Places to visit in Singapore

Prominent places to visit in Singapore include Singapore Zoo, Merlion statue, Gardens of the Bay, Sentosa island, China Town and Little India

Best time to visit

Almost a year-round destination. For lower rains and heat, March to October is better suited. A week is more than enough to cover all the attractions. Most people spend 3 days

Visa

You can get visa done through authorized agents. There is no need to visit the consulate. If you want home pick up and delivery, you can try Atlys

Getting In

Changi airport is the largest hub on this side of the world connecting all large cities of the world. You can do a city tour if you have more than 4 hours of transit. Visit the booth at the airport terminal to enroll yourself. Depending on nationality, you might need a visa. Indians having visa

Currency: SGD

Cards are accepted almost everywhere. Some public transport buses might need cash. You can get Singapore dollars in India before leaving

Getting around

Download and use Grab app- It is the Uber of Singapore. Public transport is connects major areas. If you are heading off beyond city limits like Jurong bird park, note down timetable on google and plan return accordingly

Places to see

Full day experience at Mandai wildlife reserve in Singapore

Kuala Lumpur overnight trip from Singapore

Singapore Zoo: One of the best zoos I have been to so far with a wide collection of animals in semi-natural habitat. There is night safari option to observe nocturnal animals. The bird park has now moved to Jurong to a site closer to the zoo. You have options to buy multi park tickets. There is some overlap in the animals you see in the zoo and night safari. I have not been to “River wonders” that houses aquatic animals

Gardens by the bay: Complex with artificial trees and centres that house cactus, trees from different parts of the world, flower dome and rainforest. Frankly, I felt these to be a bit artificial, having seen real rainforests

Merlion statue: The iconic symbol of Singapore, with nice view of Marina Sands
Jewel Changi: The newest addition in the airport area inside a mall, but outside terminals. It has the largest indoor waterfall. Worth a quick visit while entering or exiting the airport as this is about 10-15 minutes walk from Terminal 1-3

Flavor of Indian community- Mariamman temple: A colorful Indian temple with Tamil architecture

Flavor of Chinese community- Buddha tooth relic temple

Sentosa island: For beaches and entertainment parks

There are other attractions like Universal studios, Parks, Singapore flyer, Aquarium, Water park which we skipped as we had been to similar places elsewhere

Where we stayed

Wink at Upper cross street: We booked a private triple room. The room was clean and comfortable. It had AC but no TV. Bathrooms were shared with many options in the floor, 4 on one side and 6 in the middle. The location is really good in Chinatown, close to major attractions and public transport. There were always enough bathrooms available that were dry and clean. We had a comfortable stay. Few points to note

Footwear needs to left outside if staying in bunk bed rooms
Common area has place for breakfast and to make coffee/ tea
Luggage needs to be carried as there is no lift. We were on 3rd floor!
Reception was manned even post 9 AM- 9 PM

There is another Wink at Mosque street just a street behind upper cross street. We got confused and placed our luggage at Mosque street wink in the morning, only realizing when our cab landed in the next street! We only looked at the common area but Wink at Mosque street seemed to be older, with less space and looked rugged