Reviews Archives - Kids 'R' Simple

Orchard Rendezvous Hotel Family Suite Review – Great for Big Families

Our favourite family-friendly hotel chain Far East Hospitality has once again wowed us, and this time, with their super huge Family Suite! For most hotels, a big hotel room can cater for a family of 4 comfortably. But what if you have 3 growing kids like us? The choices are not many if you wish to book only one hotel room. So far, we have been pretty creative in moving furniture around to fit the 5 of us because we wish to save the cost of a second hotel room and also we prefer to have all 5 of us together. I must say Orchard Rendezvous Hotel’s Family Suite solved our problems. Not only does it accommodate all 3 kids to a bed each, but the kids could also do a few cartwheels in the room too! Can you imagine the size of the room??!!

20181201_140423 — Orchard Rendezvous Hotel – I took this photo when our car passed the entrance with the tree right in the middle!

Where is Orchard Rendezvous Hotel???

If you are wondering where is Orchard Rendezvous Hotel, it is formerly known as Orchard Parade Hotel beside Forum Shopping Mall, located in the heart of Orchard Road. It is just a 5-minute short walk from the Orchard MRT station and Singapore Botanic Gardens. Since 19 September 2018, it has been refurbished and started its new journey as the second Rendezvous property in Singapore. Retaining its heritage, Orchard Rendezvous Hotel incorporates pepper plant motifs throughout the hotel interior. Drawing inspirations from the neighbouring Singapore Botanic Gardens, the hotel offers guests the chance to connect with nature and discover the Romance of the city, the culture and life.

20181201_145008 — Pepper plant motifs as part of interior decoration

One very special thing about Orchard Rendezvous Hotel is that it has a commissioned orchid on Level 6 at the Outdoor Swimming Pool area. Named Vanda Orchard Rendezvous, the orchid is a two-toned cross-hybrid of Vanda Pieces of Eight and Vanda Rasri Gold. Vanda Orchard Rendezvous is also the first orchid commissioned for a hotel in Singapore by OSSEA.

Now, let’s take a look at the hotel charm that blends heritage and nature!

Luxurious Bathroom with 2 wash basins – the hotel totally has big families in mind! No more fights over the wash basins!

This table doubles up as a vanity table with a slide out of the mirror piece. — This table doubles up as a vanity table with a slide out mirror piece.

Vanda Orchard Rendezvous and care kit with compliments from Orchard Rendezvous Hotel.

This is a smart TV with gaming remote control, the kids simply love it over the usual TV channels!

In most of our staycations, the kids would spend more time at the pool than the room, but not this time round! The luxurious and spacious suite had kept everyone in the room simply enjoying the comfy beds, smart TV, doing cartwheels, running around, enjoying bathtub, watching the Orchard Road passersby and admiring Christmas lightings from the balcony.

Let’s take a tour around the hotel facilities now!

Hotel Gym – not for kids though, we were allowed entry only for photo-taking opportunity. Obviously, the kids treated it as a playground!

Where for Breakfast?

You will be surprised that the hotel ties up with the famous and trusted household name restaurant, Modestos, for breakfast!

Just the night before, we had a really good dinner at Modestos. The food was really superb! Even the kids exclaimed that they have never tasted such good mushroom soup, delicious Carbonara, strawberry milkshake, pizza and desserts! I have a soft spot for strawberry milkshake, and I can tell you that I will certainly return frequently even if it is just for milkshake takeaways! And you may wonder what’s the big hoo ha about Carbonara. Well, you must really try it once to believe that Carbonara can be this good!

If you have young children, Orchard Rendezvous Hotel Family rooms will be a good option because they have bunk beds available as one of the bed configurations. And if you have 3 growing kids like us or travelling with grandparents and wish to stay in one room, Orchard Rendezvous Hotel Family Suite will be the one to book for your staycation or travel. During our stay, we were told that all the 30+ family rooms were full! It looks like Orchard Rendezvous Hotel family rooms are indeed popular! Perhaps the industry is really lacking in large family rooms and we are glad and honoured to be able to stay in one and share our experience with all of you!

As I am writing this, there is an on-going promotion for Orchard Rendezvous Hotel rooms. Check out this link to find out more!

