Made a reservation direct with the hotel to enjoy The Clan Opening Special for the Premier Room King Bed at $588 nett for 2 nights.
The perks included breakfast for 2 at Qin Restaurant, customisable in-room refreshments, 1 way Limo transfer, and $100 voucher for next stay at Oasia Hotel Downtown, Orchard Rendezvous Hotel, The Barracks Hotel Sentosa (Valid for redemption from 1 May 2021 to 23 Dec 2021). There's also a Local precinct tour experience led by The Clan Keeper but I totally forgotten about that, and hence, did not utilise.
Reservation was easy via the hotel website, and requires a credit card to guarantee the reservation. However, no charges will be made to the credit card and one actually need to click on a link that'll be sent via email during the stay but more on that later.
Guest will receive an email confirmation once the reservation is guaranteed. This will be followed-up by another email a few days prior to arrival, and guest could select their preferred snacks (5 choices from the selection) as well as arrange for the airport transfer.
Two days prior to hotel stay, I received a phone call from the hotel who assisted in arranging for the 1-way Limo transfer from my home to the hotel. One day prior to the stay, I received another call that informed of my request for early check-in can be accommodated. But uh oh, because the transfer was first arranged for 1pm. The staff who called said he will check for me. During evening time, I received another call to inform that the transport has been rescheduled to 11am. Great!
On the day of check-in, I was happily awaiting for the transport but it wasn't there at the appointed time. Uh oh, and I realized that I had forgotten to ask for the vehicle number but there was a black Toyota Vellfire parked nearby. Hmm, is that the vehicle? I moved to the front of the vehicle but no reaction. Alas, after waiting for 5 minutes, I called the hotel but no pickup. Then waited for another 5 more minutes before the driver decided to roll down the window and asked "Are you going to The Clan Hotel?" Faints.
After I got onto the vehicle, he said that he had informed the hotel of his arrival and drivers will not be informed of the guests contact number. Hmm, but there wasn't any call from the hotel and neither was there any sms nor email on the confirmed transport pickup nor the vehicle number. For all I know, the driver could have driven off without me as well... This are definitely can be further improved by sending Whatsapp or SMS of the confirmed vehicle number as well as location and date time.
Another thing... for a limo transfer, I wasn't expecting a Vellfire to be honest. Hahaa!
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entrance to the hotel |
The staff at the ground floor that screens guests for Safe-Entry and temperature upon arrival, apologized as he did not assist to open the car door earlier. So sweet of him, but that's alright.
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super cool |
There was another staff on hand to usher the guests to the second floor lobby for check-in.
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nice lobby at Level 2 |
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Level 2 lobby |
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welcome tea is prepared here by tea master, Alex |
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enjoying the view while waiting for check-in |
There is no need to queue for check-in and guests could remain seated and enjoy the welcome tea and snack, while staff explains about booking the slots for breakfast, swimming pool and gym, and bringing over the necessary forms to sign.
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(left to right) wet towel, Nanyang ritual tea and tao sar piah (mungbean pastry) |
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tea master Alex, preparing the welcome drink |
Staff are welcoming, courteous and check-in process was a breeze. Alex was also on-hand to explain more about the tea blend should one would like to learn more.
Once our check-in was done, we were ushered to the lift and to my surprise, one of the hotel staff, Sam actually walked us up to our room and helped to carry my overnight bag. So sweet of him.
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no, Mahjong Room is not what you think it is |
My room is at the 21st floor and I was happy with the room amenities, decor and all. Sam did a small tour of the room and explained the highlights of the room such as the bluetooth audio device, the UV sanitizer, the 55-inch smart TV, the coffee/tea in the room, the tea set near the window and the pre-selected snacks.
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view from the room entrance |
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door (left), bathroom (right) |
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bathroom |
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shower area |
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Vuudh Lotus Osmanthus collection |
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bathroom amenities |
And, for guests who booked Premier room, could choose one bar of handmade soap for their use. There were 3 scents to choose from, I think.
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Handmade Soap |
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coffee/tea area |
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I loved the Ritual tea |
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Nespresso |
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pre-selected snacks/refreshments (5 items)
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Premier Room King Bed (31 m²) |
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view from the room |
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UV light sanitizer |
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only Master Series rooms will have this device |
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view from the day lounger |
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complimentary biscuits and tea wrapped in gray cloth as per the olden days (not the tea set, hor) |
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care pack |
Bottled water is not provided. Instead, guests could take drinking water from the toilet via the Hyflux filtered water tap. I know I know... I still need some getting used to of getting drinking water from the toilet. I love the pre-heated toilet seat. Yass to warming my bum, hahaha!
