I have done a fair amount of travelling, most of which has been to the west or the south. This time, I went east and took a 14.5 hour flight to Singapore. As I was travelling such a long distance, I knew that I needed to do as much as possible.
This was the furthest I had flown for a very long time. I was determined to make the most of it and make memories that I will never forget. Here’s 10 things to do in Singapore I highly recommend if you’re ever thinking of going there.
1. City Sightseeing Bus
I have been on the one in New York and Cape Town, so of course I was going to go on the one in Singapore. This is probably the best way to get around. Although Singapore is relatively small, and you can get around by walking places, due to the humidity it probably isn’t a great idea. (I guess you could get around by taxi or other forms of public transport.) If you did that, though, you wouldn’t get the added commentary, which will provide you with all the information you need.
2. High Tea At Raffles
One of the many stops on the Hop On Hop Off bus was the world famous Raffles Hotel. The hotel was currently going through some restoration work, so there were areas which were out-of-bounds. If you have enough cash in the bank, you could stay here for £800 a night! Unfortunately, I didn’t have the funds. Instead, I went here and enjoyed an amazing ‘high tea’, which included delicious sandwiches, a hot buffet and some yummy cakes.
3. Drink A Singapore Sling
The cocktail recipe originates from Raffles hotel itself and was made in 1913. The cocktail includes gin, cherry liqueur, Cointreau and a whole bunch of other stuff. You can buy one of these at the Long Bar for $28 (which works out around £17 and $22 U.S). I didn’t have one in Raffles, as it was in the middle of the day, but I did buy one in another bar (which was slightly cheaper at $25). It was very nice and very strong! It’s one of those things that you have to try when you’re there.
4. Merlion Park
This was another stop on the Hop On Hop Off bus; located near the Central Business District is the Merlion. This huge sculpture measures at 8.6 meters tall and sprays water from its mouth. If you look closely, you can see that the Merlion is, in fact, half lion and half fish. This mythical creature is the national personification of Singapore. It was quite funny to watch people having their photo taken next to it using various poses. Due to the humidity, I refused to have my photo next to it, as I looked like I’d had a bucket of water thrown over me. I managed to get some pretty impressive photos of the famous landmark though, so it’s worth going to see for some photo opps.
5. Marina Bay Sands Observation Deck
For truly magnificent views, you MUST do this, and I recommend going in the night. I went in the night for two reasons. One: I knew it wouldn’t be as humid. Two: to see the landmarks all lit up in the various beautiful colours. For $23 (£14 GBP / $18 USD), you can get 360 degree views of this beautiful place. You can spend however long you want there taking it all in. They’ve even got an infinity pool there and bars too—but you’ll need an additional ticket for those.
6. Singapore Zoo
Who says the zoo is just for kids? There are so many animals to see here, from hippos, polar bears, meerkats to zebras. They have loads of shows too. One of which was the elephant show, which I loved. At the end of the show, for $5 you can have the chance to feed them. There are feeding stations and times around the zoo for various animals. I saw one for the giraffes too, but all of them are on a first come first serve basis.
7. Universal Studios
It was REALLY busy when I went, so queue times were 50+ minutes. Whether that’s the case all the time, I don’t know. If you’ve been to Universal in America, expect very much the same but on a much smaller scale. There are some rides here that you won’t find in the American parks, though, such as the Battlestar Galactica roller coaster, which was amazing (although I only got to go on one of the two). It absolutley poured down with rain when I was there, and the queue for the cyclon coaster was 130 minutes! If you like theme parks, it’s worth going to just say you’ve been, but don’t expect it to be as amazing as the one in Florida.
8. Madame Tussauds
I’ve been to the one in London, New York and Las Vegas, so when I saw they had one here, I knew I had to go, too. Although some of you may wonder what’s the point as “they’re all the same,” I can’t say any of the Madame Tussauds I have been to have been the same, and Singapore was definitely very different to all the rest. There were a fair amount of people who I had no idea who they were, as they were famous people from Asia, but they also had a few faces I did recognise. I was excited to see that they had One Direction there (including Zayn, even if his hand had fallen off – lol). There was also a part of the attraction called ‘Singapore Live’, which was a show that you walked through all played by actors. The attraction takes you back to how Singapore was founded to where it is today. Very educational and well worth a visit.
9. Buddha Relic Temple
Located in China Town (where there is plenty to see and do), is the Buddha Relic Temple. I studied Buddhism as part of my A-Level at school and have had a keen interest in the religion and beliefs. Apart from the time I visited a Buddhist temple on a school trip many years ago, I’ve not visited one since. This place is incredible and well worth a visit. The building on the outside is impressive enough, but for the WOW-factor, you must go inside where you’ll see Buddha Maitreya with two Bodhisattvas alongside which are made from gold.
10. Singapore Waterfront
Take a walk along the waterfront, where you’ll be spoilt for choice of where to go for a lovely meal. Singapore restaurants cater to everyone! I visited an Australian, Italian, European and Asian restaurant during my time here. Keep an eye out, as some restaurants don’t charge the service and goods/service charge ontop of your bill. It’s a beautiful place in the day, but at night it’s spectacular.
