Phuket To Singapore

[mikebike]

Cheers Peter... couldn't agree more!

[ALFREDO]

-petercallen-

I sorry now that I answered to your questions in your thread when you try now to turn the words around I wrote.

So what is wrong with my opinion?

I am not a native English speaker,

so I thought, other standards mean, that it is much cleaner

(even my first time Singapore Thai GF traveller was positively surprised and the public taxi I drove was clean! The taxi driver ment they get punished if it is not clean enough!)

and that Singapore has a Mass Transportsystem, People mover system Bangkok can only dream off.

So, I thought sophisticated means, that Singapore has some Tourist spots, Sentosa Island with Cable car, Disneyland style attractions, Universal Studios, Singapore Flyer, Singapore night Zoo, Battlebox, Formula 1 Night race ect Thailand not has.

Internet on Changi Airport is free, they even have Laptopstations you can use, you do not need to have your own Laptop with you. Phuket Airport 100 Baht 15 min?

The Mc Donalds ect on the Airport Changi seem much cheaper than the Overpriced Burgerking on Phuket Airport!

I wrote, I would not dare to come here alone-except for a one day Visarun-this is not easy lady-Companyonship Thailand.

And I wrote, Shopping there is maybe right, outdated to do so in Singapore.

You write friendlyness-now. the Passportcontrol in both Singapore and Kuala Lumpur Airport is much friendlyer than on Thai Airports!

You go on booked tours in Singapore and are not satisfied, -Som nam na- I nearly always organise that myself and have plenty time to do what I want.

You write from shopping and bad mannered people-that can happen everywhere, but is not my agenda.

Sophisticated means=thank you for lecturing me English, i will look how the Internet translates that to my language. I ment more modern, special, more exclusive, more technical.

There is the Bayoke Sky Tower in BKK and there is a similar 78? floor Hotel building you can visit in Singapore, both gave you the possibility to come up there look around and drink something.

BUT, the drink which is included in the ride you get in BKK served later in an old Bar without view and in Singapore you sit in a Bar with big full glassfront overlooking Singapore and you sip the drink there in a much different style!

To Thailand people return to Singapore not-

HELLO, Singapore is only a city with no real beach and Thailand is a big country, you want compare that? Sorry for that!

I went to Singapore now 3 times in 12 years, always only some days, or only 1 day-Visarun, that was enough and ok for me.

And it was an eye opener for the Isaan lady, how nice an Airport and how clean and modern a city can look, how clean a normal public Taxi can be and how good the driver spoke English.

That seldom to find in Bangkok and he did not try to bring me somewhere, where I could buy something and he would get commission.

Be not surprised Mr.Callen if I not advise you next time.

You are not friendly and maybe we should hear the sales people version of events and who had been rude.

[petercallen]

Alfredo you are allowed to have your own opinion like everyone else.

We went to Disney Land in Hongkong and the entrance fee there cover all the rides

and entertainment venues only food and drinks were extra so why bother with sentosa

island.

We spent time with Australian,British and American couples and they all had the same

opinion, very expensive and not a shoppers paradise.

You should read the tour brochures in Singapore they include visits to overpriced

sales outlets like most other country's

Phuket airport is not the main international airport in Thailand that is in Bangkok

which has everything Changi airport has including free internet terminals

The passport control was no different in Singapore than in Thailand or any other country

it depends on the person serving you and your own attitude.

Bangkok does have a excellent train system which they are expanding all the time when

funds are available,If you want to compare train systems i suggest you try Perth in

Australia where they have installed a new high speed network.

Who cares about the price of Mcdonalds or Burgerking they are junk food i prefer Thai

food any day.

You have a nice day.

[LivinLOS]

Phuket airport is not the main international airport in Thailand that is in Bangkok

which has everything Changi airport has including free internet terminals

Comparing Changi and Swampy is 2 totally different things..

Swampy have a swimming pool ??

Swampy have a nice outdoor smoking area ??

Swampy have a airside hotel ??