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lovely 55-inch TV that I can chromecast with |
Tried the bluetooth device in the room and it works but the song will get interrupted if I use my phone for something else. It was also quite fun to cast from mobile device onto the TV. Took some figuring out initially and realised that one needs to sign-on to the chromecast network instead of the regular one.
The Clan Orient Brew was nice for our humid weather. Familiar taste, refreshingly bitter.
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The Orient Brew - craft beer by 1925 Brewing Co. |
Didn't realise there was turn down service till we came back from dinner.
Noticed that the bed has been refreshed, and a complimentary roll-on essential oil left on the bed.
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lovely |
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part of turn-down service |
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lavender to help with sleep |
They also removed the nice tea set and have it replaced with a transparent one and one pack of complimentary tea. Ooh, more tea, I like!
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changed the tea set and a new pack of tea |
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Cocoon Ritual tea |
Alas, had to work till the next morning, and hence had coffee and ate up some of the snacks.
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savoury snacks |
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coffee and cookie at 5am |
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crumbly triple choc cookie |
Breakfast is provided at Qin Restaurant located at Level 5. During this Covid period, guests will go to Level 4 to do Safe-Entry check-in and temperature scan. We took the 8am to 9am slot for breakfast. Coincidentally, Sam was on duty that morning and it was nice to see familiar face.
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breakfast menu |
Guest could choose one main from the breakfast menu. There is a Chef's Daily Special too besides the regular breakfast menu. Throughout our stay, the daily special on Day 1 was Udon set, while on Day 2, there was Dim Sum set.
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ready to order |
Once you are seated, staff will automatically bring over the toasted bread, kaya and butter set, and a bowl of lovely fruit cubes.
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kaya, toasted brioche and butter |
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so yummy |
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pretty looking fruits bowl |
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Chef's Daily Special (Day 1) - Udon Set |
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Chef's Daily Special (Day 2) - Dim Sum Set |
I tried the Homebrewed porridge, and it was comforting. Wished the temperature of the porridge to be warmer though. The porridge was light savoury and hence, all the condiments can be added in to jazz up the bowl. There's braised peanut, a slice of century egg, a strong savoury paste of olive (I think), fried anchovies and peanuts, preserved beancurd and a slice of pickle.
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Home Brewed Local Porridge |
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closer view of the porridge |
The Continental Breakfast was plentiful. Cold cuts of ham (pretty thick slices), smoked salmon, yoghurt fruits and cheese, salad and with a side of cereal.
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Continental Breakfast - yoghurt, cereal, cheese, fruits, salad, cold cuts |
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breakfast view |
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The QIN Breakfast - scrambled eggs |
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The QIN Breakfast - sunny side up |
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The QIN Breakfast - omelette |
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closer view of the omelette |
For hotel breakfast, I'd usually must have scrambled eggs or omelette, so Day 2 breakfast was a no-brainer, as most of us opted for The QIN Breakfast which is equivalent to the usual hotel breakfast of 2-eggs done your way, bacon, hashbrown, baked beans, tomato and mushrooms.
I'd recommend the omelette as visually, it just looked moreish when compared to the scrambled version. The beans had a hint of curry taste, so that was curious.
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mocha |
Breakfast at QIN was enjoyable but the 1-hour limit felt rushed, but it's understandable. I also didn't like the coffee from the restaurant nor the mocha. First time experienced a mocha that tasted of too much coffee.
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outside the gym |
I don't have much experience of making hotel bookings directly with the hotel and had assumed that the payable amount would have been deducted from the credit card automatically but alas, it was not so. The staff enquired if I had received an email with a link to pay. Actually I did, but the payment merchant was new for me, hence, didn't click on it especially if it was not from the same sender as per previous emails from the hotel.
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The Clan Hotel from across the road |
Staff who made the hotel stay memorable, was the sweet chap at the ground lobby whom I met on Day 1. Lovely Joy, whom was on-hand to meet and greet incoming guests and to usher to Level 2, Alex who made tea for us and of course Sam, whom we met a couple of times during our stay. Thank you and hope to see you again.
Stay tuned for subsequent posts on the eats around Telok Ayer during our staycation. See you soon!
More foodie and staycay adventures with Tracy, Hence and Ivan.
The Clan Hotel
Address: 10 Cross St, Singapore 048417
Website: https://www.theclanhotel.com.sg/