkling Ribena. So why not do all the above with a brief staycation at Singapore’s own art-themed hotel?

Hotel Clover The Arts, a new establishment on South Bridge Road, is a stone’s throw from Clarke Quay MRT Station and the Singapore River. Each of the boutique hotel’s 44 rooms boasts its own theme, and each room is designed and painted by local students and professional artists. You can rest easy against a mural of Singapore’s iconic dragon playground in Toa Payoh, for example, or the Singapore River, and feel good you’re supporting our arts scene this way.(Strangely, some other rooms are slightly more incongruous, such as those featuring a family of pandas or Mount Fuji.)

The latter was where I stayed. The room came with a comfortable king-size bed and a wonderful view of the Central Business District, although the plastic tree by the window — installed, perhaps, to accentuate the “pop-up effect” of the graffiti style painting on the walls — was a tad disturbing. While I could have packed some Japanese food from nearby Central to make believe I was in Japan, I settled for some good old pork ribs and rice at Song Fa Bak Kut Teh just a street away. The hotel’s convenient location also meant I could take a nice stroll along Singapore River before heading back to enjoy the view of the night sky from its rooftop terrace. Yoga classes and art sessions are also held up there (it recently conducted one on batik art), but I’d think twice — no thanks to inconsiderate birds doing their business up there.

Of course, some might wonder if the hotel is more expensive than it should be, especially since some of the superior rooms don’t have windows; and my Arts King room did not come with any luxe amenities for its rack rate of S$567++. Breakfast offerings, which were served buffet-style, also failed to impress with their selection of eggs, hash browns, mee tai mak and UHT milk.Still, it is a good option for those who want a convenient and comfortable place to chill at after a night out at Clarke Quay; or if you want to cosy up to artists and their works. We couldn’t possibly begrudge the price of that. HON JING YI

An Artsy Singapore Staycation package offers rooms at 15 per cent off the best available rate, with breakfast for two and special gifts. Email enquiries [at] hotelclover.com or call 6439 7088 and quote ‘An Artsy Singapore Staycation’. Available from Aug 1 to 30.

TO CELEBRATE JUST HOW AWESOME WE FEEL: PAN PACIFIC SINGAPORE

If you want to catch all the action of this year’s National Day Parade without braving the sweltering heat, booking a room at one of the hotels around Marina Bay is the answer.

This year, Pan Pacific Singapore is offering a Fireworks On The Bay package (after all, the fireworks are the highlight of every NDP). It starts this weekend and is applicable for four room categories: The Harbour Studio, the Pacific Harbour Room, Pacific Harbour Studio and Habour Suites. Yes, all of them face Marina Bay and if you’re lucky enough to get rooms on a higher floor (book early to avoid disappointment, as they say), you can even see the floating platform and watch the parade in the comfort and privacy of your room (no judging if you’re keen on wearing just red underwear). And what better to cap off the “this is home, truly” sentiment than with copious amounts of alcohol at Pacific Club on level 38?

If you book the Pacific Harbour Room, Pacific Harbour Studio or Habour Suites, you also get access to the club where you can savour evening canapes and cocktails — along with a 360° unobstructed view. Plus, you’ll wake up to a champagne breakfast for two at the club.

Even a cynic will feel better about Singapore after that. SERENE LIM

The Fireworks By The Bay package is available from S$430++. It includes daily breakfast for two, daily parking, Internet connectivity and 30 per cent discount on dinner at hotel-operated F&B outlets.