Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
52
PDA, a Web br owser, and a r egistered
Wireless@SG account. The scheme is
open to tourists and business trav elers;
register at the www .ida.gov.sg site. This
site also lists hotspots across the island.
In addition, sev eral cafes and r estau-
rants, such as M cDonald's and S tarbucks,
offer Wi-Fi access to customers.
Aside fr om formal cyber cafes, most
backpacker guesthouses
hav e I nternet
access. A void
hotel business centers
unless y ou're willing to pay ex
orbitant
rates.
Most major airports now have
Internet
kiosks
scatter ed thr oughout their gates.
These give you basic Web access for a per-
minute fee that 's usually higher than
Without Your Own Computer
To find cyber cafes in y our destination,
check
www.cybercaptive.com
and
www.
cybercafe.com
.
cybercafe prices.
13
TIPS ON ACCOMMODATIONS
Singapore's hotels enjo y high occupancy
rates y ear r ound, and as a r esult, they
require early booking whenev er possible,
especially fr om D ecember thr ough Chi-
nese N ew Year in J anuary or F ebruary,
considered the island 's peak season. M ost
of the time, hotels ar e occupied b y busi-
ness trav elers and, as such, ar e outfitted
with amenities to accommodate wor king
guests, especially international hotel chains
such as H ilton, G rand H yatt, M arriott,
Sheraton, Carlton, I nterContinental, The
Regent, F our S easons, Conrad, and the
Ritz-Carlton. Leisur e trav elers can find
better v alue at hotels that don 't soak up
resources for business centers, confer ence
facilities, and high-pr ofile po wer-lunch
restaurants.
A major complaint among visitors to
Singapore is the r elative lack of decent
budget accommodations. H igh real estate
prices make budget hotels hard to sustain,
but a fe w hotels offer comfor table rooms
at v alue prices, the best of which ar
e
3
reviewed in this topic.
Almost all hotels are located within the
city limits and near to public transpor ta-
tion, making getting around exceptionally
convenient.
For detailed tips about accommoda-
tions in Singapore, see chapter 5.
