Orchard Hotel to suspend new bookings for 30 days after 11 people had birthday celebration in hotel room

The hotel will not be permitted to accept new room bookings for the duration of the suspension, but may continue to fulfil existing bookings made prior to the suspension.

Nyi Nyi Thet| June 25, 2021, 11:46 AM

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On February 6, Singapore Tourism Board (STB)’s enforcement officers found that 11 individuals had gathered in a hotel room in Orchard Hotel Singapore for a birthday celebration.

This contravened the prevailing SMMs applicable during Phase 3, which stated that hotels must not allow gatherings of more than eight individuals in any guest room, except where the gathering consists wholly of individuals from the same household.

Following investigations, STB issued Orchard Hotel a fine of S$1,000 and ordered the hotel to suspend room bookings for 30 days from June 25 to July 24, 2021 (both dates inclusive) for failing to comply with SMMs in Phase 3.

The hotel will not be permitted to accept new room bookings for the duration of the suspension, but may continue to fulfil existing bookings made prior to the suspension.

Further investigations of the individuals involved are ongoing, and enforcement action may be taken against them.

Parks and beaches

Since the start of Phase 3 (Heightened Alert) on June 14, 117 individuals have been issued fines for breaching SMMs in parks and beaches managed by the National Parks Board (NParks).

These breaches include not wearing masks when not engaging in strenuous exercises, and gathering in groups larger than the permitted size.

For example, a group of 17 individuals and a group of 13 individuals were caught gathering in Changi Beach Park and East Coast Park respectively. In addition, around 1,800 advisories were issued to individuals for breaches.

Image from Orchard Hotels Instagram