Singapore

• Beaches and tourist resorts: Head to one of the three beaches on Sentosa or its southern islands. Other beaches can be found on the East Coast.
• Culture and cuisine: See Chinatown for Chinese treats, Little India for Indian flavours, Kampong Glam (Arab St) for a Malay/Arab experience or the East Coast for delicious seafood, including the famous chilli and black pepper crab.
• History and museums: The Bras Basah area east of Orchard and north of the Singapore River is Singapore’s colonial core, with historical buildings and museums. NUS Museum in the west is also very much worth the trip.
• Nature and wildlife: Popular tourist attractions Singapore Zoo, Night Safari, Jurong Bird Park and the Botanical Gardens are all in the North and West. Finding “real” nature is a little harder, but the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve (located in the same district as the zoo) has more plant species than that in the whole of North America. Pulau Ubin, an island off the Changi Village in the east, is a flashback to the rural Singapore of yesteryear. City parks full of locals jogging or doing tai chi can be found everywhere. Also check out the tortoise and turtle sanctuary in the Chinese Gardens on the west side of town for a great afternoon with these wonderful creatures. $5 for adult admission and $2 for leafy vegetables and food pellets.
• Parks and gardens: The Garden City and City in a Garden are new concepts being promoted by the Singaporean government and Singaporeans take great pride in their parks and gardens. Be sure to visit the Botanical Gardens (including the National Orchid Garden) and the Gardens by the Bay (don’t miss the Flower Dome and the Cloud Forest). There’s also the HortPark at the “Southern Ridges” and the “Chinese” and “Japanese Gardens”.
• Skyscrapers and shopping: The heaviest shopping mall concentration is in Orchard Road, while skyscrapers are clustered around the Singapore River, but also check out Bugis and Marina Bay to see where Singaporeans shop.
• Places of worship: Don’t miss this aspect of Singapore, where Buddhism, Taoism, Hinduism, Sikhism, Baha’i faith, Christianity, Islam and even Judaism all exist in sizeable numbers. Religious sites can be easily visited and welcome non-followers outside of service times. Particularly worth visiting include: the vast Kong Meng San Phor Kark See Monastery near Ang Mo Kio, the colourful Sri Mariamman Hindu temple in Chinatown, the psychedelic Burmese Buddhist Temple in Balestier, one of the oldest hokkien temples Thian Hock Keng temple and the stately Masjid Sultan in Arab Street.

Itineraries

• Three days in Singapore — A three-day sampler set of food, culture and shopping in Singapore, easily divisible into bite-size chunks.
• Southern Ridges Walk — An easy scenic 9km stroll through the hills and jungles of southern Singapore. Highlights of the trail includes a 36 m high Henderson Waves pedestrian bridge providing a stunning view of the sea beyond the jungle.

Travel Tips

Useful to carry:

• Deodorant/Anti-Perspirant – Singapore is a humid country so expect to sweat a lot.
• Sun Glasses/Sunscreen – Singapore is usually bright and sunny.
• Umbrella – there is some precipitation throughout the year. However, the rain does not last long (usually).
• Shorts/Half Trousers – Singapore is hot and humid. Although air-conditioning is available in all public transport (except a few public buses) and almost all internal areas, it is advisable to carry some light clothing. Do note that some places of worship may require visitors to dress conservatively.
• Sweater – not necessary unless you are staying put in an air-conditioned place or if you are watching a movie in the cinema – the air-conditioner can get quite cold.
• Mosquito repellent – In more remote areas there are mosquitos, otherwise they have been mostly eradicated from Singapore. Dengue fever is a particular problem in this part of the world, so be aware.

Carry around with you a copy of the train network so you know how to get to places without having to go to the train station or look online. The train network is quite complicated and there can be a number of different routes to get to 1 place.

Book a backpacker’s place to stay if you do not want to pay exorbitant prices in hotels. Singapore is notoriously expensive for hotel accommodation. Backpacker options are affordable and clean.

