Communication with Jiayi about the apartment we had booked before arriving in Singapore was very good. However, two weeks before we left Canada, she emailed us to say that she recommended we stay in this shophouse apartment apartment due to concerns about the management in the original apartment we had booked. We appreciated receiving that information. She wanted an additional $50 CDN for the shophouse apartment and (the apartment owner) would not consider renting at the same price. She did offer a smaller apartment without the full facilities that we wanted. Although we agreed to the change and paid the difference, we thought this was not the best business approach.
The shophouse apartment is spacious enough but appears, by North American standards, to be for a single occupant. There is room to hang clothing, and there are shelves and drawers. The living room area is large and has good air-conditioning. However, the kitchen table is only a 2-foot round and is barely large enough for two people to eat. There is one piece of art on a wall in the living room and another in the bedroom. We suggest that the owner add some cheap posters or pictures to brighten up the place.
Our host kindly provided cornflakes, white bread, jam, butter, whole milk, and eggs as well as a package of facial tissues. We purchased our own healthier skim milk and cereal.
There is a good-sized safe in one of the cupboards. There is an electrical plug adaptor but you will need a two prong adaptor to fit into it. There is a DVD player with several DVDs.
The small table lamp on the left side of the queen bed has an intermittent electrical connection.
As may sometimes be the case in this hot country, the cooking stove and bathroom/shower are actually outside the apartment. This smaller area is very hot all day and all night. We could also hear the neighbours’ vehicles and activities from this open area, sometimes during the night and on the weekends.
The air conditioning in the bedroom area is very good.
There were some minor issues with cleanliness (dusty shelves, dirty areas in the kitchen) and insufficient towels for two people; but our host was very quick to respond. She also offered to have the whole apartment cleaned and sheets laundered for our longer stay but we declined. Two of the pillowcases and a bed sheet appeared to be stained with blood. The gas stovetop is stained and the lid for the large garbage can in the kitchen area is also old and stained. The upper pipes in the shower are coated with green corrosion. The ceiling above the shower is starting to peel.
Unlike other Airbnbs we have stayed in, the owner did not provide a binder of information about this location, which usually has suggestions for restaurants, a subway map, and brochures for restaurants and tourist sites. We would recommend that this be provided in the future. The owner could also provide clear, written instructions on how to turn on the hot water, and how to operate the television as we had problems in both areas. It would also be simple enough for her to provide specific instructions to guests for accessing the MRT subway at the airport and taking it to the Little India MRT station.
Perhaps indicative of this aging apartment was the incident in which the old coffee maker short-circuited, blowing out the main circuit breaker which is located elsewhere in the building. This means that not only the air conditioning, but also the Wi-Fi were out. We were very concerned because we do not have cell phone coverage outside of our home country. We were therefore unable to contact our host. Fortunately, she was in the building at that very time and was able to reset the main circuit breaker.
This apartment is only a two-minute walk from the Little India MRT (subway) station which has two subway lines accessible. It is a convenient, clean and interesting area to stay. There are three Hindu temples within a half hour walk including a major one, as well as a very large shopping centre within a half hour walk and a hawker food centre within a ten minute walk. There are several restaurants down the street.