Singapore Travel Guide and Places to Visit in Singapore
Andrea Gide said, ‘There are days when I think I should have had my butler tied to the bed’, the man is right.. Some days one has to stay in bed, and it may even be good to have a butler.
Unfortunately, our fantasies of being as great a writer as Gide and being tied to bed by butlers have a (slightly) chance to come true, so the masses who are made to believe that they are liberated as they work. We’re working like this right now!
Well, we took this opportunity to write Singapore, the land of people rich enough to be tied to beds by servants!
Obviously, we were a bit biased when we went to Singapore.. Hearing that it was ‘too expensive’ from everyone, and the fact that it was full of skyscrapers, like that big man and we are tired of seeing in Istanbul, created the impression that it was a ‘characterless’ city-state.. Especially when we learned that it rank behind Turkey in the “World Press Freedom Index”, our sensitive body was a little upset before it left.. If you have read our other articles, you must have noticed that we are a bit of a queer blog.. There are bad and bad cities and we write about them.. But A-A! We loved Singapore, where we went with such zero expectations!
That’s why we come to the point right away!
Singapore Travel Notes and Places to Visit in Singapore
Before You Go:
Yes, as Singapore is a relatively-new city-state, it doesn’t have a jaw-dropping history, and that’s Singapore’s history. It can sometimes be considered as a ‘characterless city’ by those who visit it, but the beauty of Singapore is also very beautiful.. For example, a clean, green and easy to navigate city. We also liked that it was full of culturally rich and environmentally conscious people.. In addition, you can walk everywhere in Singapore and you spend as much as you have.
We can talk about the spending part as follows.. Singapore uses Singapore dollar as its currency, 1 Singapore dollar is about 0.70 dollars. In order to avoid confusion, we will write the expenditures in US Dollars that we know.
When visiting European cities, it is generally as follows; If a European city, let’s say Milan, is expensive, it’s usually completely expensive.. Alcohol, accommodation, food and beverage, and public transport are all expensive and you go knowing that.. But Singapore’s cost is different.. For example, although dining at local places and public transport are ‘relative’ cheap, accommodation and alcohol are extremely expensive.. In an ordinary bar, a small bottle of beer costs around 8 USD, and you pay the tax on top of it when you pay the bill.. Since our budget was limited and we did not want to pay 8 USD for beer, we drank very little during the trip and stayed at the hostel.. So Singapore was not an expensive trip for us.
Singapore does not require a visa from us.. He doesn’t want to, but when you arrive in the country, you get a strange treatment.. 3 by themselves. They made a list of world countries and they take the men of that country’s citizens to a separate room at the passport control point and interrogate them.. We got angry because we checked in and out of the airport twice and they put Umut in a separate room both times and we asked why.. ‘3. They said, ‘This is the general procedure for citizens of world countries’.. You are looking at those who have already been interrogated, Indian, Turkish, Bangladeshi, Iranian etc. We said it would be better if they had asked for a visa.. That’s the only thing we’re annoyed about Singapore. As a matter of fact, when you go to the passport control point, make sure that your return ticket has a screenshot on your phone.. Let them be sure that we will not come to their country as tourists and take shelter.
We spent 3 nights and 4 days in Singapore and it was enough for us.. But as we said, we didn’t do any shopping (a big zero), we didn’t take time to eat at its nice restaurants and we didn’t enjoy the pool at Marina Bay Sands.. So we spent all of our time exploring the city on foot.. We spent our last day on Sentosa Island and went to Universal Studios. Of course, 3 nights may not be enough for those who want to spend time for shopping and those who want to travel a little slower (for example, with babies), but if you have 3 days, don’t worry.. We will write about how we fit everything in 3 days!
Singapore is close to the Equator, so the weather is always hot and often does not fall below 25 degrees.. However, as a result of being an equatorial climate country, it can rain suddenly.. When it rains you can dive into the first place you see because it usually takes no more than half an hour. In summary, you can go to Singapore any time of the year and every month, but you need to make sure that you coincide with a special day that changes every year, such as the Chinese New Year.. Because there can be an excessive crowd on these dates or, on the contrary, the stores may be closed.
