Escape Routes, Week of October 21

Singapore on a Budget

Singapore Airlines has got a reputation that’s hard to beat: comfortable seats, top-notch service and, of course, jaw-droppingly attractive flight attendants. It’s also known for being tough on the wallet, but last week word got out that its planned low-cost carrier will start operations soon.

The Straits Times newspaper leaked the news last week that Scoot Airlines will start off in April 2012 with just one Boeing jet, with the goal to add three more planes in three months and bring the total to 14 by 2016. As opposed to Tiger Airways, in which SIA has a stake, and SilkAir, which serves destinations in Asia, Scoot Airlines will fly to places that are further afield, like Europe, the United States, Australia and New Zealand.

Hotels in Singers can also be pretty pricey, but a new boutique hostel (an oxymoron?!) aims to shake up the market a little. Wink Hostel’s motto is “indulgence on a budget,” and based on some cool photos of the colorful, modern hostel, it’s worth trying if you’re trying to cut costs. In this three-story shop house in Chinatown (near the MRT station), beds are set up in sleek private pods, and there’s ample space for socializing, cooking, laundry and TV-watching. Rooms start at S$40 (about $240) a night.

Wink Hostel, 8A Mosque Street, Singapore 059488, www.winkhostel.com.

Word on the Street

So I’m kinda into Twitter these days, mostly because the whizzes I follow provide me with plenty of food for thought when it comes to reading material and up-to-the-second info on what’s going on in the city.

I asked my followers what they thought were the most underrated destinations in Asia. Here are a few of the responses I received: