"it's a trap!"

it's the year end and we went sentosa for our getaway this time around. simply coz overseas seems a bit too much on $$ and we can't quite arrange a stretch of time for it.

amara sanctuary
a relatively new hotel on the island and a darn expensive one. we got it on a good deal at $200++ a night (usual $600+++), for 3 nights. it's not a beach front like rasa sentosa but hey, sentosa isn't all that big. and it's darn near Resorts World, which is due to open early 2010.

rooms are only so-so. we came after the zoukout party weekend and heard from the reception that the engineering and housekeeping are kept busy recovering from the tornado-ic zoukers. we saw some minor damages and things already missing from the hotel rooms. we were offered a room change too because a bedside table lamp at the bottom came off. and so we were upgraded from a deluxe to a premier room just like that. pretty sweet.

I got backaches from sleeping on the bed tho wifey had no complains. TV seemed a little too small and far away from the bed. tub is ok. showers are neurotic. takes a long time to get hot water and it's not constant. not good.

our package was without breakfast and thank God really. at $28++ ppax, the selection is pathetic. you can just travel down to anywhere else on the island, pay $50 and eat till you puke and it's all day menu too. waste of time and money.

luge
it's something like a go-kart except its gravity-powered and the route isn't too bad for the 1st 2 rides. same goes for the skyride. but after that, it just feels too short and so-so. a new route is in the works while we were there and will want to give it a try when it opens. should be fun.

sentosa 4D magix
a complete waste of time and money unless you die die also must try. too expensive and over way too soon especially the interactive shooting thing. the pirates one was the best because they try to make it real enough with jets of air from the chair and sprinklers from the top. the 3D effects was good. but overall just not worth it.

songs of the sea
the one to go to. even if you have been the musical fountain eons ago. it's basically a much upgraded musical fountain and cost $10 ppax and there's a story (albeit cheesy). the effects are excellent especially for 1st timers and watchable even the 2nd or 3rd time. it's not very expensive and it's probably one of the better attractions on sentosa.

underwater world
what's better than watching huge nurse sharks and gigantic grouper fishes and a wide variety of marine life for about $20 ppax? maybe songs of the sea for $10 but nothing much else. last time I went underwater world was around 1998 and don't remember much from then already. good to update myself.

food
what can I say? all marked up for the sake of tourists. nothing fantastic unless you are willing to pay a super premium for good food, which you can get on mainland for lower anyway. but no choice lah, do you really fancy travelling to vivo each time your tummy rumbles? bite the bullet, and chew slowly.

weather
december singapore weather is mostly wet. and for most of the 3 days there, it was raining. not heavily but enough to dampen the beach mood. better to go at another "season".

overall
well it's definitely a tourist trap. it's just too marked up for locals and don't have much a choice right there. don't think I will seriously visit again other than for the IR, the new luge track or maybe songs of the sea again.