More information:

Our hotel room type: Family Suite King and 2 Single Beds. We have a rolled away bed as our 3rd single bed.
Good to know: You can ask for a bunk bed configuration prior to stay.
Price: Family Rooms start from SGD217 per night for 2019 super sale rates, not valid at other travel websites.
Facilities and Room Amenities for Family Suite:
– Spacious interior with separate dining area
– One king-sized bed and two single beds – perfect for larger families
– Accessible balcony (subject to availability)
– Complimentary use of Handy Phone, with mobile Internet access and complimentary calls to 6 destinations
– Unlimited Wi-Fi access
– Air conditioning with remote control
– Cable TV
– Coffee/tea-making facilities
– In-room electronic safe
– Hair dryer
– Iron and ironing board
– International Direct Dial (IDD) telephone with voicemail facilities
– Electric Kettle
– Bath, Shampoo, Conditioner and Soap
For more information and bookings, visit https://www.rendezvoushotels.com.sg/en/hotels/orchard-rendezvous-hotel

Hotel Address:
1 Tanglin Road, Singapore 247905
Enquiry: info.orh@fareast.com.sg
Phone: +65 6737 1133 / Reservations: +65 6881 8888
Facebook: www.facebook.com/StayRendezvous
Instagram: www.instagram.com/StayRendezvous

The Great Moscow Circus – Simply Breathtaking!

One word describes The Great Moscow Circus: Breathtaking!

All of us who were there on Sunday night were kept on the edge of our seats throughout the entire 2 hours 20 minutes at The Red and White BIG TOP! It was totally breathtaking and heart-pounding! The stunts and death-defying acts were exceptional! No wonder the over 100 year old tradition Great Moscow Circus were hailed the best of the best circus!

One word describes The Great Moscow Circus: Breathtaking!

As we walked towards the Big Top Tent, we wondered how it would be like to be sitting in a million-dollar tent specially made for Singapore by leading Italian tent manufacturers Anceschi and Canobbio and which took several months to build! It was indeed impressive and it is fully air-conditioned! Everyone can have a good view because no audience would be more than 11 metres away from the action! The Big Top has a traditional European atmosphere to it and why not? It is made by a 5th generation Italian tent maker Paolo Anceschi and hoisted up by a team of 20 people! For a moment, I could picture us going to a circus as a family depicted in children’s story books! Sitting under The Big Top made me a kid again! I am totally in awe of the design of the tent right before the show started.

The show opened with the entertaining act of Trampoline performers who bounced back endless times and effortlessly to the height that they fell in such grace! There was a mix of more than 16 sensational acts that saw talented jugglers, aerial stunts, phenomenal rope-skippers, daredevil motorcyclists, contortionist, marvellous acrobatics, funny ringmaster, among many, many more!

There were so many of our favourites that I could not possibly name it here. But there were two performances that I think each and every member of the audience that night held their breaths while they prayed for the performers’ safety! I was certainly one of them! They were the Wheel of Death which the performers run and jump and skip in the moving and rotating wheels, and Motorbike Sphere of Fear where motorcyclists run their bikes inside the sphere. As dangerous as it looked, the Russian performers were really astounding in giving their best. Sometimes, it might seemed that they were going to fall, but then again, they were so well-trained that I could not differentiate if that was not done on purpose! And the motorcycle act requires such precision of timing, speed, teamwork and coordination, it is hard to imagine human beings are capable of displaying such traits!

In fact, if you were to ask me, I think no one can demonstrate the word T.R.U.S.T as well as all the Russian circus performers that night! They have to have complete trust in one another to not only bring to everyone the best of their performance, but to simply survive all shows! They have my full admiration of their commitment and spirit for the circus entertainment!

If you have not been to The Great Moscow Circus in Singapore, I think you should! It is the school holidays and it will be a good chance to bring the whole family to watch this world-renowned circus. The show will end on 2 December.

Here are some good to know things about going to the circus:

Good to know!

Transport – You can park your car at the Marina Bay Open Carpark and walk 3 minutes to The Great Moscow Circus. You may also take public transport to the nearest Bayfront MRT.

Admission – Infants and children below 3 can sit on parent’s lap and need no ticket. It is wheelchair friendly too.

Seats –

Booster seats are available for children. Just ask the friendly ushers and they will bring it to you.

