At the start of this year, we reported on plans for a new hotel at Singapore Changi Airport, the third to be located in the landside (public) area, at the southern end of the recently-revamped Terminal 2 where the coach stand is currently located.
Changi Airport Group (CAG) has now announced that it has awarded the tender for this project, which will take shape over the next four years and will represent the first new hotel built at the airport since 2019.
Hotel Indigo Changi Airport
The new property will be the Hotel Indigo Changi Airport, a boutique upscale brand by the IHG Hotels Group, set to be built at the southern end of Terminal 2.
OUE Limited has been awarded the tender by CAG for the lease and development of the hotel, with the real estate group also holding the keys to the existing Crowne Plaza at Changi Terminal 3.
“The hotel concept proposed by OUE was the most compelling and promises to be the first zero-energy hotel in Singapore, and possibly the first for an airport hotel in the world. With travel demand continuing to soar and passenger traffic growing beyond pre-Covid levels, the new hotel will elevate the hospitality offerings at Changi Airport. It will serve our visitors well with its differentiated facilities and convenient access to T2.”
Lee Seow Hiang, CEO, CAG
Full opening is planned by 2028, a year later than originally planned.
It will be the second Hotel Indigo in Singapore, complementing the existing Hotel Indigo Singapore Katong in the East Coast district, which opened in 2016.
While that property features a quirky design in keeping with the local neighbourhood, it’s not a blueprint for what we can expect at the new airport hotel.
While we can expect the same stylish finish, the airport hotel certainly won’t be the same inside, with “no two Hotel Indigo properties the same”.
“Just as no two neighbourhoods are alike, no two Hotel Indigo properties are the same, taking inspiration from the area around each hotel to inform all aspects of the guest experience, from the boutique design to locally-inspired restaurants and bars.”
IHG
As of December 2023, there are 153 Hotel Indigo properties worldwide, with a further 132 in the pipeline.
The airport version will have 255 rooms and will be located in the public area of Terminal 2, connected to the airport via a linkway in a similar fashion to the Jewel complex.
The property will span a total of 163 metres in length, and at seven stories high many rooms should benefit from great airport and runway views, directly overlooking Gates F50 to F56 in Terminal 2 and across to Runway 2 and the Terminal 5 construction project beyond.
Features are set to include a rooftop day club, bar and an infinity pool offering views of the runway, the latter being a concept that reminds us of the TWA Hotel at New York JFK’s Terminal 5.
Another concept the hotel will embrace is Terminal 2’s latest abundance of flora and fauna, with a ‘Floating Forest’ integrated into the design.
This will see “layers of lush rainforest and hanging plants stretching over seven stories” at the new property.
CAG says that sustainability will be “at the heart of this new hotel development”, with the Indigo set to be the first zero-energy hotel in Singapore, and potentially the first such property at an airport globally.
This will be achieved thanks to incorporation of “solar panels, hybrid cooling systems, naturally ventilated corridors and rainwater-harvesting technology”, the airport says, allowing the hotel “to achieve operational energy neutrality”.
As reported in late 2023 by The Straits Times, the hotel will form 60% or more of the floorspace within a brand new development, though what the balance of the project will include hasn’t yet been revealed.
Hopefully at least a few F&B options will be part of the mix, and of course these will also feature inside the hotel itself.
Third landside hotel at Changi
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.
With confirmation of this new T2 property, there will be a total of 960 landside hotel rooms at Changi by 2028, as shown in the following table.
| Changi Airport Landside Hotels | ||
| Hotel | Opened | Rooms |
| Crowne Plaza Changi Airport | 2008 | 575 |
| YOTELAIR Changi Airport | 2019 | 130 |
| Hotel Indigo Changi Airport | by 2028 | 255 |
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.
Three further airside hotels
While the Hotel Indigo Changi Airport 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.
Summary
Singapore Changi Airport will be getting a third landside hotel by 2028, with the new 255-room Hotel Indigo Changi Airport taking shape at the southern side of Terminal 2, a year later than originally planned.
This will be the second Hotel Indigo in Singapore, an IHG Group brand, and is a project by OUE Limited who have been awarded the tender for the development and lease of the site.
An exciting feature of the property will be an infinity pool with runway views, plus a bar and a rooftop day club.
With its boutique upscale concept, we can expect a high quality product from the Indigo brand, which focuses on a stylish finish with “no two properties the same”.
Complementing the three landside hotels, Changi still offers three further properties in the airside (transit) area, for those with long connections or who reach the airport very early ahead of their flight.
(Cover Image: OUE)