Many people visit Singapore on business, or as a quick stop-over on their way to other destinations in Asia. Singapore is a very good place to start or end an Asian vacation. Since many people stop for only a day or two, many don't get beyond the shops of Orchard Road.
Singapore City Center Map
While Singapore may not have ancient temples or fantastic natural scenery, it does have its own interesting and even world class sights, which includes one of the world's most famous zoos. While Singapore is very much a modern metropolis, it has gone to great lengths to preserve its rich multi-cultural heritage. This has resulted in several historic districts, where whole blocks of traditional commercial buildings have been preserved and put to use. For an even greater culture fix, you can sample any of the city's dozen or so museums. Lastly, there's now the option to gamble away your kid's inheritance at either of Singapore's shiny new casinos.
Singapore River
The Singapore River is the heart of old Singapore. There's not much left of the real old Singapore, but there's still lots to see of historical interest, as well as gastronomic. Start at the Merlion statue, the symbol of Singapore. Walking up the east side will take you past the national museum, old customs house and parliament, eventually ending up at Clarke Quay. Up the west side will take you past the Fullerton hotel and Boat Quay.
You can comfortably walk the most interesting part of the river, although you can also take a more extensive tour by boat from either Raffles Landing or Clarke Quay. A new interesting option we noticed in September 2002 was the Singapore "Duck Tour." This tour uses an amphibious vehicle to give you a tour of Singapore by road and water. The tours depart from Suntec City.
Boat Quay in Singapore, with the towers of the financial district behind. The British imported Chinese workers as well as peoples from other parts of the empire. These groups often congregated into their own districts, giving Singapore areas with distinctive buildings and styles. Take a walk down Arab street, where you'll find fabrics from across Asia. Not far from here, along Serangoon street, is “little India.” Of course, there's also a Chinatown.
When Sir Stamford Raffles laid out Singapore, he was quite specific that the area allotted to Malays, Arabs and other Muslim traders needed to cater to their requirements. These include the Sultan Mosque and the Istana, the palace of the local Malay sultan. The area is formally known as Kampong Glam, but just about all guide books refer to it as Arab Street.
The Sultan Mosque and shops of Arab Street The shops lining the streets of Kampong Glam are famous for selling batiks and other fabrics from around Asia.
Boat Quay in Singapore, with the towers of the financial district behind. Boat Quay was once the center of Singapore's busy port, back in the middle of the nineteenth century. The location was considered propitious according to Chinese feng shui beliefs, so many of the Chinese traders built shophouses in the area. But once the main port moved in the early 1980s, Boat Quay no longer had any purpose, as the trading companies moved out.
Singapore's historic Chinatown shophouses along Pagoda Street. The heart of Singapore's Chinatown is a series of narrow lanes running between South Bridge Road and New Bridge Road. The center of these is Pagoda Street, which is now closed to traffic. The Chinatown station on the North-East line of the subway lets out directly onto the Pagoda Street Mall.
Singapore's Chinatown A short way from the station on Pagoda Street is the Chinatown Heritage Centre.
The Chinese Gardens, along with its neighbor the Japanese Gardens, are one of our favorite getaway places when we want to get out of Singapore's modern city center. The gardens are easy to get to are very relaxing.
View of the Chinese Gardens from atop the pagoda Within the Chinese Gardens is a large bonsai garden housing a huge variety of species spread among several Chinese styled pavilions. A narrow channel connecting the two large lakes of the park borders the bonsai garden on the north side.
Clarke Quay entertainment area in Singapore Clarke Quay is one of several semi-historical areas in Singapore that has been turned into a sort of entertainment zone. What were once run-down waterfront warehouses have been gutted and turned into fancy restaurants and curio shops. It's a very popular place for dinner, but can be a little deserted in the daytime.
With the opening of the North-East SMRT line, Clarke Quay became a lot more acceissble, with its own subway stop just a short walk away from all the action.
