Walking into the lobby of Hotel Jen Tanglin is an experience in itself. Qi Yun and myself (Shawn) have been to our fair share of hotels, and of course, our fair share of hotel lobbies. Most hotel lobbies have designs and concepts bordering on the safe side, but Hotel Jen Tanglin was much more adventurous, thus earning a big ‘Wow!’ from both of us. Read on to find out more!
Standing outside Hotel Jen Tanglin, you’ll find a row of bicycles lined up below its signboard. They make for a great photo moment, and you can even take them out for a ride! Do remember to get a Go-pro to capture your journey. Qi Yun loved the idea so much that she even scheduled a bicycle trip out for us! As for me, I liked the idea of being able to ride it whenever I want, more than the actual riding :p
Check out the brightly lit and very spacious lobby! There’s lots of sitting areas to rest the tired feet of a traveler. I like that place is superbly spacious with lots of light! There’s a cool funky feel to the area.
The first thing you will notice upon entering the lobby is a big wall-partition decorated with potted plants. The soft cushioned chairs provide a comfy place to relax and maybe fall asleep as you wait for your friends. Here I am trying to look cool as Qi Yun snapped a pic. She loves the place for the many OOTD opportunities. I like being able to sit down as she takes the OOTDs.
Walking over to the concierge to check-in, you will not find the conventional long tables of most hotels. Instead, you will see a table made up of vintage suitcases. I tried to pull one out to no avail. Do check out the staff’s uniform when you are there! It’s designed by local designer FIN and adds a very funky feel to the entire experience. Moving from the lobby to the room was an experience in itself. Spend some time to explore the lobby and corridors of Hotel Jen Tanglin and you will find treasure in the details!
A charging station where you can simply place your mobile device and take along the key with a cute doll key chain. These stations are littered throughout Hotel Jen Tanglin, keep your eyes peeled for them!
Random signs tucked in a little corner of the hotel. We love the speed camera sign as it pointed to a CCTV. Good for telling kids not to run about!
Artsy lighting to spice up the corridors! You’ll find these and other quirky designs all around. I really like this piece for some reason. A little ‘mystery’ feel to it. Do keep your eyes open and check out all the details and hidden treasures Hotel Jen Tanglin has to offer. There’s much more than what you’ve seen here so far. And now for a quick room tour!
After checking in at the ‘luggage-counter’, we made our way up to 1708 (Club Room), on the 17th floor. The door to the room was a wee-bit heavy but oh-so-sturdy! We opened the door and a well-lit room with chic colours greeted us! The room was spacious enough for the 2 of us, and they’ve provided some nice touches to the room.
Just above where you can set your luggage is an open hanger rack with the word ‘HELLO’! Both Qi Yun and I can’t help but belt out a decimated rendition of Adele’s ‘Hello’ upon seeing this. Qi Yun first discovered this and alerted me to it. She was pleasantly surprised by this little detail, while my attention was spent wondering how to use this piece of furniture.
A good-looking bar-fridge tucked neatly in one corner. Open the fridge and you will see only bottled water and a cup of fruits. Always keeping the customer in mind, Hotel Jen Tanglin has removed all drinks (beer, soda et al) and have placed only the bare essentials. Most of us don’t even touch the cans of carbonated drinks anyway. Instead, vending machines at very reasonably priced drinks can be found in Hotel Jen Tanglin. I was really happy to have lots of space to put in bottles of drinks since I’m a water guzzler. Qi Yun was excited about the cup of fruits and had a hard time deciding whether to eat it or save her stomach for our next meal.
Most customers do not realise this, but there’s actually a fully functional iron with ironing board deftly hidden within the day bed. So if you’re back from a party with crinkled shirts and due for a business meeting the next day, have no fear as the iron is here! As a very ‘functional’ type of person, I went ‘woah’ when we discovered this. For Qi Yun, she’s just ecstatic that the day bed provided an excellent spot for photo-taking with a great view as a backdrop
Reading lights well concealed by the bedside. There’s 2 in our room, one by each side of the bed. These lights are pretty strong, and they fold neatly flat back into their storage area, which I loved.
The beds are of good quality and even the thread counts are of the same standard of Shangri-la Hotels. Even teddy bears can’t resist the nice feel of smooth clean linen on a comfy bed! White sheets are Qi Yun’s ‘thing’, so you can imagine how she felt jumping onto the bed. As for me, I’m happy to have 2 fluffy pillows and a cosy comforter to sleep in. The wall papers are designed by local artists and there are four designs that are alternated for the rooms. We liked our ‘fishy’ wallpaper 😀
The bed was also very well-suited for pillow fights, as we can truthfully attest to. This pic was taken before WWWIII took place.
A study area to catch up on your work! If you’re an overseas traveler and loathe bringing a bulky international adapter, the club rooms in Hotel Jen Tanglin have an international socket you can use. So leave those adapters at home! Furthurmore, you need to charge your mobile device and find the mobile device chargers to cumbersome, simply bring in a USB cable and plug it into a socket at the study table to charge. Absolutely convenient and customer-centric! I am amazed by the thoughts that go into the designing of the room.
The toilets were clean and looked really chic. I was quite happy with the shower area as it was pretty spacious and water pressure was good.
A pretty well-stock toilet! Besides the usual towel and toothbrushes, Qi Yun was delighted to find a black hairband to tie her hair as well as a bottle of body lotion.
Staying in a Club Room also gives you access to the Club Lounge. It’s on the same level as our room (17th Floor). The Club Lounge is an exclusive alternative to J65 and Jen’s Kitchen-On-The-Go. You get a nice quiet place where you can simply read a book or work on your laptop. While the selection of food is not as extensive of J65, you can satisfy your food cravings 24hours every day! Meals are prepared here for brunch and dinner. If you feel like having a midnight snack, simply pop by the Club Lounge and treat yourself to a bowl of cup-noodles or assorted nuts. This was my favourite part of the Club Lounge. I popped by twice at night to get some hot tea and nuts.
Besides the Club Lounge, you can also pop over to the swimming pool at Level 4. They have a kiddy pool to cater to the young ones as well as an adult pool where most will spend their time on. There seems to be a plentiful number of pool-side benches so take your pick! If you decide that swimming isn’t for you, you can always spend your time at the jacuzzi, sauna, steam-bath or gym nearby. In fact, you can even cut your hair at a saloon, get a massage at the spa or simply munch on some snacks at Ah Hoi’s Kitchen, all within 1 min from the pool!
There was a flamingo float at the pool, which was Qi Yun’s favourite. Do say ‘Hi!’ to it when you are there! She spent half the time in that float, just chilling. I preferred to be moving in the pool and did a few laps.
One thing we really love is Hotel Jen Tanglin’s attention to the finer details and their emphasis on a great customer experience. The service rendered by the staff is top-notch. From the concierge to the F&B waiters, everyone carried a smile and gave you utmost attention as the tended to your needs. As mentioned earlier, you can rent bicycles and go for a swim at Hotel Jen Tanglin. To capture those precious moments, you can even borrow a GoPro (memory card no included) from the concierge! There are very limited GoPros available, but not to worry, most customers don’t know about it either :p
We loved our stay at Hotel Jen Tanglin and were impressed by their attention to detail. If you are looking for a unique staycation or travel experience, we’re confident Hotel Jen Tanglin will not disappoint (unless you are the type who doesn’t like a bit of fun)!
Smile lots and stay happy!
Love,
Shawn & Qi Yun