Transportation to Singapore and Urban Transportation:
If you are asked where is your favorite place in Singapore, I guess ‘ We will say ‘it was the airport! Indeed, Singapore Changi Airport was the most comfortable airport we have ever seen, and although we waited 8 hours for our transfer flight on the way back, we did not understand how the time passed.. The airport has free massage chairs, relaxation rooms, water, botanical garden, museum, internet area and playgrounds for children.. In addition, if you are transferring in Singapore and you have more than 6 hours, you can join the free Singapore tour.. Places to visit in Singapore No.1; Singapore Airport!
Many airlines fly to Singapore from Istanbul. If you want connecting, cheap or ours, you can choose Qatar Airways, Emirates or Etihad like us.. By following the campaigns of these airlines regularly, you can find a round trip Istanbul – Singapore flight for 300 USD.. A direct and more expensive option is, of course, Turkish Airlines.
Transportation from the airport to the city in Singapore is quite simple.. You can be in the city center in about half an hour with the metro departing from the airport, and a one-way ticket is around 2.5 USD per person.. By purchasing a single ticket, you go to the ‘Tanah Merah’ station and transfer to the station you want to go from there.. Its subways are already extremely orderly and punctual.
You may have heard that Singapore is the land of the forbidden’. There are dozens of bans such as chewing gum, gay sex, eating on the subway, and although most of these prohibitions are not followed (such as chewing gum), the ban on eating on the subway is strictly followed and there is a fine of 500 Singapore Dollars.. That’s why we definitely don’t eat by holding our throat in the subway! Also, the metro network starts working at 6 am.. If you need to get to the airport earlier due to your flight, you can look for alternative routes one day in advance.
Of course, another alternative to get from the airport to the city is a taxi.. Since we have never taken a taxi, we do not know the prices, but using this link, you can calculate how much the taxi will cost by choosing your current location and the location you want to go to.. Since Singapore is a multi-disciplinary country, taxi drivers strictly abide by the taximeter rules, so we think that it will come out as you calculated. You can also jump on the subway when you are in trouble.. Although the price of a one-way ticket varies according to the number of stops you will go to, it usually does not exceed 2.5 Usd.. Likewise, the bus network is developed and you pay your fare by calculating it according to the stop you will go to.. However, it is beneficial to always carry change with you because bus drivers do not give change.. Don’t say how come, I swear this is the rule. If you don’t have 2 Usd and you gave 5 Usd then forget 3 Usd.
Singapore Accommodation Tips
Singapore is really expensive in terms of accommodation and we don’t like spending unnecessary money on accommodation (which we don’t have a budget anyway), We booked a double room in a hostel in Chinatown and we were very satisfied.
When we started our first hotel research job, our psychological limit was 50 Euros per room per night, and especially in hotels in the central areas, you can’t afford it. You can’t even get it in! If you have such a financial limit, you can try Box Capsule Hostel in Chinatown.. We paid USD 45 per room per night for a double room in the hostel and we can easily say that it is very ‘cheap’ compared to the Singapore average.. In addition, the inside of the hostel was really clean, and since it is forbidden to wear shoes inside the hostel, there was a complete home atmosphere.
Another area we would recommend for suitable accommodation is ‘Little India’.. ‘Park 22 Hotel’ was the most recommended to us here.. We leave the link here.
Apart from that, around Orchard Road can be ideal for accommodation, because it is possible to reach everywhere on foot from Orchard.. Consider the Chancellor Hotel for suitable accommodation in Orchard (if you can find a place!). here is the link. Our suggestion for a hotel that is a bit more luxurious but with a higher price will be ‘Hotel Jen by Shangri-La’ in this region.. We leave the link of it too!
Another alternatef is the marina area where the famous Marina Bay Sands is located, but for this you have to open the mouth of the pouch, otherwise you may leave a kidney or something, let’s warn in advance!
