Singapore

cariad123

Any ideas of places of interest in Singapore at beginning of February, apart from Raffles hotel and Singapore Slings please?

hartcjhart

try here

http://app.www.sg/index.asp

Horace

The Botantical gardens are lovely - lots of orchids and other strange plants.

BTW Singapore Slings are ewwww awful.

Have a trip on a Bum Boat (yes, that is what they are called), this will take you on a trip around the coastal areas where the shops are.

Mrdini

The Night Zoo is definitely worth a consideration.

Good luck trying to get decent pics there though - it's too dark there for decent photographs None of my pics from there came out very well...

ali1972

I was working out there there for 3 weeks a while back and had a marvellous time.

Definitely agree about The Botanical Gardens. They are close to Orchard Rd so are a good thing to do after a morning's shopping. You can catch a bus from Orchard Rd down to the gardens really easily and cheaply - I wouldn't try to schlepp down on foot as it can be incredibly humid. I spent an afternoon there and left after sundown (the gardens are open until very late) which was lovely as they were lit beautifully and there were all kinds of beautiful scents coming out at dusk. The Gardens themselves are free but there is a very small charge for The Orchid Garden, which is absolutely stunning - you will never see a collection like it anywhere else! Also, be sure to see the Ginger Garden, complete with swimming turtles, and the Stilt Palms.

The Night Safari at Singapore Zoo is very good, although not cheap and it is quite a journey to get there as it is outside of the city. I'm glad I went there but I was part of a fairly big group and we booked a bus so managed the journey that way. You travel round on little Jurassic Park style trains and occasionally get off and potter on foot on certain stretches. You get to see animals going about their nocturnal activities and the guides are very good. There's a bit of an optical illusion going on: the animals seem very close to you but are actually further away than you think and separated from you by big ditches. I'm not usually a fan of zoos, but I did quite like this one. There are also plenty of enticing places to eat and drink there. At certain times in the evening there is a little "creatures of the night" show put on in the amphitheatre. It's actually really sweet but if, like one of our party, you don't like....ahem... long wriggly things that hiss, then sit at the back. Otherwise you may have a minor breakdown.

Definitely go to the 24 hour food market at Lau Pa Sat and try the Satay. You will easily and cheaply get there via taxi - it's pretty much in the financial district. We went down there on quite a few ocassions for satay and a jug of Tiger Beer... perfect in the evening when it's cooler.The vendors can be a little pushy but we didn't find it too bothersome. It's considered safe to eat at places like this in Singapore because there are very strict food hygiene laws applicable even to hawker stands.

Visit Chinatown - at least for the market and the atmosphere, if nothing else. It's a great place to get cheap, easy to pack souvenirs. I seemed to come away with quite a few silk bottle bags - I'm still giving bottles of wine away in them now! Chinatown is also the place to get a Chinese massage - it's easy to find places offering them in the shopping malls there. Not exactly without pain at the time, but you feel great a day later. There are also some interesting temples to see. Little India is also worth a visit, again for the markets and also for the restuarants.

People do generally descend on Raffles for afternoon tea, but we were also advised to go for tea at The Fullerton Hotel and it was absolutely magnificient. It's an afternoon tea "buffet" although it's actually more the case that they just keep coming back to you with trays of things rather than you get up. It's served in the Lobby (much grander than it sounds) and frankly is an extremely good thing to do if you get stuck in torrential rain.

Boat trips are a great way of seeing the city. We hopped on a boat at Clarke Quay, but you can get on a various locations. Our trip took about 25 minutes and took us past the main sights down to the Merlion and back. Only a few dollars and well worth the outing. Boat Quay is a nice place to go for dinner in the evening.

The MRT (underground system) is fantastic. Even if you don't need to use it, just go for a trip - it's a tourist attraction in its own right!

In general: eating out is very cheap and plentiful so you can stay away from hotel restaurants which tend to be more expensive.Shopping is fantastic and lots of brand names can be significatly cheaper - make sure you've got room in your suitcase for bargains. Chewing Gum is illegal so don't take any into the country with you (and my word the streets are clean). Ibuprofen is a hassle to get unless you get it from an actual pharmacist so do take some with you.

A word or two of warning: take (or get when there) a pair of plastic/rubber flip flops or croc style shoes. When it rains it comes down in stair rods. The whole road will quickly turn into a river. You have absolutely no chance of keeping your feet dry so just go native and wade through the water like everyone else. Also take high factor suncream. The sun is so intense that I still got a tan despite being smothered in factor 30 suncream.

The Singaporeans are really friendly - you'll have a great time.

cariad123

Many thanks for all the useful replies on the above subject. Very helpful.

Ta.

daveyjp

Sentosa Island is a decent day out, lots of attractions on one island - you pick and chose which you want to see when you get there - take the cable car if you dare!

tummy_tank

BTW Singapore Slings are ewwww awful.

I have to admit i quite liked a sling, must have been the atmosphere... and it wasn't as expensive as i thought it was going to be at Raflles but that was cause i had a glass of champagne in Dubai that cost an arm and half a leg.
I second botanical gardens, night safari we are going back as we haven't seen everything we wanted to.

orangemonkey

Hi!

I'm a Singaporean studying in UK. So feel free to ask me any qns You can actually bring in chewing gum if you want, you are just not allowed to sell it. Most of the attractions have already been mentioned. Pop by the esplanade(at city hall mrt station), Singapore's theatre by the river for a scenic view with the merlion as well as clark quay (nearby)for some nice pubs to chill out after that. Sentosa is worth a day and if you're interested in parks, east coast park's a lovely place for cycling and roller blading along the beach. And it only costs $5 (less than 2 quid) rent a bike for an hour, or 5 quid for a day. If you're into something more natural, you can take a ferry to pulau ubin for some mountain trekking.

blownalot

Hi

There are a few things on in Feb
16/17 Feb you could always take in the Annual Chingay parade. More info on it here
http://www.chingay.org.sg/
19 - 24 Feb is the Singapore Airshow http://www.singaporeairshow.com.sg/aboutsgairshow.asp

Oh and dont forget Chinese New Year starts on 6 Feb too so Chinatown would probably be the best place to head for that, but they have fireworks in Marina Bay for a few nights then too.