Slings both ways | Raffles, Singapore

Birdsong. It’s an unfamiliar and most welcome sound in Singapore, a country where the almost constant banging of optimistic, high-rise construction is everywhere. Even it seems, in the vicinity of Raffles Hotel at 8am. Regretfully, the retreat of Churchill, Chaplin, Elizabeth Taylor and countless heads of state past and present has no jurisdiction to ban such audible and visible intrusion.

At the rooftop pool, where time otherwise seems to stand still, it means positioning one’s lounger with great care to avoid cranes in one’s sightline, though skyscrapers intrude from every angle. Still, it is a sybaritic place to while away a few hours: swimming, reading and eavesdropping on the accents of the other guests (mostly cut glass crystal British or Hochdeutsch). It’s only a pity that besides the refreshing freshly squeezed watermelon juice, there are no genuinely local snacks like popiah or utah-utah. Still, I’m delighted to see that breakfast options include dim sum and congee (rice porridge) alongside the standard Western offerings.

My bedroom has the feel of Lady Mary’s chambers in Downton Abbey, painted a spotless white with louvered shutters and a heavy curtain separating the sleeping quarters from what’s quaintly called the parlour, complete with a sofa, proper dining table and bottles of spirits (not complimentary, I note). I smile at the gentleman’s clothes stand, complete with that hanging clothes brush one rarely sees these days. Other details hark back to gentler times too: hangers that you can actually remove from their rail, and a proper key in a leather pouch. The bathroom has a capacious shower, small tiled bath and Fragonard unguents that are beautifully fragranced (though do contain parabens; when are hotels going to address this?).

As a resident it is immensely pleasing to sweep up the white stairs and red carpet of the grand front entrance, though the “Residents only”-stamped white gate and through the lush palm court to your room. During the day the polished marble main foyer is thronged with visitors taking the obligatory photo in front of the chandelier and potted palms and, in the background, that sweeping staircase beyond which they’re not permitted to venture. The downside of a stay at Raffles is its status as a major tourist attraction; I couldn’t bring myself to be yet another one of those people sampling a Singapore Sling in the Raffles complex’s double-decker Long Bar, with its ceiling fans and peanut shell-strewn floor ­– coachloads of visitors arrive here throughout the day, and up to 1,000 cocktails are served each day, brought out in batches of 50 at a time, all pre-prepared.

I couldn’t bring myself to be yet another one of those people sampling a Singapore Sling in the Raffles complex’s double-decker Long Bar, with its ceiling fans and peanut shell-strewn floor ­– coachloads of visitors arrive here throughout the day

Instead, I chose the relative calm of The Writer’s Bar and ordered the gin sling version with gin, cherry brandy, Benedictine, lime juice, bitters and soda water (omitting, as recommended by Noel Coward, the overly sweet pineapple juice). The pink colour was essential back in 1915, when the drink was “invented” at Raffles, so that it appeared women were merely drinking fruit punch rather than alcohol. The Writer’s Bar is also a good place to sample some wine from the largest cellar list in Singapore, including some rather fine Japanese wines; the markup on the list, compiled by Parisian wine director supremo Stephane Soret, is surprisingly modest. Nearby Raffles Grill is elegant and formal, but there is a contemporary edge to dishes such as foie gras with green tea flakes, tamarind and candied carrots and lemongrass scented Dover Sole with sumac emulsion.

When leaving the hotel, I notice its 1 Beach Road address, a poignant reminder of its original foundation by the Sarkies brothers in 1899 as a ten-room white colonial bungalow overlooking the beach. Today, this wedding-cake confection of a hotel, with 103 suites, is far removed from the sea, and sits instead beside an ocean of reclaimed land. Yet somehow, despite the bustle of picture-taking tourists, Raffles retains much of its allure. And, yes, when sitting reading under a frangipani tree in the palm court, I actually did catch the sound of birdsong. C

Raffles Hotel, 1 Beach Rd, Singapore 189673
+65 6337 1886; raffles.com

Sudi Pigott flew to Singapore with Singapore Airlines, which flies four times daily from London Heathrow to Singapore (including flights using the airline’s brand new 777-300ER aircraft, plus a daily flight from Manchester).