As a travel destination, Singapore is a wonderful place to expand your trip for a few more days. The city-state is one of the largest hubs in Southeast Asia and many international flights to Australia or New Zealand also stop here. If you fancy a few days of Asia Light with a lot of entertainment, great architecture and food until you drop, you shouldn’t miss Singapore.

Compared to the turbulent cities like Bangkok or Kuala Lumpur, Singapore looks very neat, clean (!), orderly and safe at first glance. But definitely not boring – you will find out all the important travel tips in this post and how you will not empty your entire travel budget in this island state.

Arrival | Documents and visa
As in almost every other country, you need a passport for the entry that is still valid for at least six months. You do not have to apply for a visa before you enter – as soon as you get off the plane, you will receive a residence permit for up to 30 days without any problems. Whoop Whoop! Another free tourist visa.

For a visa on arrival you often need an onward ticket. Memo: It is not necessary in Singapore! The ladies and gentlemen at the passport controls are super relaxed and just ask you when you plan to travel further and zack: new stamp in your passport.
However, remember that you must enter your accommodation in Singapore with the Arrival Card. The officials are otherwise skeptical and discuss with you why you don’t have an overnight stay yet.

TIP: Since I rarely book accommodation in advance or use couch surfing, I often simply enter some hostel from the city or a well-known hotel. This quickly satisfies the airport staff.

Packing list | Useful things for the stay
Temperatures are very high all year round in Singapore: be sure to pack loose, light clothing. Shorts and flip-flops are also no problem in fashion in Singapore. However, if you want to enter religious places, then of course you have to adhere to the clothing regulations. In general, it makes sense to take a thin jacket or sweater with you, as it is really cool in the MRT and shopping malls.

Important: You will find different sockets in Singapore than f.e. in Germany. Accordingly, you definitely need an adapter. I have a universal adapter for all countries that I can use almost everywhere. This investment is really gold.

Sightseeing tour at the airport
Regardless of whether you are entering or leaving: Plan a short walk through the large airport halls. This is where the Singapore flair begins. Colorful light shows or a musical water spectacle. It is worth keeping your eyes and ears open. Be sure to also visit the modern designer toilets!

MRT driving like a pro
Public transport in Singapore is very well developed and, above all, very easy to use. I adore the simple tram system in the big cities in Asia every time. There is no big question mark here like in many cities in Germany and panic arises when someone asked: “Do you need a ticket for zone A or B?”

In Singapore, like in many cities in Asia, you can choose between single tickets or rechargeable cards. If you only want a single ticket, just go to the nearest ticket machine, click on the name of your destination and pay. No long distance or short distance ticket. No zone A or B.

With the rechargeable EZ-Link card, the journey with the MRT is even more relaxed. You can get the card at any subway stop or in 7-Eleven and it costs 10 SGD (= 6.50 euros) including 5 SGD credit. If you are in possession of this card, you hold it to the card reader when entering and leaving the stations and depending on the distance, the corresponding fare will then be debited.
Tada! Have a look dear Germany – it could be that easy!

By the way: The MRT is very fast in Singapore and connects all the most important places and sights and is surprisingly really cheap! For a route you pay between 0.70 SGD (= 0.50 Euro) and 2.50 SGD (= 1.60 Euro) for the longer routes. We paid 1 SGD on average for the sights.

By foot
In principle, you can move very well in Singapore as soon as you have reached downtown. Most of the neighborhoods we have explored are within walking distance. Warning: don’t underestimate the heat! After 10 minutes of easy walking you are sweaty wet and you don’t have to care about your hair in the high humidity anyway.

TIP: Thanks to air conditioning, the huge shopping malls are really on every corner and great for a break or two to dry or have an energy boost coffee.

