We stayed a couple of nights en route to Lombok and then again coming back. Pretty boutique hotel. Smallish but adequate rooms - spotlessly clean. No frills (pool etc) , but then you are not paying for them either. Very convenient location, just 5 minutes amble to Little India MRT station, and taxis and buses available closer still just at the bottom of the road. and bang in the middle of Little India so bars and restaurants all around anyway. Nice breakfast, very welcoming, helpful and friendly staff. Very good value for money, highly recommended.
Possible down sides - rooms and corridors have beautiful wooden floors so there is potential for noise from other guests and also there is some street noise - neither bothered us, but if you are a light sleeper you should maybe take earplugs. Also there is no lift - we were on 3rd floor, and again didn't bother us, but others may feel differently.

I have been staying at the Perak Hotel everytime I go to Singpoare for nearly 8 years. I always book a deluxe room, so I can't comment on the other room types. It is the mix of old colonial charm and the modern conveniences like wireless broadband that I really like about this hotel. The wooden floor-boards, old style windows and facade of the hotel remind me I'm in Southeast Asia - something the bigger places on Orchard Road don't do.

Over the years the staff now recognise me, and I have always found the service friendly enough - and very helpful. Given that Singapore is not a budget travel destination, I find the room rate very reasonable for what you get and will always recommend it to friends. The location in Little India is great, very close to the MRT, Queen St bus terminal, great food and plenty of atmosphere on a Sunday.

A unique hotel in a great area of Singapore.

We booked the hotel after reading mostly favorable reviews. We checked into our room on the ground level which had no windows. We thought, only one night, we can deal with it. Before heading out for dinner, I plugged in my electric toothbrush. When we returned, I put the key in the power slot and there was a flash and then nothing but darkness. The night desk person came into the room with a flashlight and starting ranting about overloading a circuit. I tried to explain to him that all that I had plugged in was a toothbrush. Being an engineer, I know there were other problems not caused by a damn toothbrush. We then turned on the air con and it started to rattle like crazy (it was old and partly taped up). We pointed this out to him and he said he would see if there was another room available. After 15 minutes, my wife finally went to the front desk and asked him if he had found another room. Without looking at her, he said nothing and handed her a key. No offer to help with moving our luggae to the new room up on the third floor. This room was much better, with windows, but they did not seal properly and we spent a sleepless night kept awake by the noises on the street below. In the morning when we checked out, the day staff were there and they were just as cold as the night man. I'm not sure if this was just towards us. But this counts as one of the worst experiences I've had in my 20 years of extensive travel.

My wife and I stayed at the Perak Hotel for four days in mid April 2007. We booked directly with the hotel, and even then still managed to get a superior room for only S$148 a night.

The bed was rock hard, the bathroom was tiny and the breakfast was quite basic. The only other negative was the three flights of stairs we had to climb with suitcases, as they are small enough not to need a lift.

These aren't big things though, and there were plenty of great points as well - a five minute walk (if that) to the Little India MRT, a 1 minute walk to a 7 Eleven store, minutes to many places to eat and it was a hotel with personality - after 2 days there, we were recognised by staff and greeted by our names.

The air conditioning is a must have in Singapore, and the staff service was also fantastic. There is a big difference between a small hotel like this, and one of the larger ones I have stayed in here before. You're treated like a number at the larger ones, and the Perak made me feel like a guest, not a customer.

I'd be happy to stay here again.