If you're interested in going to Singapore but you're not sure where to begin with planning, then this is the post for you. I wasn't able to see absolutely everything myself, but I'm happy to share some tips and lessons learned from my recent trip! Also, check out the quick video I put together to see the highlights!
BEFORE YOU GO
Check out my "Going to Paris?" post for some basic travel tips that can also apply to a trip to Singapore! For the most part, my tips would be the same.
Similar to Paris, tipping isn't necessary in Singapore! Most places take credit cards but you’ll definitely want some cash for all the different hawker centers!
Don’t forget about bringing adaptors for the different plugs.
Definitely book the Marina Bay Sands hotel – or if you can’t afford it, try to swing in at least one night. I’ll explain in the “SITES TO SEE” section why this hotel is so beneficial.
Humidity, humidity, humidity. I would say everything about my trip was pretty much perfect, except for that. Even with my light, summery clothes, the raised-in-Cali (perfect weather) girl in me was suffering every minute haha. Sunscreen goes without saying, but a handheld fan is also a lifesaver. Basically, bring anything you can think of that you think can help you cool off!
SITES TO SEE
I was only in Singapore for about 4 full days, but it was plenty of time to see all the main attractions. Everything I list is no particular order.
Marina Bay Sands (MBS) - This hotel is not only one of the most iconic attractions in Singapore, but it’s also extremely beneficial.
It is a beautiful, luxurious hotel where the staff goes all out for you, and the famous view from the infinity pool is absolutely amazing. As expected, the pool can be quite crowded, but the hotel tries its best to limit it from becoming too swarmed by requiring each person to scan his or her room key.
Additionally, the MBS is the central location for Gardens by the Bay, ArtScience Museum, Helix Bridge, Singapore Flyer, and the MBS Shopping center. On top of all that, the MRT (subway) conveniently leads directly into the MBS, so it’s easier to get around!
Gardens by the Bay - The three key parts of the garden are Supertree Grove, Cloud Forest, and Flower Dome.
Supertree Grove has to be my favorite thing to see in Singapore. I purposely went right before sundown to avoid over exposed photos, then stuck around for the evening light show. I highly recommend you do this as well because you get the best of both worlds by seeing the trees in both kinds of lighting.
Cloud Forest had so much beautiful greenery, but the highlight for me was the epic waterfall at the very beginning. Be sure to go all the way to the top and spiral your way down (follow the arrows) to see it all!
Flower Dome was probably the least impressive of the three in my opinion. Don’t get me wrong, it was still very beautiful to see - plus you pay for access to both Cloud Forest and Flower Dome together anyways. However, I’m a little biased since I’ve seen many gardens before and am always searching for that epic picture (which the other two offered more of).
ArtScience Museum - I personally enjoy museums for the instagram-worthy pieces so I was eager to visit the Space exhibit in the Future World section.
For that exhibition, you’re supposed to keep walking so be ready to take your pictures quickly. However, you can go around and through the exhibit as many times as you’d like. Keep in mind, no flash photography is allowed, but hopefully you’ll have better picture quality than I did.
Helix Bridge/Singapore Flyer - I simply walked across the bridge to get a closer view of the Singapore flyer, however I opted out from actually riding the flyer.
I was told the ride is about 45 minutes long and to be completely honest, I just didn’t want to walk further in the humidity to get there! Although the vantage point halfway through the helix bridge was worth the short walk!
Night Safari - Although this is connected to the Singapore Zoo, River Safari, Wildlife Reserves, and Jurong Bird Park as well, we chose to explore the night safari so we could see all of the nocturnal animals roaming around.
Once you get there, a few things you can do are take the tram ride, follow the walking trails, or watch the animal show. The tram ride was a long line/wait (typical theme park lines) in the humidity, but it was worth it. Although the tram plays a recorded tour guide, I was lucky enough to score the first row where the driver added some additional (and funny) commentaries!
Sentosa Island - Here you’ll find a gorgeous Singaporean beach with family friendly vibes.
I would definitely recommend taking the cable car for a fun and beautiful way to get to the island. The merlion statue on this island is the largest one in Singapore and you can walk a neat bridge to the Southern most point of continental Asia.
Peranakan Houses - This is where you can take some of those popular pictures in front of multicolored houses. FYI, if you’re shooting with your phone like I did, the best angle is actually from the middle of the street so be careful as you cross!
