Singapore Flag
(Not to be confused with the YMCA around the corner!) The YWCA is centrally located near Dhoby Ghaut, one of Singapore's busiest railway stations, at the foot of Fort Canning hillside with its historic monuments and exhibitions.
YWCA. Exterior. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.
Next to the Red Cross building behind the Park Mall (now a noisy building site). The YWCA seemed to have as many males as females.
It is more like a four star hotel than a hostel. The appearance is five star.
Grand piano in hall of YWCA. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Travel writer and photographer.
A grand piano stood in the marble hall. It has the conveniences of a ground floor dining room, a hairdresser so you can look your festive best in the dining room and a well-stocked shop to help you complete your outfit for lunch or a conference.
The YWCA hallway. Shop and hairdresser at the far end. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.
I bought a smart black baseball hat with a touch of red and the initials SG for Singapore. Only five Singapore dollars. Very smart with my black cape blazer. If you want to buy one, the hats are in navy or black.
Angela in her black hat, bought from the shop in the YWCA. Photo by Angela Lansbury.Copyright.
Upstairs near the lifts is a cabinet containing cute Chinese cups donated by a well-wisher. At the far end is a grand conference hall where I attended a Toastmasters International training session.
Water
For our one-day conference, we had an urn of water and glasses at the back of the room.
Food
At the morning break time separate halal food was clearly marked on a separaate table.
The lunch buffet in the restaurant for our conference was quite varied. A table was set up for vegetarians to eat together. Separate halal food was provided.
Quantity was the word. I prefer my chicken without a batter coating but the chicken inside was moist. I later discovered a salad bar and smoked salmon appeared!
Pool and Groups
As I used the lift I noticed there was a swimming pool on the second floor. I saw various groups arriving and leaving by coach, all with little wheel on bags, groups of adults and groups of teens.
YMCA and YWCA Bedrooms
Singapore has two branches of the YMCA. I have known them to be fully booked at busy times of year, so enquire well ahead if you are thinking of staying there.
While I was checking on booking.com it showed no rooms available at the YWCA and only one available at the YMCA around the corner. That got snapped up whilst I was changing the currency quoted. Booking.com was still quoting me prices in the last country I visited, Bulgarian Lev. I switched to UK pounds, although if I had booked I would have been paying in Singapore dollars. The add on price of tax and service is quite high, but you save on fares being in centre by buses and trains - and walking distance of some museums if you are happy to walk around in the humidity, with the Battle Box and the current Singapore Bicentennial exhibition for summer 2019. Make sure you also see Dhoby Ghaut MRT station.
Promotion for weddings at the YWCA. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.
Weddings at YWCA
You can also get married in the YWCA. Toastmasters met there, approriately, because the Toastmasters International speakers training organization - now re-branded as where leaders are made, was started in the YMCA in California. You can attend Toastmasters meetings at the YWCA and YMCA nearby (10 dollars guest fee covers snack supper of savoury and sweet).
Useful Websites:
http://ywca.org.sg/
booking.com
https://www.hotelscombined.com.sg/Hotel/YWCA_Fort_Canning_Lodge
https://www.toastmasters.org/find-a-club
singaporeair.com
All in all, a great venue for those just visiting for the day's conference or staying there overnight.
Author, Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. See my other posts on the Battle Box and Singapore Bicentennial exhibition. Please save links to your favourite posts and share links with your family and friends.
