Singapore Travel and Holiday Guide.
Holiday Guide to visiting and touring in Singapore - also Pictures from Singapore's Harbour and Streets and Singapore Zoo.
Briefly about the Republic of Singapore. Located at the Southern tip of the
Malay Peninsula The Republic of Singapore contains 63 islands, is a City-State
and is also the smallest country (area of 272 square miles) in Southeast Asia. The
Island's International Dialling code - 0065, it's main airport is the excellent Changi
Airport, Singapore's currency is the Singapore Dollar and the Republic is 8 hours ahead of England i.e. GMT
plus 8 hours.
We took quite a few photographs whilst on holiday in Singapore - one set in
particular are from around the financial district - Singapore's sky scrapers
are an amazing site. Other of our pictures are from around the streets in and around Singapore Harbour
and markets and finally there are a series of pictures from Singapore Zoo -
where amongst a myriad of other wild animals they have some beautiful Bengal White Tigers to admire.
Transport: Singapore's transport systems have been designed with ease of use
in mind - which is necessary because of the huge numbers of people moving around the island.
Tuk Tuk. Peddle power - an enjoyable if at times somewhat hair-raising way of getting around in Singapore.
Taxis. Using a taxi in Singapore is relatively inexpensive - typically from
the airport to Singapore's financial district (where many of Singapore's best hotels are
situated) costs around 30 Singapore Dollars (around 10 UKstg). The taxis are
fully regulated and metered, are very clean and the taxi-drivers tend to be courteous and helpful.
Buses. These are very cheap to use and run frequently - the bus routes are well
signposted so you can easily get to most parts of the island without any difficulty.
MRT ((Underground / Mass Rapid Transport). This is a relatively modern
transport system - very clean and tidy and really efficient - and perhaps best of all very cheap to use.
Areas in Singapore.
Singapore's Financial District is mostly built on re-claimed land
- the skyscrapers around here are really impressive. On the edge of the area there is a
lovely little quay called Boat Quay where you can find quite few bars and
restaurants. These restaurants specialise in sea food - well worth a visit to
try the Chile Crab which is a Singapore speciality. A typical meal on Boat Quay
will cost around 20 Singapore Dollars a head and this will give you a main meal
with all your rice and so on included. Alcohol is very expensive in Singapore -
expect to pay around 18 dollars for a pint of Tiger Beer - the various wine
available can often be charged at an even worse price.
There is a newly built complex of bars and restaurants which are very much
aimed and used by the ex-pat community - also some of Singapore's best and
therefore most expensive nightclubs and restaurants are found here (this is around Clarke Quay).
The best hotels are situated around Beach Road and Raffles - several hotels which we enjoyed staying at were
the Intercontinental (around 150UKstg per night and consistently rated as one
of the best hotels in the Asia Pacific region, another less expensive hotel is
the Park Royal Plaza on Beach Road at around 70 UKstg per night - this hotel has
a more relaxed feel to it and has an excellent Tai Tai Bar. (A Tai Tai bar is
where women of a certain age who have loads of money go to dance with younger
men).
The Indian Quarter. This part of Singapore is located around Kitchener Road - there is another Park Royal Plaza hotel located here which is equally as nice to stay. There are wall to wall Indian restaurants and takeaways in the area - we had a marvellous chicken and rice meal at one restaurant there which only cost 17 dollars. There is also a huge Indian shopping centre called Mustafa Centre - this is a 5 floor shop which sells everything you can think of from socks to suitcases to electrical goods to... The Indian Quarter is not as clean and tidy as other parts of the island and certainly later in the evening does not feel quite as safe to wander around particularly if on your own.
Little Vietnam. At the end of Geylang Road is Joo Chiat Street which is known locally as "Little Vietnam" - as it's name suggests this area is mostly populated by Vietnamese immigrants with a few local Singaporeans thrown in. There are some lovely little cafes and bars along Joo Chiat and it's a great place to spend the evening if you fancy something a little different. Most of the cafes/restaurants serve Vietnamese/Thai/Cambodian food along with the staple Asian fare of rice and noodle dishes. Joo Chiat gets quite lively from about 9pm and keeps going to around 1am. The KTV (karaoke) bars are usually very busy - especially at weekends - and are not on the usual tourist route so you get more of a taste of the local way of doing things. You will find very few westerners around, so don't be suprised if you are the only ones in the bar!. A really good place to stay a couple of nights or for an evening out.