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Traveling: Places to Visit in Singapore
Chinatown:
Singapore’s people are mostly Malays, Chinese and Indians. As such, one of the most popular places in the city has become the Chinatown district.. Let’s be honest here, if you have visited the Chinatown area in another Asian country before, you may not like it very much in Singapore, because Singapore is a very new city-state, that ‘chinatown’ culture has not yet settled and although it attracts you visually, it is a ‘real thing. Of course, it wasn’t ‘Chinatown’.
Okay, the streets are full of noodle shops and small souvenir shops, but there is no ‘dirt’ that should be in a chinatown! Also, the prices are unfortunately not very affordable.. But if the place to stay is close to here, it is ideal to take a noodle break and unwind, you can hang out in the unlimited number of bars around in the evenings.. To get here, you can take the subway directly to the ‘Chinatown‘ stop.
There are two ‘temples’ you can visit around Chinatown.. ‘Buddga Tooth Relic Temple‘ and ‘Sri Mariamman Temple‘ are close to each other and especially the ‘Sri Mriamman Temple’ is considered one of the most important Hindu temples in Singapore.. You can visit it for free, but you have to take off your shoes when you enter.
We ate here in the evenings, since it is close to our hostel, we will talk about it separately in the food and beverage section below.
Little India:
Well, Chinese people can have Chinatown, but Indians can’t have Little India! As you can imagine, Little India is the ‘India’ district of Singapore and it is possible to find everything from Indian food, shops, gift shops and hairdressers to grocers here.
We walked to Little India from Chinatown, but it was hot. If you don’t want to walk in the air, you can take the subway and get off at the ‘Little India or Farrer Park‘ station
By the way, Singapore is a shopping mall and there is a huge area in Little India. There is Mustafa Center which is a shopping mall.. We didn’t go inside because we are a total anti-mall (we have a bad temper), but before we went we had read that there were all kinds of shops inside.
The ‘Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple which is also an important Hindu Temple in the Little India region. ‘ there is. It’s free to enter, but if your legs are open (shorts-skirt), you cannot enter and you have to take off your shoes when you enter.
If you ask us, the best way to visit this area is to go in and out of the streets while looking at the shops and see exactly which area and which street you are on. Not knowing.
By the way, if you’re going to walk from Chinatown to Little India, you’ll come across the Singapore National Museum in the middle of the road.. You can guess that it is not a very ambitious museum, but if you have time, you can enter and visit.
Arab Street:
Well, I think you got the point from the name of this street! Arab Street is one of the most colorful streets of Singapore’s Muslim district and when you see the huge Sultan Mosque, you can understand that you have come to Arab Street! ‘ is a street we like more and full of designer boutiques.. It is also very easy to walk here from the Little India region, after visiting Little India, you can come here and try the legendary hamburgers of the ‘Working Title Café’ (we did that).
These 3 regions we have mentioned are little india, Chinatown and Arab. Street has been our favorite place in Singapore.
Let’s talk about the more modern parts.
Orchard Road:
Well It is not easy to be the richest island in the east, or even the place where the world’s technological and financial markets beat, it is not easy to establish Little India! After all, the city is an area that appeals to the wealthy and tourists who want to shop!
Orchard Road is exactly such a place.. The stores of the world’s most famous brands are lined up one after the other and it is considered as Singapore’s shopping street.. It is ideal for walking, but if you are the type who does not like shopping malls like us, it may not be a very special place for you.. In addition, shopping malls and stores were crowded like crazy in March when we went.. We can’t think about special times and discounts!
Marina Area:
We came to the modern face of Singapore. Marina District is also one of the most luxurious districts of Singapore and the famous Marina Bay Sands is located in this region.. After all, the hotel is so huge that it’s impossible not to notice and say “we’ve come to the marina”. There is a light show and it’s free to watch.
The most crowded place of the marina is the statue of the legendary animal Merlion in the shape of Singapore’s head lion and six submarines.. You can also see Japanese tourists piling up in front of the statue, as usual, as if they had seen the mona lisa.. By the way, if you didn’t come here on foot, you can reach here by getting off at the ‘Raffles Place‘ stop.
