Singapore city guide: the ultimate city break

Singapore is one of my favourite cities in the whole world, which says a lot because I’m not really a city person. My family and I first visited in 2008, and I have wanted to go back since the Gardens by the Bay opened. On our way home from China in 2019, we spent three nights in Singapore before heading back to Australia. This is my Singapore city guide, including where to stay and some amazing things to do!

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Stay at Clark Quay

While in Singapore, I recommend staying at the Novotel Clark Quay. This hotel is in a great central location close to public transport. It is also possible to walk to the bay and Merlion Park along the river. Not only was it in a great location, but the rooms had a nice view! We could see all the way to the Marina Bay Sands and watch some of their laser show from out our window.

Clarke quay by night

The coolest thing about Clarke Quay is the range of restaurants! In Clarke Quay, there is a huge range of restaurants offering all different cuisines, from traditional Singaporean food to your basic pizzas. We only ate there on one evening but the food we got was really nice. It reminded me a bit of Eat Street Markets in Brisbane, but with real restaurants as well as stalls. Overall I’d definitely recommend the area to find somewhere to eat but also to stay for a few days.

Visit the Merlion and have a Merlion-shaped ice cream

The Merlion is a mythical creature that is half fish and half lion and is the official mascot of Singapore. It represents Singapore’s origin as a fishing village called Temasek or ‘sea town’ in Javanese. There are seven official Merlion statues in Singapore, but the most famous one is in Merlion Park (there is actually also a mini Merlion behind the giant one which is kind of cooler but you can see both!). Merlion Park is on the opposite side of the harbour to the Gardens by the Bay, and is within walking distance of Clarke Quay, if you’re willing to walk a fair distance.

Seeing double! Two merlions in one shot!

We went both during the day (afternoon) and at night and we bought a Merlion-shaped ice cream from one of the tourist shops. Honestly, it wasn’t the best ice cream but it was pretty cute. My Dad went full tourist and got a durian flavoured one. When we went at night, we were also able to see a laser light show from the Marina Bay Sands Hotel (that big building that looks like a boat) and we were actually lucky enough to see a firework display for the National Day Practice! Seeing the fireworks was definitely a highlight (they were super impressive, especially since they were just for a practice!) and it was a great way to end our night in Singapore.

What a way to end our time in Singapore!

Explore the Gardens by the Bay and Supertree Grove

As I mentioned, the Gardens by the Bay was the number one thing I really wanted to see in Singapore this time around and it definitely lived up to expectations! We only visited during the day, but if you have extra time there is a nightly light show which is worth seeing. If you are visiting during the day, make sure to get tickets to both the domes as well as the skywalk. However, don’t overlook the gardens outside of the domes. They are quite nice to walk around and there are plenty of informative signs if you’re wanting more information on the plants. Be prepared for hot and humid weather all year round, though!

Flower & Cloud Forest Domes

Both domes are well worth the visit. Which dome I recommend you start with depends on when you arrive. If you show up before opening, head to the cloud forest dome to have that stunning waterfall all to yourself! If you arrive a bit later, I recommend starting in the flower dome, because most people will have rushed to the cloud forest dome and it will be busy. We were very impressed by all of the floral displays in the flower dome, as well as the succulent gardens. Walking into the cloud forest dome really makes you go wow. That waterfall is just as amazing in real life as in the photos. We also really loved the orchid displays in this dome.

Supertree Grove

Seeing the Supertree Grove was definitely the highlight of my time in this area. The structures of the supertrees are really impressive, and as the plants continue to grow up, they will look even more amazing! I highly recommend getting a ticket to the skywalk; you get great views over the bay and towards Marina Bay Sands and the city. Be aware that there is a limit to how many people can go up at a time (even without COVID!). If possible, plan your trip up to be at a quiet time, or be prepared to wait in line.

The view from the skywalk was insane! Well worth the small fee.

How to get there and where to eat

I mentioned above that we chose to take the MRT to the Gardens by the Bay. The MRT was super easy to use, though I did have an issue with my ticket not swiping through at one of the stations. It was an easy fix and simply required me to talk to someone at the ticket station. It is a rather common problem so there are signs instructing you on what to do.

If you’re looking for somewhere to have lunch at the Gardens by the Bay, the food court has a great range of options. There are a variety of cuisines available, including Indian, Japanese, Vietnamese, Italian and American. There are also plenty of vegetarian options.