And far more than that is simply the layout, logical design, ease of use.. The 2 are just on different levels.

The passport control was no different in Singapore than in Thailand or any other country

I have never waited more than 1 or 2 minutes with a single person or two in front of me swiftly processed in Sing.. Contrast to Thailand where long queues and rude surly immigration staff grudgingly stamp my visa. While its not Bangkok admittedly, Phuket is even worse, I once queued to clear immigration for almost as long as my international flight took to get me to Thailand. I have also arrived late to find immigration actually sleeping, and extremely pissed to be woken up, with hair stuck up and in a right state.. No where else have I had to wake up the immigration officers.

[petercallen]

Phuket airport is not the main international airport in Thailand that is in Bangkok

which has everything Changi airport has including free internet terminals

Comparing Changi and Swampy is 2 totally different things..

Swampy have a swimming pool ??

Swampy have a nice outdoor smoking area ??

Swampy have a airside hotel ??

And far more than that is simply the layout, logical design, ease of use.. The 2 are just on different levels.

The passport control was no different in Singapore than in Thailand or any other country

I have never waited more than 1 or 2 minutes with a single person or two in front of me swiftly processed in Sing.. Contrast to Thailand where long queues and rude surly immigration staff grudgingly stamp my visa. While its not Bangkok admittedly, Phuket is even worse, I once queued to clear immigration for almost as long as my international flight took to get me to Thailand. I have also arrived late to find immigration actually sleeping, and extremely pissed to be woken up, with hair stuck up and in a right state.. No where else have I had to wake up the immigration officers.

I saw no smoking areas at Changi.

Why would you want a swimming pool at a airport.

I book flights so i don't need a airport hotel.

Generally speaking i have never queued a long time at Phuket airport

its a small airport with a high volume of traffic like Perth airport

and if a lot of flights arrive at the same time you have to queue.

At Changi airport they don't have to check your visas when you arrive,

from what i have heard they are updating the immigration computers here

and that should make it faster.

[steelepulse]

Changi and Phuket........apples and oranges. Changi is so much better than Phuket in all aspects.

>>from what i have heard they are updating the immigration computers here

and that should make it faster.

I'm not holding my breath on this.

[LivinLOS]

I saw no smoking areas at Changi.

Why would you want a swimming pool at a airport.

I book flights so i don't need a airport hotel.

Generally speaking i have never queued a long time at Phuket airport

its a small airport with a high volume of traffic like Perth airport

and if a lot of flights arrive at the same time you have to queue.

At Changi airport they don't have to check your visas when you arrive,

from what i have heard they are updating the immigration computers here

and that should make it faster.

Why would I want a swimming pool ?? Well not all flights can be perfectly timed in with a connection.. Unless it had escaped your notice airports are a common place where people have to wait around.. A few hours to kill going and having a nice swim is a perfect post (and pre) flight chill..

Same with the hotel, my Bali flights come into sing at 11ish at night, and the first flight out isnt until the am.. So a airport hotel means no trip into the city or trying to sleep in an airport lounge..

You said Swampy has all Changi has.. It doesnt.. Nor is it well laid out, or well designed. Its basically a king power mall.

[petercallen]

Why would I want a swimming pool ?? Well not all flights can be perfectly timed in with a connection.. Unless it had escaped your notice airports are a common place where people have to wait around.. A few hours to kill going and having a nice swim is a perfect post (and pre) flight chill..

Same with the hotel, my Bali flights come into sing at 11ish at night, and the first flight out isnt until the am.. So a airport hotel means no trip into the city or trying to sleep in an airport lounge..

You said Swampy has all Changi has.. It doesnt.. Nor is it well laid out, or well designed. Its basically a king power mall.

I have been checking flights to Bali and you can get day flights both ways with a 2 hour stopover.

Airports are where you go to catch a plane, as long as it has comfortable seats, toilets and somewhere

to eat its fine with me.

When i book flights i check all the airlines and book direct flights if i can or ones with a short stopover

which i can get on the routes i travel, usually about 2 hours which is enough time to do what you want without rushing.

