While many of my college friends ventured to Europe for their study abroad semester, I decided to take the road less traveled by and step out of my comfort zone to study abroad in Singapore in spring 2019. While I wasn’t exactly living the boujee Crazy Rich Asians lifestyle, I for sure took advantage and enjoyed my low-cost study abroad experience.
Obviously, I could talk about millions of things from my couple months of living there (abroad changed me), but here are the essentials when visiting Singapore!
10 Things You Can’t Miss in Singapore
1. Take in the panoramic views at Marina Bay Sands
Easily the first image to pop up when you Google “Singapore.” Nonetheless, you can’t leave this country without saying you have been to these three towers of the iconic Singapore hotel.
The rooftop CÉ LA VI restaurant and skybar provide dazzling 360 degree views of the whole city. I was able to get a free glass of bubbly with my exchange student party while enjoying seeing Gardens by the Bay, ArtScience Museum, and more lit up below. Cheers!
Marina Bay Sands is also known for its iconic infinity pool as the world’s largest rooftop infinity pools, 57 levels up from the ground. Unfortunately, I was unable to make it here since only guests of the hotel are able to access the pool. However, if I ever return to Singapore, I undoubtedly will make my way here for a luxurious swim!
2. Sail on the River Cruise by the Merlion Statue
Did you know the Malay name Singapura means Lion City? With the head of a lion and the body of a fish, the Merlion statue is a main tourist attraction that is most commonly known as Singapore’s mascot. After being relocated in 2002, it is now located in front of the Fullerton Hotel and overlooking Marina Bay.
When my parents visited me, I took them with me on the leisure Singapore River Cruise to learn more about Singapore’s history and see the Merlion Statue up close. On the bumboat, the River Cruise takes you past Marina Bay Sands, Raffles, numerous bridges, Boat Quay, Clarke Quay, and more.
In Merlion Park, you can also view the daily light and water show that Marina Bay Sands puts on at night.
On my last day in Singapore, I even bought an adorable Merlion plush from Starbucks in the Changi Airport to remember my trip by!
3. Stroll around Gardens by the Bay
Another classic Singapore landmark! This futuristic nature park looks like it came straight out of the movie, Avatar. Here, you can walk across the bridges at Supertree Dome, marvel at the large art sculptures, observe the diverse vegetation and rare plants in the Cloud Forest conservatory, or visit the largest glass greenhouse in the Flower Dome conservatory.
Also, if you go at nighttime, the Supertrees light up every night at 7 PM for the Garden Rhapsody with background music, making the experience feel even more out of this world.
Most of the attractions are free admission, but you need tickets for the Cloud Forest and Flower Dome which are $20 SGD total.
4. Eat and drink at Clarke Quay
I basically lived at Clarke Quay. Located right on the Singapore River, Clarke Quay is the place for nightlife and food/drink. With its colonial style architecture to see during the day and vibrant lights during the night, it’s a place you can’t miss when in Singapore.
As an exchange student, a majority of my exchange student parties would be at the clubs in Clarke Quay and we often found good happy hour deals at other bars nearby. We went to Attica most often for our exchange student parties many Thursdays and Get Juiced for Ladies’ Night on Wednesdays. We would get a plastic cup to refill unlimited free drinks and have a ticket for either free popcorn chicken or truffle fries if we redeemed the ticket at 2 AM. I will not deny at I was eating and drinking very well abroad.
If drinking isn’t for you, there are a variety of restaurants in Clarke Quay and Boat Quay to try and dine at riverside.
5. Enjoy chicken rice at hawker centers
With Hainanese chicken rice, Malay noodles, satay, Laksa, spring rolls, and so much more are found in Singapore’s hawker centers, their food courts are filled with (sanitary) street food stalls and dining areas. They had cheap prices and insanely yummy food, so I basically lived off hawker center food when I wasn’t eating at my university’s canteens.
Hainanese chicken rice was one of my absolute favorite Singaporean dishes and something that I can’t find back in the States. As much as I took advantage of being able to eat it when I was abroad, I still miss it every day!
I made my way to a number of hawker centers, but memorable ones were: Maxwell Road, Tiong Bahru Market, Old Airport Road, and Chinatown Complex Food Center. There was not a place where I didn’t leave a hawker center with a satisfied and full belly.
6. Relax on Sentosa
This man-made island accessible by bridge off mainland Singapore is home to beaches, resorts, Universal Studios, golf clubs, aquariums, and more! While we only visited for the day to lay out and swim at the beaches, it was fun to walk around this island and see all the entertaining things to do. This is a perfect place for families or couples to have a relaxing day at.
