THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: We could spot it from a mile away. The Genting Dream, one of Asia’s largest cruise ships stood docked on Singapore’s port as we drove along the road that wraps around it. While it made its first voyage in 2016, the ‘updated’ The Palace, a boutique luxury hotel and clubhouse within the ship, was still in the first few months of its operation when we flew down to Singapore for a weekend cruise. About 335 metres high, it was the hull of the ship that we noticed first as we began the embarkation process. It features a painting entitled Voyage of a Lover’s Dream by pop-artist Jacky Tsai, from Shanghai, who is known for creating the famous floral skull for the late Alexander McQueen. This was definitely a promising start.
Making an entry
The Zodiac Theatre, a 400-seater that hosts live shows, was our first stop. Here, we were debriefed about the entertainment, restaurants and shopping. Post this, we took a tour of The Palace on board the Genting Dream, which lasted for over an hour, speaking volumes of how massive the ship is. When we were finally shown to our room, we were exhausted but glad to have some time to ourselves. The Palace comprises 150 luxury suites across four categories, and ours was the Palace Suite, a plush 37-square-metre space with a queen-size bed with linens from Frette (an Italian textile company known for its luxury linens), a 42-inch TV, an opulent bathroom with toiletries, a private balcony where you can sip on coffee while feasting your eyes on endless miles of ocean made us feel utterly pampered. And did we mention it also comes with a personal butler, always at hand to fix you a drink? Jonathan, our butler, originally from Taiwan, was friendly and despite the language barrier. Occupying about 10,000 square metres, the ‘ship-within-a-ship’ offers diners the exclusive The Palace Restaurant, which serves a mix of international cuisines. This was where we had dinner on our first evening. Post dinner, we caught a live show at the Zodiac Theatre.
Breakfast with a view
Waking up early the next day, we settled down for breakfast at The Palace Restaurant, with views of the sea. We enjoyed a leisurely meal sipping on multiple cups of tea . We then made our way to the shops. Covering everything from jewellery and watches to apparel, beauty, liquor and footwear, labels with stores on board include BVLGARI, Mikimoto, Cartier, Gucci, Burberry, Kate Spade New York, Salvatore Ferragamo, Prada, Chanel, Tony Moly, Glenfiddich, Glenmorangie, Henessy and Havaianas. Spread across 1,100 square metres, this duty-free location is an easy way to spend hours and of course, lots of money.Bistro by Mark Best, was our lunch destination. Helmed by the renowned Australian chef of the same name, it uses ingredients sourced fromsmall-time producers, and focuses on Australian beef, lamb, river fish and seafood. The delicious lunch of medium rare steak was finished in no time. While a quick nap would have done us good, we were happy to have our aching feet attended to at the Crystal Life spa instead. The 45-minute treatment was utter bliss.
