Wednesday, August 6, 2014

Village Hotel Albert Court - Slippery When Wet





I have mixed feelings about this hotel. The staff are efficient and helpful like the rest of the hotels under Far East Hospitality and they really go all the way to make the guests feel comfortable during their stays. In term of location the hotel is only about 5 mins walk from Little India MRT Station and so not a problem if you want to go shopping at Orchard Road which is a few stations away.

When we came to the hotel we couldn’t find our way to its main entrance as there is no proper signage. When checking in we were asked to pay a $50 deposit which I find it strange as we have just stayed at Rendezvous Hotel which is under the same Management, and they did not request any deposit from us. After checking in, we were directed to go to our room at the Club Wing which is at the next building, but again it took us a while to find the entrance.















We love the Club Wing! The surrounding designs remind us of the chalets at East Coast park or a resort and the place really smells nice. There are only 2 levels in the Club Wing and you have to cut across the Club Lounge to your room if you are staying on the ground floor or take a lift within the Club Lounge if you are staying at the 2nd floor. If you need to have windows and sunlight in your room, don’t take the rooms on the ground floor, unless you want to risk people peeping into your room.





We really like the room but I am disappointed with the bathroom as it does not have a separate place for standing shower. If you do not want to use the bathtub, you have to be very carefully not to spill water all over the bathroom’s floor. And if you have the habit of wearing the hotel’s slippers into the bathroom, please be very very careful as the floor tends to get very slippery when wet. After I slipped twice during my short stay, I decided to go barefoot whenever I use the bathroom.

I was also surprise to find a Bible in one of the drawers. When doing research on hotels I read somewhere on the Internet that if you see a Bible in your hotel room, asked for a change of room immediately as the room might be “dirty”. So out of concern I went back to the main building, and was advised by a staff that it is a normal practice for the hotel to place a Bible in the rooms.



Feeling slightly better after his assurance I went back to my room but on the way back, I approached another hotel’s guest if she has a Bible in her room and she told me she is not sure. After discussing with my wife we decided not to switch room and see how things go. I know I might sound silly but after a couple of bad experiences in hotel rooms in Malaysia I have no intention to having uninvited guest in my room again. Well I am please to inform you that except for a few noise at about 5am, which we both concluded that it MUST BE from the other rooms, we had a peaceful night.





Another point to note if you are a Club guest is that the evening cocktails are located at the bar at the main building and not in the Club Lounge. And as the Club Lounge does not offer afternoon tea, it is quite deserted most of the time, which is a good thing if you just want to relax, read a book, etc. 




We noticed that even during breakfast, most club guests choose to have their breakfast at Albert Café & Restaurant which offers more choices, as the breakfast spread at the Club Lounge is quite pathetic.

A few days later ...


RameshKanesan, Manager at Village Hotel Albert Court by Far East Hospitality.
Dear Alson_Teo,

Thank you for taking the time to post a review about your experience on Trip Advisor. We appreciate your feedback and will certainly share this with our team. We are currently looking at our food offerings for club and we will improve on it. Our ability to improve our product and service offerings has been a hallmark for this hotel over the past years and we will continue to ensure our guests needs are met and I hope to have the opportunity to welcome you back in the near future and I would be pleased to personally facilitate your reservation.

Stay Village. And Discover.

Ramesh Kanesan
Hotel Manager
rameshkanesa@fareast.com.sg

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