Ukrainian tourists win trip to Singapore, say free holiday ended up being expensive

When going on a holiday, the plane tickets and accommodation often make up the priciest parts.

So, when Hanna Zhuravlova and Lolita Spesivets won themselves a trip to Singapore with all these expenses covered, they were likely expecting a cost-friendly travel experience.

But their free trip turned out to be more expensive than they had anticipated. 

A YouTube video uploaded by them on Nov 10 last year showed that they had won themselves a free hotel stay, plane tickets and ZoukOut tickets during a Halloween contest in Japan. 

And in a more recent video on Jan 13, the two Ukrainian women, who are based in Japan, shared snippets of what they did during this trip.

After a seven-hour flight, they checked into M Hotel Singapore before heading out to get some food from a place called Miss Fitz. 

"So in Singapore, everything is very expensive. But we found a place to eat.

"We came here and we thought it wouldn't be very good because the prices were lower than average. But it's really good," said a surprised Lola before giving a brief rundown of what they ordered. 

On their second day, they got breakfast at Chez Suzette but didn't share how much the final bill was. 

After lunch, as they were walking along Neil Road, they remarked that they had seen water that cost $4 and were shocked that it was not free. 

Other places they visited included Chinatown, Maxwell Food Centre and Marina Barrage.

The next time they spent money was at Flower Dome and Cloud Forest at Gardens by the Bay, where tickets to see the attractions cost $32 for adult non-residents.

They also noted that you can't buy just a ticket to Cloud Forest as it came in a bundle with Flower Dome. 

"Capitalistic country," remarked Hanna. 

Free festival tickets but everything else was expensive

On their third day, they discovered that they had free hotel breakfast and decided to have that before heading to the pool, which ended up being closed. 

After which, they wandered around town before heading to Sentosa for the ZoukOut festival, which they won tickets to. 

On their way there, they shared that they were enjoying their time in Singapore. 

"So basically, we are in love with Singapore," said Lola. 

"The climate is not really nice because it's super hot and humid here but everything is just so beautiful here, we love it a lot." 

Midway during Zoukout, they admitted that they weren't having an amazing time. 

"We're not really excited about the festival. It's just not our type of music. But the location is really nice, everything's really nice," said Lola.

She also noted that things were on the pricier end. 

"It's very expensive here. All the drinks are really expensive," she remarked. 

Conclusion: Great but expensive

On the women's final day, they checked out Arab Street, City Square Mall, Tanjong Pagar and a park before heading to the airport. 

While rushing to catch their flight, they shared their honest thoughts on Singapore. 

"We really liked Singapore. [But] prices are really expensive," said Lola. 

The women also pointed out that it was hard to find a restroom here, as compared to Japan. 

Apart from that, they didn't feel like there was enough art and at the times, the streets were "stinky". 

"But I think other than that, that's it. In general, we really loved it and we'd like to come back here again, but when we have a lot of money," concluded Lola. 

ALSO READ: Danish tourists shocked by how affordable it can be to explore Singapore

melissateo@asiaone.com