Due to the design of the ring seats, all seats are able to get a good view. We were seated at Section C, 2nd last row and it was a terrific view.

Fully Air-conditioned – You may like to bring along a jacket or cardigan. On the evening that we went, it was raining for the whole day and hence it was pretty cold inside the tent.

Food – There are popcorns, mixed nuts, candy floss and drinks for sale just at the entrance to the Big Top. For the kids, there are also illuminated hairbands, wands, spinners for sale.

Toilets – There are mobile toilets outside and there may be a long queue during the 15 min interval. You may like to ensure the kids go before the show.

Duration of the show – around 2 hrs 20 min excluding a 15 min interval.

More Information

When: 25 October – 2 December

Showtimes:

Tuesday to Friday: 4pm, 7:30pm

Saturday: 12pm, 4pm, 7:30pm

Sunday: 11am, 3pm, 6:30pm

Public Holiday: 12pm, 4pm

Where: The Mighty Big Top, Bayfront Avenue, next to Marina Bay Sands, Singapore

Ticket price: From $85 (Excludes the booking fee of SGD4 per ticket)

*25% off all A,B,C and D Reserve tickets for all shows, this promo expires midnight Tue 13th Nov!

There are Senior Citizens and Child Priced tickets. If you are Popular or Passion Card members, there are discounts too.

Standard: S$155, S$145, S$135, S$115, S$95, S$85, S$65

Child [3 to 12 years old]: S$135, S$125, S$105, S$85, S$75, S$55

Senior Citizen [60 years and above]: S$135, S$125, S$105, S$85, S$75, S$55

Booking: https://www.sistic.com.sg/events/cgmc1218

Disclaimer: All opinions are mine. Thanks to Sliding Doors Entertainment and The Great Moscow Circus for the kind media invite. Our family truly had a wonderful and highly entertaining evening!

MAMMA MIA! A Feel-Good Must-Watch Musical!

I am a big fan of ABBA timeless songs! Turn back the clock to my late night discotheque days, my favourite dance number must be Dancing Queen! Hence, tonight was an amazing feel-good night listening and tapping our toes to ABBA songs in MAMMA MIA! musical.

I am a big fan of ABBA timeless songs! Turn back the clock to my late night discotheque days, my favourite dance number must be Dancing Queen! Hence, tonight was an amazing feel-good night listening and tapping our toes to ABBA songs in MAMMA MIA! musical!

Kudos to the MAMMA MIA! cast who are absolutely awesome in giving everyone in the Mastercard Theatres such an entertaining night! I have watched the movie before but it is certainly different when it is played out in a musical with excellent dancers to a live orchestra in good music. It is a dancing night truly. Even the change of props was made in such jovial motion of skip and dance.

There were plentiful moments of fun and laughter. I was pretty sure all the ABBA favourite songs were sung, including Take A Chance On Me, The Winner Takes It All, Does Your Mother Know, Thank You For The Music, Mamma Mia, a total of 22 power hits! No wonder, when the cast made their appearance at the end of the show and Dancing Queen was once again played and sung, everyone in the theatre gave a standing ovation and danced together! It must be my first time standing up and dancing in a musical! There was even an encore number!

20181110_222857 — Did you see everyone standing with their mobile screens on?

If you have not watched this musical before, you must do so while it is still here in Singapore till 18 November! After a long wait of 14 years, the musical is once again brought back to Singapore shores as part of MAMMA MIA! International Tour. Here is a synopsis of what the story is about, if you do not already know:

MAMMA MIA! is Judy Craymer’s ingenious vision of staging the story-telling magic of ABBA’s timeless songs with an enchanting tale of family and friendship unfolding on a Greek island paradise. On the eve of her wedding, a daughter’s quest to discover the identity of her father, brings three men from her mother’s romantic past back to the island they last visited 20 years ago.

What you would like to know about the show:

Photo-taking moments – There is one full MAMMA MIA! poster just before the entrance. If the photo-taking queue is long, you can always be like us, take a we-fie at one of the 3 full height wall posters beside the ticketing counter. There is one more lovely poster when you enter at the foyer outside the theatre. Photography is not permitted during the show.

