Hotel Review: Hotel Jen Orchardgateway Singapore

Hotel Name: Hotel Jen Orchardgateway Singapore
Address: 277 Orchard Road, Singapore

I stayed at the Hotel Jen Orchardgateway in Singapore. I was a guest of the hotel who provided a nights stay to be reviewed.

Hotel Jen may not a familiar brand yet but they do come from an established hotel name. Hotel Jen is the new brand of Traders Hotels, which is gradually being rolled out to the new name and look. Traders and Hotel Jen are part of the Shangri-La Hotels group, which needs no introduction, especially in Asia.

Hotel Jen is the 4-star hotel representation of the Shangri-La group, and it is going for a fresh and modern look. Just seeing the hotel logo intimates that it’s not your usual stuffy and conservative hotel chain.

The Hotel Jen Orchardgateway is on top of the Orchard Gateway shopping centre on Orchard Road; one of the many new shopping malls on what is a popular area to stay in Singapore. The reception is on the 10th floor and not all that obvious from Orchard Rd, but if you are arriving via the metro it is easy to find as there are signs at the station pointing the way. If you are arriving by car there is an official entrance on Somerset Road.

I got a double room for my stay. The bed was super-comfortable and the room was bright and made good use of the space.

The work desk was along the wall and was a decent size and the TV was mounted on the wall in front of the bed.

The bathroom was also well designed to make best use of space, with a separate toilet and shower area, and open plan washroom with a sliding partition for extra privacy if needed.

The toiletry kit comes in a see-though zip bag which makes for an ideal carry-on toiletry bag.

In hotels I never open the mini-fridge because I consider them as booby-traps. Move one thing and BAM! You just got charged for it. Here though there was a post-it note suggesting to check the fridge out. In the fridge was two bottles of water and a fruit salad container. I loved this idea as a welcome snack. In the case of my travel day I had just arrived in the country and I had no currency on me and I hadn’t stopped to eat since arriving. Just having a snack (and a healthy one at that) was a nice thing to tide me over until I went to the bank and got something more substantial to eat.

One of the highlights of the hotel is the rooftop swimming pool, which has a commanding view of the downtown skyline. It is a good length as well, so you could do laps, though most people seemed content to gaze over the infinity edge.

Another good idea of the hotel are the vending machines on every floor with snacks and pot noodles. They also vend adapters if you don’t have the UK-style plugs that are used in Singapore. Personally I think it would have been better to have universal plugs in the rooms, which more hotels are now starting to adopt, but this is a good workaround if you have ever arrived in a new country at midnight and have no means to charge your devices.

As a hotel reviewer I had access to the private club lounge, which has drinks and snacks, and a great view of the Orchard Road skyline.

The breakfast is on the 10th floor reception and is indoors as well is in a protected outdoor area, so that is a good time to be outdoors in Singapore before being overwhelmed by the daytime humidity.

I loved the vibe of this hotel, and being in a central location above a metro station was a bonus. It felt modern and more connected to travellers looking for a stylish city stay.