57 of Marina Bay Sands.. There is a view area on its floor, also known as Skypark, and the entrance is 23 Singapore dollars per person.. Of course we didn’t. Since we’re writing down the things we didn’t do, let’s put one more thing in between. Near the marina is a tall Ferris wheel called the Singapore Flyer, which shows you Singapore from inside a capsule, for which it costs $33 per person.. As the idea of looking at the city from inside a capsule didn’t appeal to us at all, we didn’t think of getting on.. If you want to check it out, the website is here.
One of the most beautiful features of Singapore is that there are ‘food courts’ in every part of it, where mostly locals eat.. You can eat really cheap in these food courts and it is your savior especially when visiting the often expensive areas like the Marina and Orchard Road.. Of course, you can also try local dishes.. If you want to eat while visiting the Marina, you can eat at the ‘food court’ by the Marina.. We ate noodles and paid 8 Singapore dollars for two people.
Gardens by the Bay:
Caesar’s right to caesar…Gardens by the Bay, Singapore became one of our favorite parks. This is a huge park right in front of the Marina Bay Sands hotel and you can see most of it for free.. The night lighting of the trees, first made of steel and then covered with vegetation, was incredible.. In fact, it was the most beautiful view in Singapore in our opinion, the Singapore Flyer did it right next to it!
It costs 8 Singapore dollars per person to climb into this illuminated part called ‘Supertree Grove‘ and above among the trees. you have about 15 minutes to walk around. Think of it as an artificial sky garden. It’s definitely worth it and you can take very nice photos.. We got here around 6 o’clock and after going down we waited for the light show that started at 7 o’clock.. If you come while the sun is setting, you can both take beautiful photos above and wait for the free light show after you descend.. To watch the light show from above, you can buy a ticket and go upstairs, but they said it’s better to watch it from below as the lighting is from below.
Gardens by the Bay’s Flower Dome where you can see various plants in glass greenhouses. and Cloud Forest, it has two more paid sections, but the most liked section is the Supertree Grove section we mentioned.
Clarke Quay:
Clarke Quay in Singapore You can think of it as the bar street of. Yes, maybe the price of the venues has nothing to do with a bar (for example, beer is 10 dollars!), but you can think of it as a bar place where you can find all kinds of cocktails, dance and meet people.. And of course, it’s better to come here at night, because this area, which is built by the river, is very beautiful illuminated at night.
As we said, it has a flaw, the drink is very expensive! When we say very expensive, we mean giving 10 dollars for a small beer with tax, and this is way above our standards.. In most places, Happy Hour starts after 6pm and you can get 1+1 drink, but even then the beer doesn’t go below $8.. Also, they usually put 20% tax + table fee + tip on this 8 dollars.. That’s why we were only able to hang out for one night in Clarke Quay, and for the rest of our nights we either wandered the streets or looked for relatively cheaper places in Chinatown.
As a matter of fact, if she says, ‘We will come to Singapore again, and dance- If you are looking for a place with music and the potential to meet people, the Clarke Quay area is ideal for it.
Chupitos Shots Bar, has become our favorite bar in the Clarke Quay area.. We had our dinner at ‘Bar Black Sheep‘ in this region, it was a bit expensive, but we can say that the food is very good.
Oh, of course, you can also go at night There is the Geylang District and it is called the ‘fanfinifinfon’ district of Singapore, but this time we bypassed it, otherwise we will not miss it in life(!) Those who want to go can get off at the Paya Lebar stop.
Singapore Botanical Gardens:
Singapore’s botanical garden is very famous and when you say garden, don’t think of a small garden, this is a huge botanical park and there are even large amphitheaters in it. .
You get off the subway at the ‘Botanical Gardens‘ stop and go directly to the park and the entrance is free except for the ‘Orchid Gardens‘ section.. In fact, this park is so big that it is useful to take snacks or sandwiches with you because you get hungry while walking.. Just think that it takes 1.5 km to walk from the entrance of the park to the Orchid Gardens part.
We loved this botanical park too much.. We enjoyed watching the ballet rehearsal, which is both green and spacious, and on the huge stage inside and among the greenery.. Since we coincided with a special day, we visited the Orchid Gardens for free.. We think that in normal times, the entrance is 5 Singapore Dollars.