While you can find a place to practice nearly any sport in Singapore — golfing, surfing, scuba diving, even ice skating and snow skiing — due to the country’s small size your options are rather limited and prices are relatively high. For water sports in particular, the busy shipping lanes and sheer population pressure mean that the sea around Singapore is murky, and most locals head up to Tioman (Malaysia) or Bintan (Indonesia) instead. On the upside, there is an abundance of dive shops in Singapore, and they often arrange weekend trips to good dive sites off the East Coast of Malaysia, so they are a good option for accessing some of Malaysia’s not-so touristy dive sites.

Art

Singapore may be a young country but it has a constantly evolving artistic landscape that draws its influences from its unique heritage of East and Southeast Asian culture, with a good mix of western touch.

The Renaissance City Project was initiated in 2000 by the Singaporean Government to establish Singapore as a regional city of the arts to cultivate artistic interest and culture. Today, Singapore sees itself flourishing in the third phase of the renaissance city project with new museums, international galleries and art fairs entering the local artistic landscape.

In 2011, Singapore saw the opening of the ArtScience Museum at The Marina Bay Sands, a museum dedicated to design and technology. And in 2012, fourteen international galleries arrived at the shore of Singapore housed at The Gillman Barracks, a new artistic area. The National Art Gallery opened in 2015, and housed in two national monuments – the former Supreme Court Building and City Hall, is the largest visual arts institution in Singapore and also one of the largest regionally, focusing on modern Southeast Asian art through its collections.

Singapore’s art district, located around the Dhoby Ghaut and City Hall area have a concentration of art institutions, museums and galleries. Notable museums and art venues include, the National Museum of Singapore, Singapore Art Museum, The Substation (Singapore’s first independent contemporary art centre) and Art Plural Gallery, Singapore’s largest art gallery.

Gambling

Singapore has two integrated resorts with casinos. Marina Bay Sands at Marina Bay is the larger and swankier of the two, while Resorts World Sentosa at Sentosa aims for a more family-friendly experience (but offers No Limit Holdem from $5/$10). While locals (citizens and permanent residents) have to pay $100/day or $2,000/year to get in, foreign visitors can enter for free after presenting their passport. A driver license from your home country will not work.

Besides the casino, there are other forms of legalised betting which are more accessible to the locals. This includes horse racing, which is run by the Singapore Turf Club on weekends, as well as football (soccer) betting and several lotteries run by the Singapore Pools.

Mahjong is also a popular pastime in Singapore. The version played in Singapore is similar to the Cantonese version, but it also has extra “animal tiles” not present in the original Cantonese version. However, this remains pretty much a family and friends affair, and there are no mahjong parlours.

Golf

Despite its small size, Singapore has a surprisingly large number of golf courses, but most of the best ones are run by private clubs and open to members and their guests only. The main exceptions are the Sentosa Golf Club, the famously challenging home of the Barclays Singapore Open, and the Marina Bay Golf Course, the only 18-hole public course. See the Singapore Golf Association for the full list; alternatively, head to the nearby Indonesian islands of Batam or Bintan or up north to the Malaysian town of Malacca for cheaper rounds.

Races

The inaugural F1 Singapore Grand Prix was held at night in September 2008, and is a fixture on the local calendar.The F1 Organizers have confirmed that the night race will be extended till 2021. Held on a street circuit in the heart of Singapore and raced at night, all but race fans will probably wish to avoid this time, as hotel prices especially room with view of the F1 tracks are through the roof. Tickets start from $150 but the thrilling experience of night race is definitely unforgettable for all F1 fans and photo buffs. Besides being a uniquely night race, the carnival atmosphere and pop concert held around the race ground as well as the convenience of hotels and restaurants round the corner, distinguish the race from other F1 races held remotely away from urban centres.

The Singapore Turf Club in Kranji hosts horse races most Fridays, including a number of international cups, and is popular with local gamblers. The Singapore Polo Club near Balestier is also open to the public on competition days.

Spas

Singapore has recently been experiencing a ‘spa boom’, and there is now plenty of choice for everything from holistic Ayurveda to green tea hydrotherapy. However, prices aren’t as rock-bottom as in neighbours Indonesia and Thailand, and you’ll generally be looking at upwards of $50 even for a plain one-hour massage. Premium spas can be found in most 5 star hotels and on Orchard, and Sentosa’s Spa Botanica also has a good reputation. There are also numerous shops offering traditional Chinese massage, which are mostly legitimate. The less legitimate “health centres” have been shut down. Traditional asian-style public baths are non-existent.