Good Seats – If budget is not a problem, the VIP seats have the best close-up view. Otherwise, our B-reserve stall seats were already excellent. C-reserve seats are not too bad as well. In fact, most of the seats have quite good view because of the layout of Mastercard Theatres. Booster seats are available.

Food – Outside food are not allowed. There are snacks and drinks, including wine, for sale at the Theatre concession stands at the foyer.

Toilets – The Ladies always has a super long queue vs the Gents. Hence, as much as possible, I always prefer to use the Ladies outside in Marina Bay Sands, right before the show.

Attire – Most of the patrons wore very formal dresses and attire. I guess one of our favourite things to do during the interval is to spot the best dressed! So, if dressing up is your thing, by all means, make it your best night!

Suitability for children – The show is suitable for family with the wonderful songs and dance. However, you may like to answer a few curious questions your child might have if he/she spotted some sexual innuendos in the show *wink wink*

More information

When: 3-18 November

Showtimes:

Tuesday to Friday: 8:00pm

Saturday: 2:00pm and 8:00pm

Sunday: 1:00pm and 6:00pm

Where: Mastercard Theatres, Marina Bay Sands

Ticket price: From $58 (Excludes the booking fee of SGD4 per ticket)

Booking:

INTERNET: www.MarinaBaySands.com/ticketing or http://www.sistic.com.sg/

PHONE: +65 6688 8826

IN PERSON AT:

Marina Bay Sands Box Offices (Museum, Theatre, SkyPark, Retail Mall and Hotel Tower 1 Lobby).

For more information please log onto – www.MarinaBaySands.com

Disclaimer: All opinions are mine. Thanks to Base Entertainment Asia for the kind media invite and the high dosage of my ABBA fix! It is truly oohhh… MAMMA MIA!

Legally Blonde The Musical In Singapore

We have not watched the movie Legally Blonde before. But the hub highly recommended it for Missy because he knew she would enjoy the light-hearted entertaining romantic comedy. With a stroke of luck, we were invited to the opening night for Legally Blonde The Musical. It was our first time attending a premiere! The opening night was in the middle of Missy’s examinations but we went ahead nevertheless after a quick wiki of the story and decided it was worth a short break from the revision. We were glad we went, because Missy really loves it and so do we!

If you do not know the story about Elle Woods, the blonde girl who loves pink. In short, it is about a girl who persisted through entry into Harvard Law School to get her beau back. There were lots of hilarious acts, funny dialogues with lots of positive messages sent through Elle’s never-take-no-for-an-answer attitude. I, personally, love Elle’s confidence especially the way she carried herself through the misinformed “Costume Party” where she was donned in a bunny suit while it was really just a casual gathering. Her show of integrity and sticking to her true self in the face of ruining her potential career is what I wish for my girl to be inspired too. The songs are catchy. The entire performance is highly entertaining. Missy gave it 2 thumbs-up! The only thing we regretted was not watching the movie prior to The Musical because it would have helped the kids to understand the story better. So, if you wish to catch Legally Blonde The Musical, do try to watch the famous movie first.

I would say that this musical is very suitable for teens and adults but may be a little hard to comprehend for children 7 and below. So, you may like to consider to leave your younger kids at home for this Musical. Having said that, older kids will find the jovial characters funny! My 2 elder kids like Paulette, the hairdresser (who had a cute, high pitched voice), the delivery hunk (who was totally sexy and attractive) and the gay couple (who made everyone laughed with their gestures and catwalk). As we could not leave our 6-year-old home due to lack of childcare arrangement, he came with us. I was surprised that he was moving along to the catchy songs and fascinated by the dogs that appeared on stage! He clapped when everyone applauded and seemed to be able to catch the flow. Well, we are certainly happy and honoured to be one of the first to watch Legally Blonde The Musical and I hope my review can help you in the decision to get the tickets!

MORE INFORMATION

For more information, check out the information here:

WHEN: From 10 May – 20 May 2018

PERFORMANCE TIMES:
Thursday and Friday: 8:00pm
Saturday: 2:00pm and 8:00pm
Sunday: 1:00pm and 6:00pm

BOOKINGS:
INTERNET: www.MarinaBaySands.com/ticketing or www.sistic.com.sg
PHONE: +65 6688 8826
IN PERSON AT:
Marina Bay Sands Box Offices (Museum, Theatres, SkyPark, Retail Mall and Hotel Tower 1
Lobby). For more information please log onto – www.MarinaBaySands.com

One GOOD NEWS that comes with each ticket:

Enjoy complimentary entry to CÉ LA VI Lounge with a glass of bubbles with ticket printout! (For patrons 18 years old and above.)
Do plan your visit to the lounge before or after the show on the same day!

