How does Kim's Singapore hotel compare to North Korean 'luxury'?
Kim Jong-un is staying in one of Singapore’s most luxurious hotels throughout his historic summit with Donald Trump, and it’s a far cry from what’s considered one of North Korea’s most extravagant stays.
The North Korean leader checked into the St Regis Singapore on Sunday, escorted by about 20 guards, CNN reports. It’s believed he’s staying in the Presidential Suite.
The hotel’s website describes the suite as “the most lavish suite in the hotel” and the “epitome of seductive luxury and bespoke comfort”.
It features a private balcony, jacuzzi and gym. It also has its own living and dining rooms and each room is lined with “gold, and accented with precious metals like brass, onyx, and silver”.
It’s a pricey stay too with one night in the suite priced at about A$9000 (GBP 5100).
But the St Regis Presidential Suite is a stark contrast to what’s considered to be one of North Korea’s best hotels.
The Ryanggang Hotel in Pyongyang was built by Mr Kim to impress tourists, The Telegraph reports.
The hotel is described as “first-class” with 11 storeys and 330 rooms, according to KTG DPRK Tours and Information’s website. Rooms are “relatively spacious” but have “Korean style” beds, which feature “very thin” mattresses, “foreigners might not be used to”.
The Ryanggang also has a rotating restaurant on the top floor.
However, reviews of the hotel on TripAdvisor show many travellers have been less than impressed with their stay. One user, from the UK, gave it one star and described it as an “awful hotel” that has a “rat problem”.
Another said “the hotel is as bad as it gets” and also gave it one star.
One user was a little more forgiving and gave it two stars but complained about the hot water system and heating issues.
“When we arrived, we were told hot water will be available from 9pm to 11pm,” he wrote.
“Later we will find out that it was a lie, there was no hot water on that day at all. It was also very cold, as heating seemed to be non-existent. We all had to walk around with coats on, and there seemed to be no radiators anywhere in the building at all!”
Another simply said the hotel reminds visitors of “what a horror North Korea is” adding it’s “dirty, cold and hideous” and “so awful”.
Other complaints included that the rotating restaurant doesn’t rotate, rooms had frequent power outages and a dislike of its “Soviet style” architecture.
It has an average of two and a half stars on Trip Advisor.
