A long layover anywhere can sound like a chore, but a layover in Singapore is nothing but an opportunity. No matter what you’re into, the Fine City of Singapore has something to help you kill the time and wish you had more before your continuing flight goes wheels up. Here are a handful of the city-state’s many, many must-dos:
1. Eat at a Food Court
Don’t let the casual demeanour and al-fresco setting fool you. These are not your prepackaged western mall eateries. Each stall at a Singaporean food court offers authentic speciality dishes, often prepared by second-and-third-generation chefs who have made that food their life’s work. Try on mee goren, tomyam soup or the local favourite of chicken rice. Though you’d be hard put to travel any distance without seeing a food court, Chomp Chomp, Maxell Road and the Chinatown Complex come most highly recommended.
Still in love with the coco (@ Chomp Chomp Food Centre in Singapore) https://t.co/qtCvrWA3Nt pic.twitter.com/MHFZ2y3nSd
— 5’5” (@Lardeeee) May 17, 2015
2. Cruise the Gardens by the Bay
If the idea of an air-conditioned, indoor botanical park with specimens from across the globe does not appeal to you, this is because you’ve never visited the Gardens by the Bay. The twin domed parks proper, plus their surrounding exterior parks, offer days’ worth of wandering to see statues, flora and civil engineering
https://www.instagram.com/p/3seD5lEcOA/
3. Ride the Singapore Flyer and Cable Car
The Flyer is an upgraded Ferris wheel similar to the one in London that rises so high you can see parts of Sumatera from the top. The cable car offers a similar bird’s-eye view of the city and its astonishingly busy shipping lanes (plus the recently added opportunity to take a virtual photo with the superhero of your choice). Sure, they’re touristy. Yes, they’re mildly overpriced. No, you shouldn’t skip them for either of those reasons.
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4. Check out the Zoo/Night Safari/River Safari
The Singapore Zoo is renowned worldwide for the quality of its collection, the health of their animals, and the design of their exhibits. The Night Safari and River Safaris upgrade the experience with extensive, guided tours with atmospheric shows and extras. If you’re in town with kids, any or all of these are an absolute must. Without, they’re still great fun for the little zoophile in all of us.
Perhaps one of the coolest experiences you’ll stumble upon while traveling in #Singapore: http://t.co/uKz1tLw0Ef Such a neat experience. 😉
— Doc Kane (@dockane) April 18, 2015
5. Visit Chinatown
Packed crowds working past tessellated shops selling local kitsch, clothes and souvenirs? Check. Slightly shady massage parlours and watering holes? Check. Delicious food with lots of beer in roadside stalls and food courts? Check. All in a few square blocks of colourful colonial architecture. Step off the escalator from the subway and you’re in the thick of it all. https://www.instagram.com/p/3RvEFOsgbD/
6. Explore Har Paw Villa
Whether you’re a hipster with an ironic love of things offbeat, or a sincere aficionado of the unusual, Har Paw Villa offers the display you never knew you needed to see. Built by the owner of Tiger Balm (a world-famous sports liniment), it’s a testament to what you can do when you have too much money, and not enough people willing to tell you “no”. https://www.instagram.com/p/zbRLoQmhfS/
7. Go on a Tour of Religious Architecture
Every major world religion is represented in this truly cosmopolitan city, and you could spend a fast day or leisurely weekend just viewing the most famous and impressive of them. A (very) incomplete list of potential destinations includes Sultan Mosque, Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum, Kwan Im Thong Hood Cho Temple, Central Sikh Temple, Saint Andrew’s Cathedral and the Sri Srinivasa Perumal and Sri Krishnan Temples. Unpack your formal clothes (ish) for the day – many of the buildings allow only reasonably formal dress.
Sultan Mosque located at the Kampong Glam. The mosque is considered one of the most important mosques in Singapore. pic.twitter.com/hVScz2Nn1N — Rakai Pikatan (@zupermac) January 13, 2015
8. Wander Through the Botanical Gardens
Before the Gardens by the Bay opened, this expansive ground of flowers, shrubs and trees was the go-to part to get your garden on. Today, these free-to-all paths are home to crowds getting away from the asphalt, concrete and heat. If possible, visit at night while the garden is inhabited by small groups of happy drunks and an army of croaking bullfrogs the size of your head.
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9. Shop Orchard Road
On Rodeo Drive and Fifth Avenue, at the Mall of America, and in the market stalls of Cairo’s souk, the great shoppers of the world speak of Orchard Road in hushed, reverent whispers. This monument to shopping ‘til you drop is not to be missed if you have ever needed a little retail therapy as part of your vacation.
10. Cruise Clark Quay
Lines of bars and open-air restaurants circle this picturesque body of water flanked on all sides by the great buildings of Singapore’s city centre. It’s worth a visit just for the view of the skyline from any of its many bridges, and for the 3-5 degree temperature drop because of the nearby water. Pro tip: skip the food. It’s overpriced and lower quality than you’ll get at the nearby food courts.
11. Grab Some Coffee and (maybe) a Smoke in Little India
When Raffles planned Singapore, he set aside this neighbourhood for Indian labourers, and the neighbourhood still holds signs of that history – but it has become an enclave for Arabic and Muslim residents, and home to the best coffee houses in the city. Adventurous travellers can stop in for a session with a hookah and their choice of local smokeables.
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And one for good luck
A twelfth must-see is the Singapore MRT subway system, which rivals Tokyo’s in its level of service and is unrivalled in its cleanliness and high maintenance level. No need to take special time out to see it though – it will definitely be your main mode of transport between the other items on this list.
(Feature image: Thomas Woodtli)
