What can I say? A serene, tropical bliss in the midst of the busy, bustling area that is Orchard.
Treetops provide serviced apartments in the central area of ‘Orchard’ in Singapore. It is about a ten minute walk from treetops to the MRT which will connect you to the vast majority of the city. There is also a bus stop about a three minute walk from Treetops, the local buses are regular and timely. An app called “Go There’ can be downloaded on your smart phone, this will provide bus route an information and give you directions from pretty much anywhere to anywhere else!
The Orchard area is popular for shoppers, the malls here have a vast array of shops ranging from brands like H & M to Chanel. It can be expensive and you may get entirely lost trying to cross the street (underground) at Ion Mall….should you feel the need to do this, allow an extra half an hour to find the correct exit. The prospect of finding the right exit provokes a feeling of dread in me like no other…..but Orchard is worth a visit for the avid shopper. The malls continue all the way down Orchard Road so this is a whole days entertainment for the enthusiast (and rich).
There are also several eateries in the malls, a Hard Rock Café, which is a stones throw from Treetops and Starbucks for a latte. If you are looking for local cuisine, there are also a couple of food courts in the bottom of Ion and Lucky Plaza.
Treetops itself offers 1 bedroom to 3 bedroom apartments, some one level, some duplex, and there is a penthouse. The apartments form a square around an open courtyard, which houses the pool and a Spa.
The apartments themselves are spacious; they include a living and dining area, plus a kitchen, bedrooms and en-suite bathrooms. Obviously the room layout and dimensions will depend on the size you book. Although probably ranking in the ££££ range, given it’s location and facilities, it is quite reasonably priced.
The staff are generally very conscientious and courteous. They provided our children with trick or treat pumpkins at Halloween and they are generally on hand to provide any information you require.
The apartments are clean, there is a daily maid service (except Sunday), and you receive a welcome basket with a few ‘essentials’ on arrival.
There are dry cleaning/laundry facilities available on site. These are located in the basement near reception. There are tokens available from reception and you will require one each for the washing machine and tumble drier. We have stayed here a few times now and learned quickly that it is much more cost effective to try and get laundry tokens included in your rate. The cost of laundry for a family of four quickly mounts up!
You may also send dry cleaning and laundry away for washing at additional charge.
There is a café/restaurant on site called The Sunbird Café. This is where you will get the breakfast included in the rate. Breakfast is fine for a short stay but gets a bit dull after two weeks. The urge to nip out for breakfast niggles after a while. Breakfast generally includes cereal, muesli, some fresh fruit, natural yoghurt, a selection of bread and jam, fruit juice, regular coffee and tea and some hot options. The hot options vary day to day but not by a great deal. They offer things like waffles, pancakes, sausages (of the odd, not sausage like at all, Singapore variety), eggs, noodles and occasionally curry.
You can order an omelette, a latte, a cappuccino that sort of thing, at extra cost. It irks me a little that I have to pay if I want a latte, especially given that the coffee they serve in the breakfast buffet tastes vile. Anyway, breakfast does the job for a holiday period. Be warned however that breakfast finishes at ten. That means they start switching things off and food runs low at 9.45. I suggest going earlier!
The Sunbird Cafe is pretty much dead at lunch, No-one really uses it other than for the odd coffee, water or beer. A few more pop in for a drink at night but not many. You can order food here; they have basic bar menu with some pasta, burgers, salad etc. It’s a bit hit or miss, the pasta is ok but the chips aren’t so good. You can also order food from The Sunbird Café to have in your room.
The pool is pretty good, it’s long enough for a length or two for the serious swimmer, is pretty enough to look tropical and idyllic and has enough water fountains and scooshy gadgets to entertain the kids. There is small splash pool for younger kids and a Jacuzzi.
There is also a gym on site. It’s small but serves its purpose. It has a couple of treadmills, a cross trainer, a bike, some weights and a couple of resistance training machines.
There is also a small park for little ones but I think you’d be hard pushed to rely on this to entertain any child over age 6 for any length of time as it is really geared towards younger kids.
The lush greenery and plants in treetops make for very beautiful surroundings indeed. My son spent many an hour retrieving snails from the pathway after a rainstorm, saving them from being stood on, so it really is like you are living in a tropical paradise! You may also spot some squirrels and the occasional lizard on your way across the courtyard.
Please note that several local restaurants provide a substantial discount to the Treetops guest. You just need to show your room key. Details of participating restaurants can be found in the booklet provided in each room but it includes places like Hard Rock Café, which is always a hit with the kids when they are bored of eating ‘asian’.
Be careful with that room key though, Treetops are very strict about it. If you lock yourself out they will give you a room key that is valid for one entry. If you lose it you have to pay 5 SGD for a new one etc.
All in all, we always enjoy our stay at treetops. We always feel a bit spoiled by the time we leave. I would highly recommend it.