SYNOPSIS

Here is a short synopsis of Legally Blonde The Musical for some teaser:

Based on the popular Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer movie starring Reese Witherspoon, Legally Blonde was a box office success when it opened in 2001, grossing a worldwide box office sales of US$141.70 million. Later that year, it was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture: Musical or Comedy.

Like the film, Legally Blonde, The Musical is going to be an all-singing, all-dancing romantic comedy about a southern California co-ed cutie, Elle, who never takes no for an answer. So when her boyfriend, Warner, dumps her for not being serious about her future, Elle turns her attention from fashion to books and enrols in Harvard Law School to win him back. Far from her comfort zone, Elle is suddenly a misfit. But with the help of new friends; Emmett – a teaching assistant with a working class background, Paulette – a down-on-her-luck hairdresser and Greek chorus made up of UCLA sorority sisters, who only she can see, Elle finds her true calling in life – and hint, it’s not Warner.

After the original Broadway production was nominated for seven Tony Awards, including Best Original Score and Best Leading Actress in a Musical, this sparkling new pink production has been put together by the creative team that brought you Big League’s My Fair Lady, one of New York’s leading directors Jeffery Moss and Tony nominated choreographer Bob Richard. The highly catchy songs and lyrics are by Laurence O’Keefe and Nell Benjamin. With a cast of over 25 performers and two dogs from New York coupled with three new inventively designed, dynamic LED video screens by Daniel Brodie (Disney’s Aladdin, MOTOWN, Troika’s JOSEPH and Wizard of Oz tours), and snazzy modern scenery, costumes, lights and sound, the show is perfect for lightening everyone’s mood and bringing joy.

“Audiences are going to be tickled pink by Legally Blonde”, said Jeffery B. Moss. “This is a feel-good musical with a valuable message: Be true to yourself.”

Armed with her charm and Chihuahua Bruiser, watch Elle strut from the sorority house to the halls of justice, tackling stereotypes, snobbery and scandal to realise, and Singapore will too, that brain power is as potent as being a blonde in a pink dress.

Disclaimer: Thanks to Base Entertainment Asia for the kind invite to the opening night for Legally Blonde The Musical. We had an entertaining night. Now, my youngest’s favourite catch phrase is “Omigod!”

Experience A Universal Christmas at Universal Studios Singapore

This year, A Universal Christmas includes many Christmas highlights, interactive workshops and interesting shows to delight everyone young at heart. You may be wondering if these are all included in the entry ticket. The answer is Yes! The park hours are extended till 9pm daily too! So, it is super worth it to visit Universal Studios Singapore from 1 Dec to 1 Jan because you get to enjoy more than the usual popular and awesome rides and attractions. Best of all, you can soak in the beautiful and everything magic Christmas mood and sights!

3 years back we had an enjoyable time at Universal Studios Singapore for their Christmas Special. We remembered every ride we took and even remembered fondly of eating dinner at Din Tai Fung after that. Fast forward 3 years later, every one of us looked forward to have an equally fun time during this period of the year again! So happy that this time, our youngest was able to join us in most of the rides and not only that, the kids got to take their favourite rides with their cousins again.

A Universal Christmas runs daily and features daytime and nighttime experiences! Here are some of our favourites!

Santa’s Workshop
Timing: 12 – 8pm
Where: New York Zone

Santa’s Workshop makes anything associated with Christmas. The Santa is recruiting elves for this holiday season. Each child or adult who goes into the workshop will go through 5 tasks in different thematic zones and collect stamps on a personalised certificate bearing their own photo. The interactive zones start with a fun photo-taking station that transforms you to an elf. After that, a door opens up to the rest of the stations like sorting letters in a mailroom, assembling a robot in Toy Factory, helping Mrs Claus to find ingredients to make cookies and finally meeting Santa Claus for a photo opportunity!

