This summer we headed down under to New Zealand and Australia, flying via Singapore both outward and return. We've stayed in Singapore previously and didn't want to stop over, but we had time to kill in Singapore so decided to book a slot at the transit hotel in the airport – The Ambassador Transit Hotel in Terminal 1. The hotel is air side, you don't clear customs or collect your bags, and it can be booked for blocks of 6 hours. It also has a rooftop swimming pool, you can also use this for a small fee without booking a room.
On our outward flight we had a gap of about 3 hours between flights so we headed off to the pool and had a swim and stretch out (and snooze) on the sunbeds. A quick shower (the facilities at the pool are quite basic, but clean and okay), some fresh clothes and a bite to eat meant we boarded our flight to Brisbane feeling refreshed.
Our return flight involved a gap of 7 hours so we booked one of the rooms. On check in we were asked the time of our flight and what time we wanted our wake up call. The room was comfortable and very quiet; there were no windows, so it was also dark. Tea and coffee facilities were provided (the only negative was the powdered milk) and there was a TV with a range of channels. After a swim we headed back to our room for a cuppa and a sleep; we didn't really expect to sleep, but the bed was very comfortable and the room was dark and quiet, so we both slept for a couple of hours. The shower was good and there was a full bath if you fancied a soak to loosen up. We left for our long journey home to Edinburgh feeling good and agreed that next time we head down under we will use the hotel again. It made the long journeys outward from Edinburgh to Wellington and return from Brisbane tolerable and we arrived home with no real jet lag.