[ALFREDO]

Fact is:

If you get a cheap flight with a Budget airline (Visarun?) fly for some days to Singapore there is a lot to do and to see. A cleaner environment and a step or two up from BKK and TH.

Good Mass Transport system-easy people movers.

Shopping is better in TH, but that I could write to the OP before, but he asked only for sightseeing and if its worth a visit.

And take your Companion with you, nothing is cheaper there, except the prices for food also Junkfood on the Airport. I think also the Duty Free at Changi is cheaper than the Suvarnabhum Airport Duty Free.

Long stay=TH and BKK, a short trip=Look to Singapore.

[petercallen]

Fact is:

If you get a cheap flight with a Budget airline (Visarun?) fly for some days to Singapore there is a lot to do and to see. A cleaner environment and a step or two up from BKK and TH.

Good Mass Transport system-easy people movers.

Shopping is better in TH, but that I could write to the OP before, but he asked only for sightseeing and if its worth a visit.

And take your Companion with you, nothing is cheaper there, except the prices for food also Junkfood on the Airport. I think also the Duty Free at Changi is cheaper than the Suvarnabhum Airport Duty Free.

Long stay=TH and BKK, a short trip=Look to Singapore.

I and my Thai wife have to disagree with you on the sightseeing, we were there for 8 days

and we saw everything worth seeing in 4 days.

There was a tour around the island listed which we wanted to do but they had stopped running it.

Visiting a pewter shop and walking around Raffles hotel is OK but i prefer the historic sights

and scenery in Thailand.

If you want to eat in the food halls the food is reasonably priced but no where near as cheap

as similar establishments in Thailand.

We ate in reasonably priced restaurants and the prices were high compared to here and that is my Thai wife's opinion.

I never shop in duty free there prices are not cheap anymore for the items i am interested in

I can buy better in normal shops which are not paying the high rents charged at airports.

We went for a holiday i don't have to do visa runs and we wont go again, there are plenty of

other holiday destination we will return to.

If you prefer Singapore to Thailand you are welcome to your own opinion, i do not and that

is my opinion.

[LivinLOS]

I have been checking flights to Bali and you can get day flights both ways with a 2 hour stopover.

Airports are where you go to catch a plane, as long as it has comfortable seats, toilets and somewhere

to eat its fine with me.

When i book flights i check all the airlines and book direct flights if i can or ones with a short stopover

which i can get on the routes i travel, usually about 2 hours which is enough time to do what you want without rushing.

Stopovers and waiting in airports for frequent travellers are one of the realities of air travel.. An airside hotel is a big plus if thats at night.

The fact remains.. You claim swampy has everything Changi has.. I listed 3 things that it doesnt, which are the tip of the iceberg really as Changi far surpasses it in usability, not being hustled by taxi touts leaving, places to eat and relax, etc etc..

Swampy doesnt have the facilities of Changi, despite 30 odd years in the planning.

[petercallen]

Stopovers and waiting in airports for frequent travellers are one of the realities of air travel.. An airside hotel is a big plus if thats at night.

The fact remains.. You claim swampy has everything Changi has.. I listed 3 things that it doesnt, which are the tip of the iceberg really as Changi far surpasses it in usability, not being hustled by taxi touts leaving, places to eat and relax, etc etc..

Swampy doesnt have the facilities of Changi, despite 30 odd years in the planning.

I do not book flights on price alone, i select flights which are convenient for me, i am quite happy

to pay more for a direct flight or one with a short stopover which departs in the day and arrives at

my final destination day or evening, i do travel more regularly than a lot of people i have traveled

overseas 3 times in the last 6 months not for business for pleasure and found the flights which suite

my requirements.

The facility's at Bangkok international airport are fine as far as i am concerned, why make such a big

deal over airports they are just somewhere to catch a plane, the things you want are not the things i

want, Thailand is a great place as far as i am concerned and i do not look for things to complain about.

[ALFREDO]

-petercallen-

I do not prefer Singapore above Thailand, you cannot compare that, two or three times you bring that wrong argument, I never wrote that.