Anyway, chill doesn’t mean hot! We are offended by those who stumble upon Singapore and do not visit the botanical garden!
Sentosa Island:
When you say island, you should not think of the islands we know, Sentosa Island is a 20-minute walk from the center of Singapore, as well as by connecting cable car. An entertainment island that you can also reach!
Such an island has been designed to entertain the millions of tourists who come to Singapore every year, and there is a beach where you can swim and all kinds of activities on the island.. It used to be 1 Singapore Dollar, but now it’s gone.. You can reach the island by paying 4 Singapore dollars with a special rail system called Sentosa Express.. Even if you say you want to walk, you can walk through VivoCity shopping center and the escalators take you to the island.
We only had one day to spare on Sentosa Island and we used it by going to Universal Studios.. We even had fun at Universal Studios and we were glad we went.. Before we bought the tickets, we had read online that Universal Studios in Singapore was small and no fun for those in the United States, but we had a lot of fun.. Of course, we can’t compare since we didn’t go to the ones in the United States.
And we bought our Universal Studios tickets not from the official website, but from govoyagin.com, an agency site that provides tickets to events in the Asian continent, and for an additional 5 Euros per person. it came cheap (well, not advertising, our own observation). On the official site, the price per person is 76 Singapore dollars, or 52 Euros.. We bought it for 47 Euros per person.. You can check the official site here.
Also, you wait in line for most activities at Universal Studios.. Those who do not want to wait in line can give 50 Singapore dollars and get a ‘Pass’, thus avoiding waiting in line.. We didn’t buy it because we didn’t have such a budget, but even though we went on Friday and during the busiest hours, we never waited in line.. Let’s give another ‘indian’ for those who are thinking of going, especially the most popular ‘ride’ are overcrowded in the morning, because there is a crowd that comes to the amusement park with tours, not individually, and these tours gather everyone around 2-3 in the afternoon and come back. taking. As the park is mostly open between 09:00 and 19:00, you can leave the ‘ride’ for later and get on after 15:00.. So you never have to wait in line. us? Of course, we waited in line like donkeys and we realized this in the afternoon! Anyway, experience proved it!
Let’s say you don’t want to spend all day at Universal Studios, you’re lucky because there’s a lot of activity on Sentosa Island! You can review the activities here, you can choose one according to your heart.. Our minds stayed on Mega Adventure.
And Sentosa Island also has a beach where you can swim.. As you know, there is no swimming in the rest of Singapore and the beach on Sentosa Island can be crowded like crazy on weekends.. Haven’t heard from us!
This is how Sentosa Island is…
Does this blog that has something to say about everything still exist? Singapore has an activity that will remain with us if we do not write it again.. You may have heard that this city-state has a very famous zoo and the zoo also has an activity called ‘Night Safari‘. You can visit the zoo at night and watch the animals in their “natural environment” with a guide, with a ticket you buy in advance or by queuing… In our Bali article, we mentioned that we are extremely sensitive about animals (okay, that’s not our only obsession) and that’s why ‘zoo’, ‘animal’ in it. We don’t go to places that include ‘park’, ‘zoo’, and ‘animal show’. In places like this, what you see with your own eyes is often a sad ‘behind the scenes’ for animals, and we don’t want to be a part of it.. As you can imagine, we didn’t go on the night safari for the same reason.. We are even offended, we do not put the link! Let those who go find it themselves!
Food and Drink in Singapore and Cheap Food Options in Singapore
This voracious blog of course couldn’t stop without eating in Singapore. Let’s see what we ate…
First of all, we can say that restaurants in Singapore are quite expensive, but we have good news! There are ‘food centers’ all over the city where locals and more ‘budgetarian’ travelers eat, and you can find all kinds of Asian cuisine here.. If you’re a street food lover, you’ve lived, and you can have your fill in Singapore very cheaply.
We ate Noodles at the ‘Maxwell Food Center near ChinaTown’ on the first day and paid 3 Usd per person.. The next day, we ate Hainanese Rice at the Food Center in the Marina area and paid 4 Usd per person.
Guess what we ate for dinner on the last day… On the last day, Noodle Man