The Merlion in its new home. The Merlion is a mythical half lion, half fish beast conjured up by Singapore's tourism board. The large statue which spouts water from its mouth was erected at the mouth of the Singapore river in 1972. After the construction of the Esplanade Bridge in 2002, it was moved further out and now sits on the quay around the One Fullerton building.
A much larger version of the Merlion sits in the middle of Sentosa Island.
Orchard Road Area Map The intersection of Orchard and Scotts Roads must be one of the busiest shopping areas in Singapore, if not the world. To get there, the best way is to use the subway to the Orchard station. That is, unless you're staying at one of the many hotels that are clustered around this same intersection.
Since Singapore is less than 100 miles from the equator, it's going to be hot no matter when you go, so here's a good thing to know to help you keep your cool while shopping: Most of the buildings around the Orchard and Scotts roads intersection are linked by underground passages fanning out from the MRT station.
Raffles Hotel Area Map There's more to the area around the Raffles Hotel than just the iconic accommodation. Right next door is the Raffles City shopping mall, topped by two more five-star hotels. A few blocks down the street you can get your geek on at Funan DigitaLife Mall, one of the main technology shopping centers in Singapore.
As part of the historic heart of Singapore, the area has several museums to take in as well.
Boat Quay in Singapore, with the towers of the financial district behind. At Clarke Quay, and further down at the Raffles Landing monument, you can book a tour of the Singapore River by what are still referred to as 'river taxis' even though they now only ply a fixed route for tourists. The tour will take you down the river and into the harbor, past the Boat Quay and Merlion statue.
A giant version of the Merlion — symbol of Singapore — on Sentosa Island.
Singapore's playground, this small island just a few hundred yards from the mainland has something for just about everyone. There's an excellent aquarium, dolphin lagoon, butterfly park, musical fountain and many other attractions. Older kids may want to just laze on the beach. There's an admission charge to the island as well as to many of the attractions, so a day here can get a little expensive.
The view of Singapore from the top of the Flyer The Singapore Flyer is one of the latest additions to the long list of tourist attractions. The giant observation wheel - currently the largest in the world - was opened in 2008. The bus-sized capsules hold up to 28 people and take about half an hour to make the full revolution. At the apex, you're 165 meters off the ground.
Considered one of the best zoos in the world, this massive open system park requires the better part of a day to explore. For up to date information on what's going on, check out the web site of the Singapore Zoological Gardens.
One option for getting to the zoo is to book a tour. You can find options to book a=in advance at most online agencies.
On South Bridge Road, in the heart of Chinatown, is the oldest Hindu temple in Singapore, the Sri Mariamman Temple. The entrance tower (gopuram) stretches into the sky with its colorful decor of Hindu deities. The rest of the temple is surrounded by a high blank wall topped by statues of sacred cows.
The rear of the main shrine, showing the many figures decorating the roof The current building, which replaced a wooden original, was built in 1843.
Suntec City Area Map Suntec City is at the center of the urban development of Singapore's 'new' waterfront. The original sea line ran along Beach Road in front of the Raffles Hotel, but over the years the land area has been extended through dredging and filling to create the massive Marina area.
The area includes the eye-catching Esplanade performing arts center as well as the Singapore Flyer Ferris wheel. The integrated development also includes a convention and exhibition center, two shopping malls, more than half a dozen office blocks and nearly as many five star hotels.
The main courtyard of the temple, looking towards the altar The main altar with its image of Ma Zhu Po, goddess of the seas. In the shadows of the modern towers of the financial district is Singapore's oldest Chinese temple. Built in 1839, Thian Hock Keng sits amid rows of preserved shophouses between the financial district and Chinatown.
The temple is laid out in traditional Chinese style, as a sequence of courtyards and altars.
Each of Singapore's historic districts is small enough to easily see on foot, and there are naturally several walking tours on offer from many operators. For a unique perspective, check out Original Singapore Walks. Their tours are offered daily with no reservations required for most of them. For other options, our partner Viator offers a range of guided walking tours to lead you around each district.
