Six Senses is one of the most renowned luxury tropical resort brands, famous for their incredible beach properties. So opening not just one, but two Six Senses city hotels in the heart of Singapore’s Chinatown, was a very bold move. The new Six Senses Maxwell and the Six Senses Duxton are separated by a short five minute walk. Although they have different visual styles and designs, they have the common goal to be an urban oasis and share the same Six Senses values of wellness, relaxation and sustainability. Together, the Six Senses Maxwell and the Six Senses Duxton form the Six Senses Singapore. I have wanted to visit a Six Senses property for a long time and I jumped at the opportunity to stay at the first Six Senses city hotels in the world.
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LOCATION // SIX SENSES MAXWELL
We checked into the Six Senses Maxwell, in the area of Chinatown that is probably most famous for the Maxwell Food Centre just across the street. We were greeted with a welcome drink and the large singing bowl ceremony, which requires an explanation: I was invited to stand in the large metal bowl and close my eyes, after which a kind gentleman struck the bowl gently with a wooden wand, creating a sound similar to singing. Not my singing, but better. The sound vibrations are supposed to bring peace and connect you with harmony and health. I thought it was a really fun ceremony to kick off my stay at the Six Senses Maxwell.
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OUR ROOM // AT SIX SENSES MAXWELL
The Six Senses Maxwell has 138 guest rooms and suites and we stayed at the Maxwell Suite. Since the hotel was built in a heritage building, French designer Jacques Garcia had to work within the constraints of the existing structure and developed many smart, space-saving solutions in the rooms. Great attention to detail is demonstrated in the embroidered walls and rich, varied color palette. The bathroom in our suite was quite large and more than made up for the relatively modestly sized suite. The separate shower was located on one side of the bathroom, while the eyecatcher, the beautiful clawfoot bathtub, was placed on the other side.
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All Six Senses hotel have the same wonderful beds and ours was no exception! Modern practical features I liked are the USB ports on both sides of the bed and the now almost standard Nespresso machine. I absolutely loved the splendid selection of teas that are provided by a local teahouse nearby. Other than the bed, the minibar was the centerpiece of the room with gorgeous glassware and a nice variety of spirits, plus original local snacks like dried fruits. And no Six Senses room is complete without spiritual touches like the Oh Ball (to relax your senses, starting with your feet) and bedside stress reducing Baoding balls.
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SUSTAINABILITY & SPIRITUALITY //
Six Senses is famous for its approach to sustainability, which is evidenced from repurposing handsoap that is send to lower developed countries, using only filtered water in glass bottles and bathroom amenities in large dispensers instead of takeaway bottles. The delightful a la carte breakfast is a large reduction of waste compared to the usual buffet style breakfast spreads.
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POOL, GYM & SPA // AT SIX SENSES MAXWELL
The gym at the Six Senses Maxwell is more than adequate for all except perhaps professional bodybuilders, but the sports highlight for me is the absolutely incredible 25-meter long outdoor lap pool. Situated along the sun terrace on the second floor, the pool provides a lovely opportunity to either go for some serious lap swimming, or casually drift in the sun.
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Another notable health offering is the top floor with beautiful spa pods, which are dedicated spa rooms where many wonderful treatments are available.
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BREAKFAST // AT SIX SENSES MAXWELL
I already touched on the breakfast, with is served at the Cook & Tras Social Library on the ground floor. It doubles as a restaurant and library, with no less than 3,000(!) books that are available for hotel guests to read in a comfortable chair or take to your room. It is a beautiful, calm place to enjoy breakfast, which offers organic, sustainably sourced ingredients from Singapore and around the region. My favorite breakfast choice was the Eggs Florentine: fresh, tasty and perfectly prepared.
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SIX SENSES DUXTON //
One of the nice features of staying at the Six Senses Singapore, is the opportunity that guests have to use the facilities of both the Six Senses Maxwell and the Six Senses Duxton. This wasn’t lost on us, so we enjoyed walking over to the Duxton several times to enjoy the beautiful Yellow Pot bar, have a spectacular lunch or have our doctor’s appointment. At first I wondered what a doctor was doing at a hotel, but please bear with me!

Built in a row of traditional colonial style Singapore shophouses, the Six Senses Duxton is a completely different hotel than the Six Senses Maxwell. Whereas the Six Senses Maxwell has more red and blue tints, legendary designer Anouska Hempel chose a distinctive black and yellow palette for the Six Senses Duxton.
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PHYSICIAN // AT SIX SENSES DUXTON
As we walked into the Six Senses Duxton, we noticed a small room that looks like an old school apothecary, right next to the front desk. All guests of the Six Senses Singapore have a free consultation with a Chinese medicine physician, who starts out by checking your tongue. She analyzed my pulse, asked several questions about my general health and immediately noticed that I had a lower back problem. The doctor also advised me to drink less cold water and more lukewarm water. All in all it was a fun and very enjoyable experience.
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ROOMS // AT SIX SENSES DUXTON
The Six Senses Duxton is a smaller hotel than the Six Senses Maxwell, with only 49 guest rooms and suites. Due to the historic setting in those lovely shophouses, no two rooms or suites are identical. The Montgomery Suite is the signature suite, adorned in the strong yellow and black signature colors, but my favorite is the Pearl Suite. The combination of large windows and bright white walls create a wonderfully light environment.
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THE MONTGOMERY SUITE //

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YELLOW POT RESTAURANT // AT SIX SENSES DUXTON
I already mentioned the Yellow Pot cocktailbar, which serves the most exquisite artisanal cocktails using traditional herbs. It is a clearly a hot spot in Singapore, where many people enjoy a beautiful beverage before having dinner in one of the best Chinese restaurants in town, The Yellow Pot.
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The Yellow Pot restaurant serves an innovative vision on traditional Chinese cuisine using organically sourced ingredients, which leads to truly remarkable dishes like the ones we enjoyed. It was one of the most wonderful lunches we have ever had.
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– Vine ripened tomato infused with sour plum –
– Barramundi fish with ginger and scallion pesto –

– Misua –

– Crispy roast duck –

 -Lion’s mane mushrooms from China –

– Fried prawn with lavender aioli –

– Tang yuan black sesame & walk in the garden –

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We didn’t need any encouragement to head back to the Yellow Pot restaurant the next day for breakfast, where we enjoyed the completely different breakfast menu than offered at the Six Senses Maxwell. We went for a mix of local and traditional breakfast dishes: a super tasty omelet with chili crab, the exquisite local kaya toast and more traditional breakfast staples like pancakes and muesli.
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All in all, the Six Senses Singapore is a truly unique experience by having two distinctly different hotels work together in unison, offering a remarkable, original experience to even the most critical globetrotters.
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*Pressstay at Six Senses Maxwell and Six Senses Duxton – Singapore,
Pink dress //  Carla mini dress by Palma Australia

All photos are taken with the Canon EOS M5