Email reply from GM of Marina Mandarin
Based on the reply, I have changed my recommendation to DO NOT STAY HERE
-------------------------------------------------The Marina Mandarin is a hotel under the Meritus Hotel Group which is a rather small chain in Singapore, Malaysia and China (http://www.meritushotels.com/en)
The official website of the hotel is http://www.meritushotels.com/en/hotelinformation/marina-mandarin-singapore/about.
This hotel is located at Marina Bay which is near the central business district and other places of interest such as Marina Bay Sands and the Esplanade. The hotel is above Marina Square shopping centre (http://www.marinasquare.com.sg/) and other nearby hotels include the Mandarin Oriental Singapore and the Pan Pacific Singapore. Thus, food and shopping are easier available within minutes of the hotel.
It is also near the Singapore F1 night race track http://www.singaporegp.sg/.
The entrance at the ground floor houses a small lounge and a peek at the hotel upstairs.
One may also enter the hotel by the side entrances from Marina Square.
The main Lobby
One may hear birds chirping in the lobby and the sounds are actually live from the songbirds in cages on the upper floor of the lobby.
The Room
My room is a Premier Room which is suppose to be "Planned with the well-travelled in mind, the “business class” Premier Rooms and Suites offer an unprecedented level of luxury with a spacious working desk, a 37-inch plasma screen television and 12 hours of complimentary wireless/wired broadband Internet access."
The view from the room is rather good and the Mandarin Oriental (to the left) looks particularly impressive.
Marina Bay Sands is located across the bay.
The Pool
The pool is starting to look tired (the hotel was completed in 1987) and I would certainly recommend renovations soon.
The Food and Drinks
The buffet restaurant Aquamarine and Chinese restaurant Peach Blossoms are the highlights of the hotel but I feel the standard has dropped tremendously and the food overpriced.
Breakfast buffet was poorly organized and food was not replenished promptly.
And yet, the restaurant is award-winning.
The Service
I would rate the hotel as poor in terms of service.
Check-in was always difficult and time-wasting.
At this visit, I was given a Premier Room as mentioned but was downgraded to a Executive Deluxe and the staff (including the manager) did not handle the situation well when I confronted the front desk agents.
Being a eat@mandarin (the hotel's loyalty program) member, I was certainly unhappy about the incident.
The internet was also very problematic and I was locked out of my complimentary account early.
The holder for the room card was very worn out and suggests the hotel has strict cost-cutting measures.
In conclusion, the hotel is great for its location, but is otherwise unremarkable as a 5 star hotel.
Updated: The hotel does not value its guests at all. DO NOT STAY HERE.
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