REVIEW: Hotel 1929

I want to tell you about this hotel we stayed at during our last stopover at Singapore on route to KK for CNY.

This charming little place is the boutique Hotel 1929 located at Keong Saik Road close to the heart of Singapore's Chinatown.

As you can see, they have maintain the original facade of the old-style shophouses as part of the building design and architecture. I really love the classic look of these old buildings.

I first came across the name in a magazine article which featured a celebrity interview who mentioned that his must-stay hotel whenever he was in Singapore was this particular hotel.

What caught my attention at first was the hotel name itself which I found very interesting (why name a hotel after a particular year?). Upon further investigation, I discovered that the main feature of the hotel was the unique retro theme style and vintage furnishings inspired by design and architecture of the 1920s (the original shophouses were in fact first constructed in the year 1929). This of course intrigued me further because I've always admired old-style vintage designs. Apparently no two rooms have the same deco, and each room has its own unique design along the same retro/vintage theme. This could prove to be a unique experience indeed.

The hotel is actually a budget hotel... but it's the best budget hotel I've ever seen. The rates are somewhat similar even to YMCA... maybe a tad higher perhaps. But the quality of the rooms and service is definitely better... it should be since they won a Best Budget Hotel of the Year award.


For around SG$90, you will get a tiny (but cosy) double room fitted with a tiny (but cute) toilet+shower, plus breakfast for two.

Breakfast comprises of a small selection of cereals, yohgurt, bread/toast, jams+condiments, coffee/tea and a choice of scrambled-egg set or eggs-sunny-side-up set. Not bad at all I say.

I was also happy with the fact that despite being a 'budget' hotel, it's equipped with modern travel basics like a TV (flat screen Phillips LCD TV, leh!), CD player, broadband internet (at no extra charge, unlike some budget establishments), hairdryer, electric kettle, mini bar fridge (very small, but will do for short stays), safe deposit box (we couldn't find it at first until the reception guy told us it was under the bed - quite a nifty way to manage the space constraint, plus burglars will never be the wiser!). They also throw in complimentary soft drinks and coffee/tea sachets... really not bad at all for a budget hotel!

The superior single/double rooms are a rather tight fit, but you get used to it after a while. And the rooms are equipped with clever space-saving features like under-the-bed storage space and hooks and hangers all around the walls and door. After all, in the end all you really need is a place to bathe, sleep and eat.

Unfortunately due to our tight schedule, we didn't have time to explore the hotel. Perhaps the next time we stay there, we might opt for the suite which I heard have exclusive attached rooftop alfresco jacuzzi baths.

I would recommend this place for any budget-traveller, holiday-shopper, or even a budget-business-traveller stopping over in Singapore. It's conveniently located close to the Outram Park MRT station, and being close to the heart of Chinatown you can just hop down to see the sites, scenes and shopping around the area.

For a reasonable price, it offers comfortable sleeping quarters, private shower/bathroom (no shared common bathrooms like some backpacker lodgings), decent hot breakfast. And it's really a nice cosy place to go back to after a long day of shopping or sight-seeing.

You can check out this article in 8 DAYS which describes some of the features and perks of the hotel.