Girl's 4th Birthday (II): Staycation at Grand Park Orchard

We were privileged to be invited to staycate (as they call it) at the Grand Park Orchard, located right in the heart of Orchard Road.

Photo credit: Grand Park Orchard

I was excited as we've walked passed many times before but had never really known what goes on within the mysterious building above.

The lobby was located at the 4th floor (for added privacy) and we checked in promptly at 2pm.

Lobby reception

I liked the spacious and comfortable waiting area for guests to hang out while we waited for our rooms to be ready.

Waiting patiently

As my mum-in-law would be staying with us, the hotel kindly provided us with connecting Premier rooms that came with a king size bed and twin beds.

Spacious room with king size bed

Great view of Orchard Road below

The kids can't wait to explore!

Comes with full amenities such as a safe, bottled water, Gryphon tea and even a basket of fruits, all without additional charge! :)

The bathrooms come with a full length bathtub, full range of toiletries and even a weighing scale
(for checking how much holiday weight you've gained! *laughs*)

The unique feature of this hotel is the Handy device that they've recently launched to provide their guests, especially those who are visiting from overseas, with FREE unlimited local and international calls (to 27 countries)! Grand Park Orchard is the first in Singapore (and possibly the region) to introduce this technology =)

There's a Handy in every room =)

You can bring the Handy with you when you are exploring Singapore so if you've booked 2 rooms, you may call each other on your Handy absolutely free! Just don't lose it or you'll have to pay $350 for its replacement.

For the social media addicts who can't live without wifi, you'll be thrilled to know that there is free 3G mobile internet on the Handy and free wifi in the rooms! :)

Clockwise from left: The study table and TV - notice that the room is big enough to accommodate my double stroller =);
No need for travel adapters, the room provides universal electrical points;
If you own an iPhone, there's a charger unit for you

The second room has all of the amenities of the first, except that it looks very different!

Connecting room has twin beds

See through bathroom!
(for ensuring your kids wash where they are supposed to when they bathe?)

Don't worry, you can draw the blinds if you're shy =)

The rooms were decorated with pretty ladies prancing in the wind, which at first glance looks kinda creepy. However, rest assured you don't actually see her anymore when you switch off most of the lights at night =)

The hotel also kindly provided us with a baby cot that we requested, and it came with baby toiletries, bath toys, kids cups and a little soft toy! Very thoughtful of them =)

Cot looks similar to the one we have at home

Baby toiletries from Pigeon, bath duckies, plastic kid-friendly cups and little teddy bear to sleep with

We then met up with the hotel's Guest Services Manager, who brought us on a tour of the hotel and its facilities. Some the facilities include a gym (which faces the swimming pool), a business center where you can surf the internet and print things like tickets and itinerary for free as well as a Crystal Club lounge for those who are staying in the club rooms and suites.

Gym, business center and Crystal Club

After the tour, we had our afternoon tea at the Open House, the hotel's dining facility.

Open House and Onyx Bar

Before I can even take photos of the food, the hubby and brother-in-law had already finished eating while commenting how good it was -_-

The pizza (left), prawn noodles and laksa (top right), siew mai and har gow (prawn dumplings) (bottom right)
were a hit with everyone

Sushi and satay (left) were amazing while the pastries (top right) were ordinary.
The dessert selection (bottom right) was good too. You must try the chocolate mousse! Delicious! =)

Our plates were nearly all empty! *yum*

We were told by the restaurant's manager that they often host children's full month and birthday celebrations there. Depending on the size of your party, the management can allocate a private section at the back of the restaurant to you which you can decorate and make your own. I thought that was quite nice (the hubby was very interested to hold our boy's 1st year birthday party there but I preferred a place with a playground. We'll see..).

As you can see, we had a wonderful afternoon tea because both our kids were asleep (well, initially anyway. The boy woke up while we were eating but managed to entertain himself so we left him on his own).

After our afternoon tea, we woke the girl up for a swim in the pool!

Photo credits: Grand Park Orchard

Lounge chairs to sit and relax (or put your stuff)

This was the third time that we're introducing the boy to the pool and initially he was still apprehensive.

This looks mighty scary..

Family photo in the pool =)

However after slowly easing him into the water, he was so okay with it that his dad was able to swing him around in the pool! Good job Baby Boy! =)

He couldn't stay in the pool for too long as we were afraid he would catch a chill so we got his grandma to bring Baby Boy back to the hotel room to bathe.

Swimming is not so scary after all!

Girl, on the other hand, was happy to continue swimming while her daddy dunked her into the water!

If you drink alcohol, you may order drinks from the bar and have it delivered to you by the pool =)

BC stands for Bar Canary
Photo credits: Grand Park Orchard

We had a great time chatting all the way into the night. I enjoyed the fellowship tremendously =)

That night, I didn't really get to enjoy the comfortable bed because Baby Boy kept crying every 2 hours. Sometimes for milk, and other times for reasons even I'm not sure of *grrrr*

Despite being cranky the next morning, I trodded on with the rest of the family for breakfast at Open House. Nothing cheers me up more than food =)

Our lovely spread of food

Although it was a nice breakfast, mum-in-law said she preferred the afternoon tea we had the day before *laughs*

We returned to the room where my girl and I spent considerable amount of time soaking in the bathtub. Of course I chased her out of the bathtub after a while. I deserve my mummy-time alone! Ahhh.. this is the life.. *grin*

After we checked out, we decided to shop at Orchard Road since parking was already paid for by the hotel (who kindly provides complimentary parking for all guests).

My kids were so exhausted, the both of them were in dreamland by the time we entered the mall.

Sleeping comfortably in their stroller

My girl had an awesome birthday, one I'm sure she will never forget! As for us, I had a great time chilling out and spending precious time with my family.

As a full time working mum constantly busy with work and blogging, I really appreciate every opportunity that I have with my family. Thank you Grand Park Orchard for a great weekend and friendly hospitality =)


<< Back to Girl's 4th Birthday (I): Party like Queen Elsa

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This post is part of my Family Staycations collection in my Fun in Singapore Guide!

   

Click each staycation destination below to read about our staycation experience:

           

You can also stay up-to-date with our staycation experiences on Instagram via the hashtag #mpmstaycations

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Disclosure: Complimentary afternoon tea, breakfast and accommodation for 1 night at the Grand Park Orchard were received from Park Hotel Group for the purposes of this review. No monetary compensation was received; all opinions (and fun-filled photos and videos) are my own.