How an IT Worker Built a Shipping

Seah and his wife Lorraine launched a hotel chain called Shipping Container Hotel, and in 2020, they opened their first hotel in an industrial enclave in central Singapore. They went on to open another hotel in Singapore's famous hell-themed park. In both hotels, the living space is made out of a single shipping container.

But Seah was still dreaming of something bigger: He wanted to build a luxury hotel out of four two-story shipping containers.

"I wanted to dispel the notion that recycling shipping containers is a cheap experience," Seah told Insider.

This month, Seah launched his third hotel location, called the Garden Pod, at the Gardens by the Bay, a 101-hectare park with views of the iconic Marina Bay Sands. The hotel took around two years to build.

The hotel was designed by local firm Laud Architects. In early 2020, Seah began constructing the hotel with a team of architects and engineers. He estimates that he spent around 1 million Singapore dollars, or about $700,000, to build the complex.

Seah said the containers, which measure 2.4 meters or around 7.8 feet in length, cost around SG$8,000 each.

Next, the team installed aluminum frames into the cut-up parts of the containers. Heat-soaked glass, which could withstand the force of the container being hoisted into the air, was fitted into these frames.

Roughly 50 million people have visited the park in downtown Singapore since it opened in 2012. It's known for having the largest glass greenhouse in the world.

In order to operate the hotel in the park, Seah has to pay rent to Gardens by the Bay. Seah declined to reveal the rental costs at the park.

A representative from Gardens by the Bay told Insider that commercial arrangements are determined by factors like market rental rates and "overall value provided to visitors." The representative did not comment on how much rental costs at the park.

"The Garden Pod is a pop-up hotel concept that Gardens by the Bay developed with the Shipping Container Hotel," the representative said. "We are always open to novel proposals from commercial partners to bring new and interesting experiences to our visitors."

"I had to be able to remove the steel beams — it couldn't be cast in concrete," Seah said.

One of the most notable features in each loft is a spiral staircase, which Seah likened to a sculpture. The hotel has four staircases in total, each of which was hoisted in after the first floor of the hotel was constructed.

Seah said it was more structurally sound to build the base of the hotel with metal beams rather than shipping containers.

"We wanted the structure to be secure even if there's strong winds," Seah said.

The lofts were joined together with horizontal metal walls and ceilings, Seah explained.

Electrical wiring needed to be concealed inside the walls to prevent fire hazards in the hotel, Seah said. Rockwool was also inserted into the walls so it wouldn't be so hot inside the container, especially in Singapore's tropical weather.

Seah added that building a tiny house in Singapore is "difficult" because of the government's strict safety guidelines, explaining that even temporary structures are held to the same standards as permanent ones.

Seah said that only thin and flexible panels were fitted onto the hotel.

"They aren't the traditional thick ones that we commonly see," Seah said, adding that the hotel's electricity is supplied mostly by solar energy.

Each loft, which measures 70 square meters, has a large outdoor patio, a bedroom with en-suite bathroom, a living area, and a dining space.

A night's stay isn't cheap — it costs SG$600 to accomodate four guests.

Thiang Yong Chan, a guest who stayed at the hotel in September, said the loft wasn't "the typical small container" and that it measures up to more established hotels.

"A nice place for a short getaway," Thiang wrote in a Google review. She added that one of the downsides of the hotel is the lack of privacy, because of the tall glass windows.

All the patios face different directions of the hotel, so the views differ — the Jasmine duplex, for example, offers a view of the city skyline. The hotel also provides an electric grill.

Liang advised guests who want privacy to close the curtains as the bedroom was designed to showcase a panoramic view of the gardens.

The upper floor also has en-suite bathroom with a spacious shower and toilet.

Seah said that it's expensive and tedious to build a tiny house structure in Singapore – which is the opposite of what people typically look for in tiny, mobile living.

"A lot of people are drawn to the hotel because they're intrigued by the closest thing we have to living off-grid," Seah said. "I build these hotels so people can experience tiny house living in the city."

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