One thing you probably wouldn’t have thought Singapore Changi Airport was short of is a good choice of hotels, with two on-site options in the landside (public) area and a further three for those departing or in transit beyond immigration control, in the airside section.

That’s not stopping the airport looking to address future overnight hotel demand from travellers, with plans for a brand new 220-room property connected to Terminal 2 set to take shape in the next three years.

Changi Airport’s latest hotel

For over a decade, Singapore Changi Airport only had one landside hotel – the Crowne Plaza Changi Airport at Terminal 3, which opened in 2008.

That changed in 2019, with the completion of Jewel Changi Airport, closest to Terminal 1 (though also easily accessible from T2 and T3), which is now home to the YOTELAIR.

However, there looks set to be a third option coming to the mix in the next few years.

In late 2023, as reported by The Straits Times, Changi Airport Group has launched a tender for a brand new hotel to be operated at the southern end of Terminal 2’s landside section.

The property will have at least 220 rooms, and will form 60% or more of the floorspace within a brand new development that will take shape above the T2 coach stand, located at the L1 arrivals level just outside the terminal’s southern section.

Exactly what the other 40% or so of this new building will feature remains to be seen, but given the slightly awkward location away from the other terminals and the MRT station it’s unlikely to be some kind of ‘Jewel 2.0’ – it could just be office space or something similarly boring.

Hopefully at least a few F&B options will be part of the mix., and of course these will almost certainly feature in the hotel itself.

Changi Airport Landside Hotels
Hotel	Opened	Rooms
Crowne Plaza Changi Airport	2008	563
YOTELAIR Changi Airport	2019	130
New T2 Hotel	by 2027	220+

Once the new hotel is open, only Terminal 4 at Changi Airport will lack its own hotel, given that the YOTELAIR is arguably a T1 facility.

It won’t be “more of the same”

If you’re hoping for a five star property with all the modern conveniences, you may have to temper your expectations a little with this one.

According to the tender document sighted by The Straits Times, the style and quality of new hotel will have to slot in between the two existing landside properties at the airport – the upscale Crowne Plaza in T3 and the budget ‘capsule’ YOTELAIR in Jewel.

That will probably mean a property in the midscale category, though the three- to four-star hotel must also have a “wow factor” commensurate with the “world-class image and standing” of Changi Airport, according to ST.

Among the major hotel chains, the sort of mid-range properties that might fall into this category include:

• Accor
  Mantra, Mercure, Novotel
• Hilton
  DoubleTree by Hilton, Hilton Garden Inn
• IHG
  Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express
• Marriott
  AC Hotels, Aloft, Four Points by Sheraton, Moxy
• Pan Pacific
  PARKROYAL / PARKROYAL COLLECTION

All of these brands already have at least one airport location somewhere in the world, with the exception of PARKROYAL COLLECTION.

An independent hotel or a smaller brand is also a possibility, but we suspect Changi Airport would prefer to choose an internationally-recognised chain for a property like this, in keeping with the “world-class image and standing” element of the brief.

The contract for the new hotel is expected to be awarded in April 2024, with opening by 2027, and we’ll be intrigued to learn who the successful bidder ends up being.

Three airside hotels

While this new property will be a landside option, don’t forget that Singapore Changi Airport still has three airside hotels in the transit area, designed for travellers with long connections or for those arriving at the airport well in advance of their flight.

• Aerotel T1
• Ambassador Transit Hotel T2
• Ambassador Transit Hotel T3

These are all relatively basic facilities, designed primarily for rest rather than ‘bells and whistles’, though the Aerotel at T1 does have an outdoor pool.

Singapore Changi Airport will be getting a third landside hotel in the next few years, with a new 220-room property taking shape at the southern side of Terminal 2.

A major chain’s midscale brand is the most likely choice in our opinion, with an offering in between the standards and facilities offered at the existing Crowne Plaza and YOTELAIR hotels.

At the airside (transit) area, there are still three further hotels, for those with long connections or who reach the airport very early ahead of their flight.

Once further details about the new Changi T2 hotel are made available, hopefully later this year, we’ll be sure to share them with you.

(Cover Photo: MainlyMiles)