Singapore is a small island-city-state and Thailand is a big country.

But you can compare Singapore with Bangkok and than it is getting clear, that Singapore has some modern Tourist spots and points of interest Bangkok does not have.

And it is cleaner,has a better, larger people mover system and is overall more well organized.

I just wrote, Singapore is only for a short visit and worth a visit, BKK and TH for a long stay-see my post. (I would miss the cheaper prices in BKK and the nightlife in TH.)

If you want to give a blind eye to the fact that Singapore and also Kuala Lumpur and theire Airports are ahead of BKK and Suvarnabhumi in many ways,

than see only what you want to see. Up to you.

Similar, I prefer in some ways also LANGKAWI above PHUKET, but Phukets nightlife and better beaches make a long stay on Langkawi not so interesting.

But a short trip there anytime a plus!

Alfred currently in Patong, usualy in Issan.

[viciouskitty74]

Peter,

I am sorry I didnt check into the Thaivisa as often and totally missed this post and the threads. Am back in Singapore so I wasnt paying much attention to the Thailand or even the USA/Canadian webs.

I hope you & Mrs enjoyed your stay in Singapore.

[viciouskitty74]

And Alfred,

Relax!!!!!

Everywhere has its naunces. And Singapore is truly not exactly a place anyone will want to tour often, except for the variety and convenience of food and safety. And thats because Singapore citizens like myself enjoyed and often then not, takes the convenience and safety for granted because we were born and bred to it.

[viciouskitty74]

And Peter,

like living in Phuket after some time and discovering what the locals does......there are well, some Singapore places and people, that well, only is fulfilling, after you have seen and do what the locals do.

Lets not all posture and well, keep this thread delightful instead of such a argument about intentions and words.

[KarenBravo]

Reasonably priced hotels in Singapore?

Bwahahahahahah!

Good luck!

[McFarang]

Thanks for the information posted its definitely worth a visit.

As usual there are people who rubbish every where and everything on the forum

whose idea of a holiday is sitting in a bar on Bangla road and talking b/s,

they are the type you ignore so they will go away.

I recently did a Visa run with an Aussie mate (I am Scottish) stayed with a pal who works there and we both got 90 Day Visa's on arrival. Great Indian food at a good price at Curry Garden at Turf City (Old Racecourse) Buttered Chicken and Nan's to die for. Also try the Colbar (Colonial Bar) ex Officers Mess from the 50's biggest selection of British (including Scottish Beers) in SE Asia basic but a great place to chill out away from the Razzle dazzle.

Safe Clean yes expensive but worth a visit have a look at any (Cold Storage) Supermarket puts Villas,Carrefour and Tops to shame.

As for the Bangla B/S Boys stay where you are and get in a smelly Minibus now and again to Ranong stay away from folks that like to travel and enjoy culture. Have a good time in Singers.

[viciouskitty74]

Reasonably priced hotels in Singapore?

Bwahahahahahah!

Good luck!

depends on what you are looking for. If you are looking for what amounts to Motels like places like really cheap guesthouses in Phuket. There are lots of choices and its cheaper when a local book it for you. (Its like Phuket, when a local is the one booking the places for you, its so much cheaper then online prices.)

But on pampering, nothing beats Thailand for the services available.

On Luxury, well.....Singapore has them, but they are only good for those who want to feel like the slightly rich and we see on drama serials.

Only those experienced can tell you where, what is reasonably priced, at your budget.

[petercallen]

Hi Kitty, I have never visited Singapore before and wanted to see what it was like.

When i lived in Australia if i wanted a new watch i would get someone visiting

Singapore to buy it for me at a much better price, This no longer applies i can

Get the same price in Australia now, since the GST/VAT was brought in the

import duty on most imported goods has been reduced to 5% making prices

in Australia very competitive.

They had a tour around the Island and when i checked it had been discontinued

probably because it did not include visits to expensive pewter and jewellery shops.