7. Shop in Haji Lane
Located in Kampong Glam, Haji Lane is filled with boutiques, quirky shops, cafes, bars, and vintages stores, all on a narrow street showcasing independent designers. Whether you are shopping for unique clothes and accessories or you just want to take some Instagrammable photos on the colorful wall art of the streets, Haji Lane is a place where you are able to do both!
I found the boutiques to be on the pricier side, but it makes sense with the quality and uniqueness of the products they sell as they are small businesses. Many of the styles are unlike any I’ve seen back home in the States.
8. Bike around Pulau Ubin
Pulau Ubin is an island off of mainland Singapore and allows you to get a glimpse of Singapore in its older days, since Pulau Ubin is one of the last remaining “kampung” (village). To get to Ubin, you take an easy 15 minute boat ride from Changi Point Ferry Terminal.
Once arrived, we found a bike rental shop where we paid for the day for the bikes and we were on our way to explore the rustic roads and hilltop hiking views. While biking, we ran into a fresh seafood restaurant where we ordered Singapore’s world famous national dish of chili crab. It took a little time to get used to breaking the legs open, but I understand why this sweet and savory dish is world famous.
We followed the bike path up to where we saw a few people had parked their bikes at the bottom of Puaka Hill. We decided to do the same and left our bikes at the bottom (Singapore is so safe that nobody would take it) and hiked our way up to a gorgeous view.
8. Enjoy a Singapore Sling in Raffles
At the Long Bar in Raffles, you can order a Singapore Sling, a gin-based cocktail made with pineapple juice, lime juice, curaçao, Bénédictine, grenadine, and cherry liqueur and garnished with a pineapple and Maraschino cherry. This drink was invented in 1915 and resembles fruit juice, because it was socially unacceptable for woman to drink alcohol then. I thought the drink was very sweet and slightly bitter, but tasty nonetheless!
At each table is a free bag of peanuts for you to snack on while you enjoy your Singapore Sling. You’re actually encouraged to litter (compared to literally everywhere else in Singapore where you’re not allowed to), so you just crack the peanuts open, eat the nut, and throw the shells on the floor.
The drink was on the pricier side at $30 Singapore dollars (or around £16 or $20 USD), which was a little much for my college budget but it is simply a must-do!
9. Stroll through Chinatown
With a significant portion of Singapore immigrants being Chinese, take a stroll through Chinatown to experience part of Singapore’s heritage. Along these streets are vibrant shops, classic souvenir shops, and the fragrant smells of traditional food from the hawker stalls.
In Chinatown, I visited the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple & Museum and Sri Mariamman Temple, where I was able to experience these historic religious temples and view its beautiful architecture. At the Chinatown Street Market, I drank out of a fresh coconut and tried durian for the first time. Durian is known as a very pungent fruit so we had to eat it in a special room. It was sweet and then very bitter on the first bite, so I didn’t enjoy the taste very much, but I’m happy to have tried it!
10. Explore Changi Airport
You would think that an airport doesn’t need to be explored more than going through security, checking in, waiting for your flight, or claiming your baggage. However, this isn’t the case with Singapore’s Changi Airport, which is known as the world’s best airport. Complete with a full mall, movie theater, pool, gardens, art installations, nap pods, and waterfall, the attractions within this airport are endless.
On the last day of my abroad semester when I was leaving the country (a very sad day), I decided to spend a full night exploring the airport before my 9 AM flight the next morning. With two suitcases and a travel backpack, I made my way to Changi Airport at 9 PM to spend 12 hours and going to as many attractions as I could.
Throughout the night, I explored the multiple terminals of Changi Airport. I watched Shazam at the movie theater, ate Shake Shack and an açaí bowl, took a quick hour nap, walked around to multiple gardens, and found out that with the purchase of $10 or more, you can slide down a large slide.
Quick tips for visiting Singapore:
- Always bring cash with you! Most places don’t accept cards, so it’s always a good idea to be ready with cash. I normally exchanged my money at the mall near my university because the exchange rates were better than at the airports.
- The easiest way to get around Singapore is to take the MRT (Metro) or if you want to take a ride, I used an app called Grab because there were no Ubers/Lyfts.
- Always bring water with you. Singapore gets hot. No matter the season, I found myself sweating after walking anywhere, especially with the amount of hills on my campus. Don’t get dehydrated!
- English is one of the most common languages used on Singapore! So no need to worry about bringing a phrase book around.
What I would do to be able to go back! Visiting Singapore? Feel free to leave a comment, I would love to hear about your travels!
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