When looking for beauty salons on Orchard Road, try out the ones on the fourth floor of Lucky Plaza. They offer most salon services like manicures, pedicures, facials, waxing and hair services. A favorite of flight crew and repeat tourists due to the lower costs as compared to the sky high prices of other salons along the shopping belt. Shop around for prices, some of the better looking ones actually charge less.

When in the Bugis or Kampong Glam walking belt, a good stop to rest weary feet would be at one of the many nail parlours in the area. Manicures or pedicures are very affordable in Singapore and most salons maintain a high level of hygiene. A few popular options in the area include Manicurious, The Nail Artelier and The Nail Social.

Some of the more popular, cost friendly massage includes Chinatown’s own TeoChew Meng Reflexology Centre which stands at People’s Park Complex.

Swimming

Forget your tiny hotel pool if you are into competitive or recreational swimming: Singapore is paradise for swimmers with arguably the highest density of public pools in the world. They are all open-air 50m pools (some facilities even feature up to three 50m pools), accessible for an entrance fee of $1.00-1.50. Some of the visitors don’t swim at all. They just come from nearby housing complexes for a few hours to chill out, read and relax in the sun. Most are open daily from 08:00-20:00, and all feature a small cafe. Just imagine swimming your lanes in the tropical night with lit up palm trees surrounding the pool.

Experience world-class Olympics-standard swimming pool at the OCBC Aquatic Centre near Stadium MRT. It opens all day 07:00-22:00 unless they’re hosting swimming championship. Entrance is $2.60-2.90 and include access to Training Pool anytime of the day and Competition Pool at certain hours. Check their website for lane availability.

ActiveSG maintains a list of pools, most of which are part of a larger sports complex with gym, tennis courts etc, and are located near the MRT station they’re named after. Perhaps the best is in Katong (111 Wilkinson Road, on the East Coast): after the swim, stroll through the villa neighbourhood directly in front of the pool entrance and have at look at the luxurious, original architecture of the houses that really rich Singaporeans live in. If you get bored with regular swimming pools, head to the Jurong East Swimming Complex where you get the wave pool, water slides and Jacuzzi at an insanely affordable entrance fee of $1.50 on weekdays and $2 on weekends.

For those who feel richer, visit the Wild Wild Wet water theme park with $19 and get yourself wet with various exciting water slides and a powerful tidal wave pool.

For those who don’t like pools, head out to the beaches. The East Coast Park has a scenic coastline that stretches over 15km. It’s a popular getaway spot for Singaporeans to swim, cycle, barbeque and engage in various other sports and activities. Sentosa island also has three white, sandy beaches – Siloso Beach, Palawan Beach and Tanjong Beach – each with its own distinct characteristics, and also very popular with locals.

Water Sports

Canoeing and dragon-boating are popular water-sports in Singapore, and there are many beautiful reservoirs and rivers where one can partake in such physical activity. Check out the MacRitchie Reservoir, Kallang River and Marina Bay for reasonably priced options. Besides these more regular water sports, Singapore also offers water sports fans trendy activities such as cable-Skiing and wave surfing in specially created environments.

Snow Sports

While obviously not the best place on Earth for skiing, sunny Singapore still has a permanent indoor snow centre — Snow City offers visitors to the region a chance to experience winter. Visitors can escape from the hot and humid tropical weather to play with snow or even learn to ski and snowboard with internationally certified professional instructors.

Off the beaten track

There are several enjoyable things that not even many locals know about. Do look up places like Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve, Old Rail Corridor, Labrador Park, Istana Woodneuk, etc. If you are in the mood of doing sport, consider the MacRitchie Reservoir, featuring 11km of jungle running trails with monkeys, reptiles and turtles. If you’re an avid fisherman, you can also try your hand at prawning, or prawn fishing. The sport of prawn fishing has grown tremendously in recent years across South East Asia and can also be found in Singapore.