An Old-World Train Journey Through Southeast Asia

Raffles Hotel in Singapore is perched like an iced cake on Beach Road, its filigreed tiers framed by palm trees. The valets are dressed in the uniforms of Imperial Indian soldiers, stitched by Gieves Hawkes in London, and they direct taxis in their white coats and turbans. The colonial-style atrium is three stories of marble and teak. It’s pleasantly nostalgic sipping the hotel’s signature pink punch—a mixture of gin, citrus, and cherry brandy, served with a pineapple skewer and maraschino cherry—while waiting for your room key. A monument to the era when Singapore was a frontier town and Rudyard Kipling was in the dining room.