We booked the night safari tour in which there were 6 items included including a

buffet meal, on the way there on the coach the tour guide informed everyone it could

be busy and if we were not back to the coach on time it would leave without us and

we would have to find our own way back to our hotels.

We saw 2 of the items listed and had a choice of 2 dishes for the meal, which

were second rate as far as i am concerned, if we had waited for the buffet meal

we probably would only have seen one of the items listed.

We did 2 other tours which were OK but some of the things we saw were repeated

on these tours

Singapore is a clean modern city but there again so is Perth, which is a lot more

scenic and very clean, you cannot compare either to Bangkok which is a old city.

Singapore was worth seeing but i would not return for a holiday, as a stopover

going somewhere else its fine and i would not want to live there, because the

island is just one big city from what we saw

[paulfromphuket]

Don't forget Clark quey, tons of cool bars even a micro brewery with brown beer, not cheap but a very good night out. Do also remember to do a Singapore sling at the long bar in Raffles.

Travel by mrt whenever you can, it"s fast and cheap, you can trust the taxis which are resonable as well, eat in the hawker markets for cheap and excellent food including frog and be ready for some ouch on the beer prices I hope you enjoy the jolly, I have spent many happy days in Sing and to be honest if I where PROPER rich would live there and come here only for fun.

[viciouskitty74]

Hi Kitty, I have never visited Singapore before and wanted to see what it was like.

When i lived in Australia if i wanted a new watch i would get someone visiting

Singapore to buy it for me at a much better price, This no longer applies i can

Get the same price in Australia now, since the GST/VAT was brought in the

import duty on most imported goods has been reduced to 5% making prices

in Australia very competitive.

They had a tour around the Island and when i checked it had been discontinued

probably because it did not include visits to expensive pewter and jewellery shops.

We booked the night safari tour in which there were 6 items included including a

buffet meal, on the way there on the coach the tour guide informed everyone it could

be busy and if we were not back to the coach on time it would leave without us and

we would have to find our own way back to our hotels.

We saw 2 of the items listed and had a choice of 2 dishes for the meal, which

were second rate as far as i am concerned, if we had waited for the buffet meal

we probably would only have seen one of the items listed.

We did 2 other tours which were OK but some of the things we saw were repeated

on these tours

Singapore is a clean modern city but there again so is Perth, which is a lot more

scenic and very clean, you cannot compare either to Bangkok which is a old city.

Singapore was worth seeing but i would not return for a holiday, as a stopover

going somewhere else its fine and i would not want to live there, because the

island is just one big city from what we saw

Ooooohhh.....I like Perth, not the driving on hours part, but I like Perth Australia. Except for the after 4pm, everything quiets down and only one street in Perth has pubs & food kinda routine. I dont pub, and I dont exactly fancy having only beer and baffalo wings & potato wedges for dinner/supper. Singapore is almost a 24 hours hopping kinda country/city, with food and shopping kinda 24 hours.

And yes, prices are now competitivefor Singapore/Australia watches, but some items, if your friends are passing thru Singapore, are worth to buy before going over to Thailand. Like Computers/netbooks, Macbooks, 3G mobile phones, cameras....electronic stuffs and maybe Ikea furnitures. (I know some fellas actually buys Ikea stuff and transport them around to whatever countries they are going to.)

Its like me going over to USA.......stopover in Japan, should buy cameras and gadgets......if I got the $$$$.

For me, I rather look upon Phuket like the good ole Singapore, in the 70s & 80s, when Singapore was building itself up to what it is today. Phuket island is also roughly the size of Singapore except Singapore is a island country wheres Phuket is like a town island. As typed, everywhere has its naunces.

And yes, the touristy culture in Singapore sucks. Its expensive and there really isnt anything much to see of value when you get on those buses....chinese we call it 'chase the duck tours' where they chase you here and there, and you roughly only has 5 minutes to look, browse at the souvenir shops only. Or worse yet, when you have a bladder issue. Only about enough time for you to go to the gents, return to the bus and goes off to the next 'sights'.