We were expecting more detailed interactive activities but they were really simple tasks where the whole group were ushered from room to room for different experiences. Nevertheless, the entire 20 minute or so session brings smiles to everyone even the Grandpa (my Father-in-law) who seemed to enjoy the workshop too!

Oscar’s Grouchmas
Timing: 1215pm, 230pm, 430pm, 630pm* (varies with different days)
Where: Pantages Hollywood Theater

The show’s title made us laugh. It is not hard to imagine how grouchy Oscar will be. We did not manage to catch this show at all the 4 timings as the park is so big and we needed double the time to move the 6 kids around from one attraction to another. We were simply too far away to be back in time to watch the show. Otherwise, we would love to see how Oscar transforms from a Christmas grouch to the holiday’s number one fan through an unexpected journey — discovering the true meaning of the season and the joys of giving, kindness and love. The kids missed the chance to see Elmo and the Cookie Monster too.

Search For A Christmas Star (at World of Stars)
Timing: 730pm, 845pm
Where: New York Zone

This is one of the highlights of A Universal Christmas and we made it well in time to secure a good view of the stage. Then we realised that the Airy Fairy was flying in from behind as she swished her magic wand to light up the streets of New York as she set the stage for “Search for a Christmas star”. It was a beautiful and sparkling sight. Remember to get ready your camera to take many insta-worthy pictures.

Search for a Christmas Star is a Star Search Contest where each contestant competes with his best talent. The show wows the audience with toy soldiers in break dancing, ‘Snow’ and ‘Flake’ in lovely singing, other contestants performing familiar Christmas melodies, aerial acrobatics, special effects, fireworks, snowfall, projection mapping of the New York Public Library and many more. We enjoyed the dance moves and singing in this musical that captured our attention from start till end. Not to mention that there is a meaningful moral behind the story of this contest.

There was a surprise appearance of a Gingerbread Boy and Gingerbread Girl in the finale! They must have come out of Mrs Claus Kitchen! Snow started to fall at this moment to everyone’s excitement. We were delighted to queue up just to take a picture with these 2 cuties and the talented cast.

Santa’s Snowy Sleigh Ride and Santa’s Christmas Tree House
Timing: 12pm, 2pm, 4pm, 6pm, 8pm
Where: New York Zone and Hollywood Zone

We were looking forward to seeing Santa parade down the streets on his sleigh. As we missed all the earlier timings, we wanted to catch Santa after the 730pm World of Stars show for the last parade at 8pm. Unfortunately, we missed the parade by a few minutes and could only manage to take a photo instead. If you wish to catch the Santa sleigh ride, please try to go for the earlier timings.

Hello Kitty Store @ Universal Studios Singapore

We could not have come at a better time! The Hello Kitty Store has just opened just a week ago! I am sure Hello Kitty Fans will not hesitate to visit the park for the sake of this all-pretty store!

Oh, before I forget, guests can shop this year’s hottest gifts at any of the park’s retail stores and with every S$100 nett spent (One free postage applicable to a Singapore address only, with every S$100 nett spent), they can have their gifts mailed straight to their loved ones – for free – with the North Pole Postage Service located along Hollywood. This makes it so convenient for Christmas Shopping 🙂

We stayed till 9pm and not before we took the last attraction on our to-visit list which was the Canopy Flyer in the dark! It was certainly a different experience dangling your feet in the night air and taking in the night scene. We were also lucky for that day’s weather was cool and cloudy. There was some slight drizzle but that did not dampen any of our spirits. In fact, the kids wore their ponchos in the drizzle and were happy to get wet in the Water World Show Soak Zone and the Jurassic Park Rapids Ride. So, remember to bring along Ponchos to USS!

We had lots of fun at Universal Studios Singapore just like we did each time we visited the park. It gets better each time when each of the kids grows up and meets the minimum height for the attractions. I think it will become a tradition for us to visit USS during Christmas time simply because we have so many beautiful memories at USS Christmas special that accompanied the kids’ growing up years. The best part is that we will never outgrow USS because the rides are so exciting and they get better as the kids grow up! We will be back again soon!

Disclaimer: We received complimentary tickets from Universal Studios Singapore. We had great fun and hope you will too! For more information, visit www.universalchristmas.sg .