I’ve previously talked about how I enjoyed my stay at the Orchard Hotel Singapore, now I’ll be talking about my use of their amenities. Specifically, I want to share my experience using their gym and swimming pool.
Some Great Amenities at Orchard Hotel Singapore: Gym, Swimming Pool and Laundry
As someone who strives to keep fit at all times, I really appreciate hotels that have gyms and fitness equipment. That said, not all hotel gyms are the same. Thankfully, Orchard Hotel is in the okay category when it comes to their gym.
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You’ll find the gym or Fitness Studio on the fourth floor of the hotel. Here’s a picture I took before I went inside. My first impression here was that it actually looks spacious which is actually a good sign.
You’ll find this area to your left as you enter the Fitness Studio. This has towels that you can use to wipe off your sweat during and after your workout. You’ll also have access to a water and alcohol dispenser here.
Here’s a zoomed out view of the area. You’ll also notice that there’s a bench here where you can sit after or in-between workouts. I found the bench to not be particularly comfortable and I think this is okay considering you’re really not supposed to sit there for long periods.
Sandwiching the bench are these towel drop receptacles. As their name implies, this is where you drop the towels after you’ve used them.
Now I was not really sure what these were when I initially saw them. They honestly looked a lot like Marimo moss that I saw in Japan. I did try to look these up and saw that they might be mood moss. Whether they have a functional use here in the studio though (other than being a decorative conversation starter), I have no idea.
Just before you get to the gym equipment, you’ll come across this weighing scale. It’s digital and I will say it was quite accurate. If you’re not staying here long term and if you’re not really monitoring your weight that much then I don’t think you’ll be using this a lot.
Here’s the first piece of gym equipment that I came across here. This is True Fitness’ MP2.0 2 Stack Multi-Gym and it’s quite honestly a really good (not to mention expensive) piece of equipment for a hotel gym to have. It’s great if you’re targeting to work out multiple body parts and don’t want the hassle of moving to other sections/areas of the gym.
Here’s a close up view of the upper body station as well as the exercises you can do on this machine. The upper body station is quite nice for exercises such as chest, incline, and shoulder presses, seated rows, lat pulldowns, and more.
If it’s leg day then you’re going to want to make use of the leg extension/leg curl station. This has the option for 4 starting positions for either extensions or curls and it also has a self-adjusting ankle pad for great support and to make adjustments less of hassle.
Opposite the multi-gym, you’ll find the cardio machines area. Pictured here is an an air bike (back) and a stationary bike (front).
A wide angle shot of the corner of the cardio machines area. I’m not sure why but for some reason they decided to alternate the placement of the stationary bikes with the other machines. Take note though that this doesn’t really have any impact on the effectiveness of these machines, I just personally think it’s an odd choice to alternate them like this.
Aside from stationary bikes and air bikes, Fitness Studio also has these elliptical trainers. These are really great not just for cardio but for also strengthening the muscles in your upper and lower body.
Now, not everybody might like elliptical trainers and that’s okay. Fitness Studio has a number of treadmills that should be great if you think elliptical trainers are too much work. I personally enjoy treadmills though they’re not as easy on the legs as elliptical trainers are.
Regardless of what machine you use though, you’ll still get to enjoy a really nice view of the hotel’s pool area. Oh, and did I mention that it’s open 24 hours? I think that’s really nice, especially for night owls.
If there’s one piece of gym equipment that I think Orchard Hotel needs to have more of, it would be the weight bench. At the time I was there, I only saw one (pictured above). It’s really good to have more of these, especially when most people might not be too keen on using the multi-gym.
The selection of free weights here are also rather limited. It has dumbbells and really, not much more. Weights for the dumbbells start at 2 pounds and top out at 20. Come to think of it, I also couldn’t find a bar here or the plates/discs that go along with it.
Once you’re done with your workout/workouts then you might want to consider going to the pool area. Fortunately, it’s on the same floor as the gym and is relatively easy to access (provided you’re a guest at the hotel).
To access the pool area, you will need to have your keycard with you. It’s also important to note that the hotel doesn’t have lifeguards so you’ll need to make sure you or a guardian is with your kids if you decide to bring them here.
From what I read, the Orchard Hotel pool is actually a semi-Olympic or short course pool. What this means is that its length (25 meters) is just half that of an Olympic sized pool. With that said, it’s still absolutely beautiful and the view of the Singapore skyline here is just fantastic.
Before diving in, I’d highly suggest checking out this sign for the hotel’s rules and regulations regarding pool use. It’s all very straightforward and also in English.
This area has cabanas where you can relax if you’re not keen on swimming and just want some fresh air. As with a lot of luxury hotels, you can consume food and drinks here provided they’re from the hotel.
Despite being a short course pool, it’s still actually quite large. And while most short course pools go as deep as 2 meters, here the deepest end is at 1.5 meters. That’s still considered deep of course and you should still look after your kids (or have someone do it for you) if you plan to bring them here to swim.
If you just want to cool down and relax then you might want to consider just hanging out in the jacuzzi. It’s actually pretty spacious and I would argue it has some of the best views (as you can see in the picture).
Here’s a zoomed out shot of the cabana area that I showed earlier. There are 5 cabanas here in total and they’re pretty close to the jacuzzi. Each cabana also has a table and 2-3 chairs which make it perfect for conducting your small informal meetings.
Another shot of the cabana area this time with the jacuzzi in the foreground. You might also notice the chaise lounges (off to the side in the picture) which are especially great if you want to sunbathe or get a tan.
Similar to the Fitness Studio, the hotel’s pool area offers free towels for guests to use after swimming in the pool or soaking in the jacuzzi. Guests can bring these to their rooms or they could also just drop these off in the designated receptacle on the cabinet where they got the towels from.
This is the shower area and I’d recommend showering here before going into the pool or soaking in the jacuzzi. Showering removes body cosmetics, oils, and lotion residues that might end up contaminating the pool and making it unusable for other guests.
Here’s a picture of the shallow end of the pool with the jacuzzi and cabana area in the background. The depth here is just 0.9 meters and ideally you’d want to be here if you’re unable to swim or if you have kids with you.
I was actually surprised to find this giant chess set and board here at the pool area. If I had a companion when I took this shot then you can bet that we’d have probably played a game or two.
Now if chess isn’t your thing then not to worry because the area is also a great place to take IG-worthy pictures. The landscaping here is actually quite nice and again, you have a really great view of Singapore’s skyline behind you.
Now this is a lobby on the fourth floor with a sign for directions to the rooms, gym, service laundry area, and swimming pool. Aside from directions, the lobby itself has microwaves and water dispensers (which we’ll check out later).
This is what you’ll see at the service laundry area. The hotel does have its own laundry service but if you’re not too keen on paying for that you can opt to do your own here.
On the left is the washing machine and the right is the dryer. Both of these are coin operated so you’ll need to make sure you have SGD coins on you if you do plan to make use of these.
I’m now back in the fourth floor lobby and here’s a look at the microwave ovens I talked about. In the event you’d like to heat up food then you’re going to want to do that here.
Aside from the microwave ovens, this area has hot and cold water dispensers. These are especially nice if you’re not in your room and want something to drink.
Overall, I think Orchard Hotel’s fourth floor amenities are quite nice though these could still do with some improvements. The gym I think needs a little more space and some additional equipment. As for the pool, it’s probably the amenity on this floor that I’m most impressed with. The laundry area was okay though I really wish there were one or two more coin-operated washing machines and dryers there. Really, I’m just nitpicking at this point. The amenities here are top-notch and I think you’re getting a little more than what you pay for.