Visit one (or more) of Wildlife Reserve Singapore’s zoos

Here I am writing about zoos again, but even my parents and sister enjoyed our trips to the zoos. In 2019, we visited the Night Safari and Jurong Bird Park and in 2008 we went to Singapore Zoo and had breakfast with the Orangutangs. I must admit I don’t really remember much from our trip in 2008, but both the Night Safari and Jurong Bird Park were quite good.

Singapore Zoo Night Safari

The Night Safari is so completely different to any other zoo I have been to and was such an interesting experience. We chose to go with a tour group. I use the term “tour” loosely as it was really just a bus transfer with tickets. I recommend going with a tour group if you want to skip the queue to get on the safari train. However, you will not be able to take your time walking through the zoo after the safari train and you want transport to and from the zoo sorted for the night. There were definitely some negatives to doing the “tour”. We weren’t able to really take our time wandering through the zoo, which was extra unlucky because somewhere along the line we picked up a very informative volunteer to tell us all about the animals! We also didn’t have time at all to have dinner.

Unfortunately the one thing my point-and-shoot camera struggles with is night time photos! You really need a good camera if you want to take photos at the night safari.

The reason why the night safari is so interesting is because its focus is on nocturnal animals. Obviously by visiting at night, you are more likely to observe these animals displaying their natural behaviours! A lot of the animals I hadn’t seen before, such as Asiatic Lions, Malaysian Tapir (who came up to the safari truck and sniffed my dad!) and flying squirrels. Unfortunately the pangolin remained asleep even though it was night time. Pangolins are such amazing animals so it was still cool to see one in real life.

Jurong Bird Park

If you like birds, Jurong Bird Park is the place for you to visit. I highly recommend you take the time to watch the free-flight bird show. Some highlights of the show include a parrot who can sing in three different languages (talk about impressive!) and a hilarious ending where the stage is filled with flamingos! The bird breeding centre is also well worth a visit, as you can see a variety of bird species in different stages of development. It’s also interesting to see how much work goes into caring for these young birds.

One of the beautiful macaws in the free flight bird show

It is also possible to feed some of the birds in the park for a small fee, such as the lorikeets and flamingos. The flamingo feeding is only on at a certain time of day, but the lorikeets can be fed at any time. If you would like to feed the lorikeets, make sure you head there first as they weren’t hungry by the time we got there.

Overall, the Jurong Bird Park had heaps of interesting bird species that I had never seen before. From toucans to hornbills, macaws and small local birds. My favourite birds at the Jurong Bird Park were definitely the Philippine Eagles. They are such unique looking animals and in fact, these two birds are the only two residing outside of the Philippines!

Unfortunately due to the aviary design, I couldn’t get a good photo of the Philippine Eagles, but check out how cool they are!!

Need more ideas? Here are a few more famous highlights!

Singapore is such an interesting and diverse city and there is so much to do if you have a bit more time to explore! My friends over at Suitcasestories.be have written a completely different but also amazing itinerary for Singapore, which you can read by clicking here. Here are a few more ideas on where to visit while in Singapore:

Sentosa Island: Home to Singapore’s Universal Studios, beautiful beaches, wild monkeys and resorts, this is the perfect place for families. We stayed on Sentosa Island in 2008 and had a fantastic time. It is much cheaper to stay on the mainland, however, you could still visit Sentosa as a day trip. The island is accessible by road, monorail, cable car and pedestrian walkway.

Singapore Flyer: Once upon a time (in 2008), the Singapore Flyer was the biggest ferris wheel in the world! This is a great activity for if you are after a view over the city of Singapore. Also family friendly.

Marina Bay Sands: I’ve mentioned this building a few times… You can’t miss it being the big one with what looks like a boat on top! For a view over Singapore, you can go up the observation deck. However, Marina Bay Sands is most famous for its infinity pool. To access this, you have to be a guest at the hotel. On average, a room costs $562 AUD.

Marina Bay Sands light show

Jewel Changi Airport: One of Singapore’s newest attractions is the Jewel at Changi Airport. If you have a layover, this is a great place to check out. However, you do need to leave the airport to visit so you will need to have the appropriate visa for Singapore (if applicable – find out more here). Don’t have a visa? There’s heaps more to do in the airport itself, including interactive games, various gardens and even a butterfly house!

Need even more inspiration? Check out my YouTube video!

I hope you’ve found my Singapore city guide helpful! Don’t forget that I have also made a YouTube video for this destination (alongside China)! If you want to get a better idea of what Singapore looks like and experiencing the city, watch it below or by clicking here. Skip to 2:30 if you want to watch about Singapore only.

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