When we booked our Singapore flight last year, I was a bit hesitant because my friends and my sister would always say that traveling to Singapore is very expensive. Being a budget traveller, flying to Singapore served as a big challenge to my budget-ability :) haha! And so my research began few months before our trip.
I came across a website called Hostelworld.com. It's a website for hostels and B&Bs worldwide! And I can say it is legit because 1) we were able to successfully transact with them and 2) it's the most trusted website according to Lonely Planet.
We booked our hostel through Hostel World and booked one of the cheapest yet very convenient, cozy, and worth both our money and experience in Backpackers SG. Sadly, they don't have a website of their own but they are found in various hostel and B&B websites anyway. We chose this over the other 3-4 hostels that we've pre-selected because of the following: 1) Price: Backpackers SG is the cheapest hostel we have ever stayed in. It costs us Php 2,688 for 4 nights and 5 whole days per person! If you divide it, it'll be around Php 672 per night! Come on! Where in SG can you see a nightly rate like that (besides a motel probably? yikes!) haha Though the catch is, the room is a bunk bed. You can either choose if you will stay in an all girls or all boys or mixed dorm rooms. I chose the mix because I'm with my boyfriend :) But basically a hostel less than Php 3,000 in Singapore is like an answered prayer for a budget traveller like me. Amen :) Oh btw, my boyfriend and I are not that "adventurous" and "backpacker" type that's why sharing beds with a total stranger is really new for us. We decided to try it in Singapore because we believe that it's a safe country and they are strict to begin with.
2) Location: It is located at the Lavander MRT Station. That's near Bugis, Esplanade, Raffles Place, Clarke Quay and Marina Bay. The station is about 5 minutes brisk walking pace and about 10 minutes for a slow pace haha. Honestly, when we first came to the area it reminds me of Ongpin (China town in the Philippines) because it's full of wholesale stores and old buildings. The area is quiet, not crowded, not busy, and it looks deserted but we felt safe walking around early morning or late at night. There are no tourist spots near the area besides Mustafa Center (a huge supermarket slash department store operating for 24 hours a day near Bugis).
3) Facilities: Surprisingly Backpackers SG's facilities are all good! They provided a lot of essentials for free so backpackers can travel without the hassle. They provide assistance (and discounts!) to different travel destinations, they provide free breakfast of toast, oatmeal, tea, and coffee, travel books that you can borrow, EZlink MRT cards (because you buy one of these for a hassle free MRT experience), adaptors, free shampoo and soap, umbrella, sewing kit, hair dryer, slippers and a lot more :) They also have very fast wifi and provides 2 laptops that you can borrow to browse the internet. You can also print and scan documents if you need it say, for impromptu online bookings for Universal Studios or iFly at Sentosa just like what we did.What I like about the hostel is that you can bring less of your stuff because it's already provided.
4) Security: The hostel provides electronic key cards (room) and keys for your personal locker. Though you have to deposit SGD 20 for it and retrieve the money when you check out. They have CCTV cameras all over the place plus all of their employees are Filipinos therefore as a Filipina, this is a big deal because having a Kababayan creates peace of mind.
I highly recommend Backpackers SG for 1) those who have a tight budget or would like to spend their money elsewhere aside for the accommodation. It is ideal for 2) people who are on the go, not too maarte when it comes to sleeping with a stranger in one room (alert: no to snoring haha) 3) those who have few or none at all valuable items to be stored or left behind the room and 4) those who are totally okay to take a bath "ala cubicle type" (think Fitness First Gym's public shower cubicles haha) or poop on a "semi-public" toilet haha and finally 4) it is ideal for those who are game to meet new friends or travel mates in the future because the guests here are all foreigners and most of them are backpackers and adventurers so smile and enjoy their company.
Disclaimer: This is an old post from my Blogspot account dated August 28, 2012.
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