A 5-star heritage hotel in Orchard, Goodwood Park Hotel is one of the oldest hotels in Singapore. The beautiful Grand Tower was designated a national monument back in 1989 and retains much of its old beauty even today. There was definitely a twinge of excitement when our ride pulled into the driveway and we could see the iconic building right in front of us.
Unfortunately, the entrance where horse-drawn carriages used to drop off regal men and ladies was closed off, so do direct your driver further down (to the left of this building), where there is a modern drop-off spot just in front of the hotel lobby. I managed to snag a pretty good rate for a Deluxe Room with poolside access and $88 credits at just $186 on one of Traveloka’s sales, which obviously didn’t hurt.
Location
Located in Orchard Road, Goodwood Park Hotel provides a little sanctuary amidst the hustle and bustle of this shopping district. Food options are aplenty, and Far East Plaza has many eateries that won’t hit your wallet too hard. There is no convenience store within the hotel, but there are a few just a 2-3min walk away at Far East Plaza.
Check-in Process
While we arrived on a weekday, there was a slight wait to be attended to, given that the next day was a Saturday. Once we reached the counter, the associate was friendly and quick to check us in, taking around 5min or so. As our room wasn’t ready yet, we deposited our bags at the concierge and left to have lunch nearby. We got the call from the front desk around 2pm to inform us that our room was ready and were escorted to the room – great service! The associate told us that our bags would be sent over shortly and left.
We ended up waiting 30min without our bags and only after calling 2 times, did our bags finally arrive about an hour or so later. Had we known, we would have insisted to just take our bags ourselves.
While the bag delivery service was a miss, we did experience some good service too. As we were staying in the lead-up to our anniversary, the team did make an effort by sending over a cute (and rather delicious) chocolate cake.
The Room: Deluxe Poolside Room
Our room measured in around 31sqm and had a balcony door that opened to a small seating area, which then led on to a small Balinese-inspired pool. While it sounded great on paper, and we were imagining relaxing resort vibes, we had a couple of bad experiences that might serve as a warning on booking this room type near/on a weekend or school holiday period. The seating area was nothing much to shout about, and was rather stuffy given that there was no fan and it was pretty much walled off. The metal chair also looked rather ancient and not comfortable to sit in for long.
The room itself was spacious and there was more than enough space to lay 1-2 luggages (small size) on the luggage rack. Upon entering, turning to the left led us to the main bedroom/sleeping area, with the TV and 2 very Victorian-style armchairs (but not as pretty) in that space. On the right hand side, you would pass through a “decompression” zone of sorts with a cupboard and the luggage rack, before reaching the ensuite bathroom. Besides the in-room safe, an iron and ironing board were also provided, just in case you felt like ironing your clothes. It was probably more useful pre-COVID for businessmen who might have stayed here on their business trips. Amenities such as hygiene kits (toothbrush, toothpaste and even masks), inroom slippers and robes were provided. The slippers and robes didn’t feel like 5-star quality, and I already miss the robes at Fullerton Bay Hotel and The Clan for one.
There were sufficient powerpoints at the bedside and on the desk, though I would have thought that they would have also installed USB ports for ease of charging mobile devices. The TV was not a SMART TV, and you would need a HDMI cable to project your laptop onto it. On the whole, the decor of the room felt very 1990s and “stuck in the past”, doing little to convey a 5-star resort vibe. And while it may be a heritage hotel, heritage doesn’t necessarily mean old and tired decor, as evidenced by how Fullerton Hotel has outfitted their rooms.
The ensuite bathroom was actually quite small in relation to the rest of the room, and the fixtures were old if not ancient. There was a single shower-tub (shub) squeezed into the bathroom with the toilet bowl and a single sink. The colour and material scheme here reminded me more of a 20-year old toilet rather than one in a 5-star hotel. Toiletries were unbranded but did the job. I do think they could have expanded the ensuite bathroom to accommodate his-her sinks as well as refurbished the toilet bowl and shub. Thankfully there were no stains in the tub, else I would have been very grossed out. The water temperature and pressure were also ok and easy to adjust, which was good.
Health & Wellness Facilities
Fitness Centre
The fitness centre was located along one of the corridors just beside the smaller Balinese-inspired pool, and while it wouldn’t win any design awards, it looked suitably equipped for a decent workout. There were both cardio machines (treadmills, ellipticals) as well as weights machines. I liked that they also provided water bottles and clean towels for gym goers to use; surprisingly not all hotel gyms do that..
Swimming Pool
One of the reasons I booked this room type was because of the direct access to the (supposedly) quieter and more relaxing Balinese-inspired pool (right hand pic). In fairness, the pool did give off chill resort vibes with the coconut trees and moss-covered shelters adjacent to the pool. However, during our stay the pool was constantly occupied with families. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve nothing against families, but the kids were extremely noisy and running wild, with the parents doing nothing to control them. Even close to midnight, we could hear people making a ruckus at the poolside. I heard a trio talking very loudly, drinking and even smoking. It got so bad that we called reception to get a security guard down to shut them up, which they finally did. We were also awoken early in the morning as families came by to use the pool and made a lot of noise splashing and shouting. I guess that’s what happens when the sliding door is so thin that all the noise just transmits through.. We probably also stayed at a wrong time since Fridays and possibly Saturdays were always going to see more families and groups staying.
The other pool was just in front of the L’Espresso cafe, and was a tad too exposed in my opinion, given that diners had a clear view of the pool. The algae on the checkered pool floor didn’t help either, giving off the feeling of a public swimming pool.
Breakfast Situation
Coffee Lounge
The hotel’s main restaurant Coffee Lounge can be found at the ground level, just beside
Our package did not include breakfast, which was not a problem given the many F&B options around in the Orchard area. For me personally, I love the matcha bread from Donq Bakery in Takashimaya! 😉
Although we did not have breakfast there, we did come by for their Taiwanese porridge and zichar sides, given that we had $88 F&B credits to be used. Coffee Lounge is renowned for the Taiwanese porridge buffet, which ranges from $33-48 per adult (depending on whether you go with the regular or more premium tier). Children enjoy a cheaper rate of $19.80-$28.80.
Besides Coffee Lounge, Goodwood Park is host to a number of established restaurants such as Min Jiang (Cantonese cuisine), Gordon’s Grill (Western), L’Espresso (for afternoon tea) and The Deli (durian desserts).
Final Thoughts
It was a mixed bag for me; I really appreciated the warm service from the staff (except for the little booboo regarding our bags) and the resort vibes at the small pool. However, the faded design of the rooms and noise levels did put a dampener on our stay. The food here was still as good as ever though, and I would recommend coming for the food if nothing else. We didn’t have the chance to try all the restaurants but there’s always next time!
Luc’s wish: Noise dampening materials for the balcony door would have helped greatly in ensuring the experience of guests do not suffer when you have noisy people at the pool. An upgrade/retrofit to the ensuite bathroom would be amazing too.
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