HOW TO GET AROUND
The MRT is the underground subway, which was pretty easy for us to figure out with the help of Google Maps telling us exactly which lines to take and exits to get off at. The underground waiting areas are surprisingly cooler (in temperature) than some other subways I’ve been on. Other than that, we used the Grab app (similar to Uber and Lyft) to easily get around.
FOODS TO EAT
Two words - hawker centers. Hawker centers are outdoor food courts with numerous options for everyone. Because there are so many options, it’s best to eat family style so you can try a little bit of everything!
There are multiple hawker centers throughout Singapore, but if you want to visit the one in the ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ movie, head to the Newton hawker centre. While you’re there, you’ll have to try Alliance Seafood (#27) since it is recognized by Michelin.
Heads up, you’ll see everyone carrying tissue packets because many of these hawker centers do not offer napkins. They do however have hand-washing stations.
You should definitely have cash for these centers, however the food court in the Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands mostly take cards. I particularly like this food court because it has the hawker centre vibes without the humidity of the outdoors!
As some of you may know, I’m a big fan of trying unique foods and local specialties of the places I travel to. Here a few suggestions of some typical Singaporean dishes that I personally enjoyed.
Kaya is a coconut jam that is used for the typical Singaporean breakfast. You’ll often find the combination of kaya toast (butter and kaya jam), two half boiled eggs (recommended to add soy sauce and pepper), and kopi (coffee). When I researched Singaporean souvenirs beforehand, I often saw kaya jam but I didn’t think I would enjoy it since I’m not a huge coconut fan. However I loved this sweet jam so much that I had it for breakfast every day I was in Singapore! Toast Box was one of our favorite cafes for breakfast, and it was easy for us to access since it was located in the Shoppes at MBS.
Satay is skewered grilled meat that is served with a peanut dipping sauce. I often eat skewered meat at home, but something about the satay here made it extra delicious! I ate them at multiple hawker centers and was never disappointed. I like the fact that they use smaller pieces of meat because it makes it easier to eat and it was always so tender!
Chili crab is a tomato-based sauce crab dish that isn’t actually as spicy as it sounds. I definitely recommend checking out Jumbo Seafood, which was one of the nicest Chinese restaurants I’ve ever eaten at. The chili crab comes with delectable bread rolls, and their cereal prawns and salted egg prawns are scrumptious as well!
Laksa is a coconut milk curry soup with thick vermicelli noodles. It is typically served with prawns (the one in the Shoppes at MBS was yummy), but I also tried a lobster laksa at the Rise restaurant in MBS! I enjoyed it so much that I brought a few laksa sauce packets home as souvenirs to make for my family.
Bak kut teh is pork rib soup that really hits the spot with some rice! Song Fa is a popular restaurant just outside of the Clarke Quay MRT stop - I didn’t actually get the opportunity to try it there, but I bought a box of it to make at home.
Prata is a flatbread dish served with a curry dipping sauce. The first time we had it, we enjoyed it so much that we ordered a second serving! We also had some delicious banana prata at the Tin Yeang restaurant next to the Peranakan houses.
I was excited to try sambal stingray just to try say I ate stingray. Although I wasn’t a huge fan of the paste they use to flavor it, the stingray itself wasn’t bad. Just like normal fish!
Hainanese chicken rice is a simple dish of poached chicken with seasoned rice. Singaporeans tend to eat it quite often because it’s such a simple dish. In my opinion, it was enjoyable but not as delightful as the other dishes!
Although the drinks aren’t anything special, the selfie café was a fun experience where you can have your picture printed directly on the foam of your drink! They had us use their iTouch to take our selfie in the café, however we learned on our way out that we could have airdropped them one of our own pictures. You can find this fun café on Haji Lane.
SHOPPING
Haji Lane - Although Singapore has plenty of mall shopping (i.e. Orchard Road), this is the place for your typical street shopping. It reminds me of downtown LA shopping - not quite a flea market, but not as nice as a mall. You may not be able to bargain as much as you can at a flea market, but you won’t be paying designer brand prices here either.
Although I usually try to avoid it, I ended up bringing home mostly food souvenirs. Other than a basket bag/purse, I brought home kaya jam, instant kopi, TWG signature black tea (has notes of ripe berries, anise, and caramel), and milk tea flavored kit kats! I also tried to buy Irvin’s salted egg chips, but I went to three different locations and they were all sold out! That just shows how good they are. Hopefully I can get them next time ;)