The Arab Quarter. This is located just off Beach Road - the area comprises of nice old low (protected) buildings, lots of outside bars and cafes, hubbly bubbly bars - just like being in a typical Arab back street. We found a great Turkish restaurant called Babylon - you sit on cushions on the floor at low tables - there are shuttered windows which seem to keep it nice and cool inside. A nice meal (full Turkish menu - great steaks etc.) followed by a hubbly bubbly pipe probably costs around 50 dollars each including several beers etc. The Arab Quarter is a very popular venue for people working in nearbye offices to visit for lunch - a typical Malay buffet lunch costs around 7 Dollars. The Arab Quarter felt really safe to walk and meander around even late at night.
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Some bars you probably should / might like to visit
whilst on holiday in Singapore.
The Raffles Long Bar where you have to
have a Singapore Sling of course - there is also superb live music to enjoy on the second floor
(see photos of Raffles further up this page).
The Angel Bar (located on Beach Road) at Park View Square. This is one of the most
impressive bars you will ever walk into - it's called The Angel Bar because the
wine cooler behind the bar is probably 70 to 80 feet high and the waitress flies
up to the top to get your order. (if you wanted to hire out the room for the
evening we were told it would cost you around 10,000 Ukstg).
The New Asia Bar. This is on the 71st Floor of the Swiss Hotel and gives you
incredible views of everywhere - on a clear day you can see all of Singapore and
if the weather is clear you also see Malaysia and Indonesia.
Orchard Towers (if you are really brave.. - the local name for this is the Four
Floors of Whores). During the day this is part of the Orchard Road shopping mall
however once the evening starts and into the night lots of bars open which are lets say decadent.
Perhaps not really going too until around midnight - the bars stay open until around 4 or 5am - see the local
name mentioned above for and indication of the various facilities available there.
External Places to visit locally from Singapore. Sentosa Island lies just off
the south of Singapore Island and can be reached by cable car or monorail. There are
lots of beaches and the tiny island has a good championship golf course.
You can also easily reach Malaysia and Indonesia from Singapore - Bintan for
instance is only a 45 minute ferry trip away.
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Getting to Singapore Zoo. One way if you for some reason
have your own transport is of course to drive yourself however taxis are quite
inexpensive in Singapore and probably the best hassle free option. There are bus and MTR
services which will get you to the Zoo but there is nothing quick about using them as multiple changes are
involved.. The trip by car or taxi takes around 30 minutes from the City and the
Zoo is quite well sign-posted. Take
the Pan Island Expressway heading towards Jurong then turn off at Exit 7 of the
Bukit Timah Expressway - follow the brown "Singapore Zoo" signs.
This following sequence are photographs from Singapore Zoo including several photos of some
of their gorgeous Bengal White Tigers.
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Singapore's Public Holidays. A variety of local
festivals occur and as they are based on the lunar calendar the dates vary a
little although New Year's Day is of course on January 1st and Christmas Day on
the 25th December.
Hari Raya Puasa: This very important Muslim
festival marks the end of Ramadam and one month of fasting. (Ramadan is the
ninth month of the Islamic calendar).
Chinese New Year: This is also known as the Spring Festival and is the most important
of the
traditional Chinese Holidays - it begins on the first day of the first Lunar month
of the Chinese calendar.
Hari Raya Haji: Translated as Hajj celebration day
this "Festival of Sacrifice" religious festival is celebrated by Muslims to
commemorate the willingness of Ibrahim to sacrifice his son Ishmael as an act of
obedience to God. It occurs on the 10th day of the last month of the lunar
Islamic calendar.
Good Friday: A Christian holiday which occurs on
the Friday before Easter Sunday.
Labor Day: This is on May 1st and is also known as
May Day
Vesak Day: This annual holiday occurs on the full
moon day of the fifth month of the year and is observed by practicing Buddhists.
Singapore National Day August 9th:
Celebrating Singapore's independence from Malalysia -which occurred on the 9th
August 1965- this day long event is the largest national event held in the
Republic.
Deepavali (or Diwali): Held during the 7th month
of the Hindu solar calendar (October-November) this Hindu and Sikh Festival
translates into Festival of Lights - most of the celebrations occur in "Little
India"
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