Hotel Review: Fairmont Raffles Manila

As I travel quite often for work, I’m going to keep a record of all the hotels I’ve stayed in, to serve as a reminder of what works and what doesn’t. It’ll make future bookings much easier.

Location: In downtown Makati opposite Greenbelt 4 Shopping Area and Glorietta mall. Great for food and shopping options. Easy access to Museum cafe!

Room: Renovated in 2014. Decently sized rooms, although the carpets are beginning to smell and my room had a musky smell. Bed is soft yet supportive of my back, so I sleep decently well here.

Gym: The treadmills and ellipticals overlook the Greenbelt shopping area There are so many weight machines here, upper and lower and core. Free weights as well. Huge open space to do yoga, circuits, etc. The perfect gym.

Breakfast: The spread is wide, but I don't fancy what they offer. It's either too sweet or too salty. So I only eat their omelette and bread, with fresh juice. I'd rather eat at Starbucks.

Would I return? Only for the gym and the great hotel location. This hotel has joined the Accor group on July 1st 2018, so member benefits will apply (but I have none!). Although there are other similar hotels nearby, such as New World Hotel. Maybe I will stay there next time.

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Hotel Review: Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Bangkok

As I travel quite often for work, I’m going to keep a record of all the hotels I’ve stayed in, to serve as a reminder of what works and what doesn’t. It’ll make future bookings much easier. Location: Right at the Asok BTS, across from Terminal 21 and the Westin. I think traffic in this area is too jammed, and will likely avoid in the future. Room: The bed is very comfortable, but the decor is quite old school. The room feels like parts of it has been modernized, but parts of it are still the same as when the hotel was built. The whole scheme doesn't gel. The bathroom is also dated and in need of upgrade. Who uses small tiles like this in bathrooms nowadays? This is so 1990s. Gym: It has a couple ellipticals and a couple treadmills. Not much selection of weight machines and the space is rather crammed. The decor is seriously old school 1990s, but I think all Sheratons are like this. Breakfast: The selectio...

Hotel Review: Novotel Halong Bay

As I travel quite often for work, I’m going to keep a record of all the hotels I’ve stayed in, to serve as a reminder of what works and what doesn’t. It’ll make future bookings much easier. Unfortunately there was no SPG/Marriott hotel in Halong Bay area, so i ended up with Novotel. Location: Along the western side of Halong, right across some ongoing construction. Room: Decor is dark wooden, taking a spin on modern Chinese. Wood flooring and a huge king size bed that's abit hard and uncomfortable. I like the decor though. Gym: This has got to be the saddest hotel gym i've ever seen. I decided to run outside instead. Breakfast: The selection is so limited, and it's not even that good. Nice decor though. Would I return? Definitely not to this 4 star hotel. Thankfully I was only here for 1 night. Although the place is filled with Korean tourists, you can eat some basic Korean breakfast here, but that's not my preference.

Max out your Medisave account in Jan

Effective Jan 1, 2019 the Basic Healthcare Sum (BHS) has increased from S$54,500 to S$57,200. Funds in the Medisave Account (MA) and Special Account (SA) earns 4% p.a, while funds in the Ordinary Account (OA) earns 2.5% p.a. Assuming you have hit the $54,500 limit in 2018, we can take the opportunity to top up $2700 to our Medisave Account by this month using cash to leverage on the following benefits: Tax deductions if you use cash to top up your MA. Note the $7000 annual cap on CPF deductions, so the SA top up in FY2019 will be $4300. When your MA has been maxed out, your monthly CPF contribution from your salary and employer will flow over to your SA. This account also earns you an interest of 5% p.a. Once your SA has met the met the Full Retirement Sum (FRS), the funds will flow over to your Ordinary Account, which earns you a 3.5% interest rate p.a. In summary, whenever the government increases the Basic Healthcare Sum, quickly max out your MA i...

Eyes On Retirement

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