Bayfront Avenue | MRT Station: Bayfront
Bayfront Avenue runs along Marina Bay in Singapore. Here you will find the famous Singapore skyline with the ArtScience Museum, the Baufront Bridge, huge shopping malls and the Marina Bay Sands. It is the most famous hotel in Singapore with the world’s largest rooftop infinity pool. If there is a room in your budget: jackpot! The building also contains countless shops and restaurants, which you can visit without a room.
From the roof you also have a great view of the entire city and can enjoy the show from Gardens by the Bay from a height of 200 meters.

Gardens by the Bay | MRT Station: Bayfront
The giant supertrees are almost a symbol of Singapore. According to the motto: You have not been to Singapore if you have not taken a photo among the gigantic steel beams overgrown with plants.

The place is definitely worth a visit during the day and at night. Because of the hype, we visited Gardens by the Bay around 5 p.m. to watch the much praised light show.

The music show Garden Rhapsody takes place every evening and OH MY GOD! I really thought it was just a couple of fancy illuminated trees with some background music. No. A thousand times better!
For 30 minutes, the lights dance to the music over the many supertrees. With every new song you just think “awesome it can’t get any better!” Yes. It can! It was really awesome.
We lay down on the floor under the main tree with many other visitors and enjoyed the show from there. Spectacular, consistently pure goosebumps and somehow romantic at the same time. Well, if that’s not an incredibly cool date! Absolute must-go!

In addition to the Supertrees, which are of course a highlight here, you will find winding paths through the green areas, great restaurants and two greenhouses on the entire complex. As the world’s largest greenhouse, the Flower Dome has even earned an entry in the Guinness Book of Records.

A drink on a rooftop bar
The view over Singapore is breathtaking and in the evening with a drink you almost feel like on a luxury business trip. I recommend you to look for a rooftop bar without entry – you can save the money for the drink. The prices so far above Singapore are really tough.

Shopping on Orchard Road | MRT station: Orchard
On the more than two kilometers long street you will find one huge mall after the other, numerous luxury brands, clothing chains, cafes and restaurants. Apart from the welcome cool down in the buildings, it is really great fun to walk through the floors, to inspect the shop windows and to be a child again in the toy department stores. There is really everything your heart desires. If you do not yet have the socket adapter mentioned above – you will find it here.
Allow at least half a day for Orchard Road. After that, your feet are flat, but you drank at least two good coffees, ate three snacks and a lunch, and fell in love with twenty designer handbags.

Warning: Orchard Road is a smoke-free zone. If you need a shopping break, look for the Designated Smoking Areas (DSA).

Explore the city | Chinatown, Haji Lane, Little India
We walked through the most famous neighborhoods one after the other. From Chinatown via Haji Lane to Little India it is a full 50 minutes walk, but you will definitely see every beautiful corner of every quarter and will not miss a food market that suddenly saves your life in between. Fate. We had to take a break for half an hour.

The streets of Chinatown are rather small labyrinthine alleys and you are literally showered with souvenirs, antiques and rice dishes. In addition, every small shop tries to drown out their favorite cover music. Hello Boyce Avenue! Directly renewed my Spotify playlist.

In Little India you will find mainly traditional Indian cuisine, jewelers, fascinating carpets, tailors and much more. Everything shines in the most beautiful bright colors. Love it!

On Haji Lane an oriental café huddles next to the next in colorful little houses. In the evenings it is one of the hottest spots in Singapore: here tourists and locals can romp around in many bars, drink a beer and enjoy the live bands.

Warning: From 10:30pm to 7:00am alcohol consumption is prohibited in all public places in Singapore. Accordingly, not a drop of alcohol is sold in supermarkets or petrol stations during this period. And you really should stick to it! One violation can make your travel expenses 1,000 SGD lighter, and a second violation allows you to visit the prison. This also applies to passionate kisses in public. You have to limit your love to a few short hugs.

For everyone who likes to try a lot of food and new dishes, Singapore is an absolute gourmet paradise! And thank God – it’s cheap too. You don’t know if you fancy Chinese, Indian or a big American burger today? Singapore offers you a huge buffet and you will find everything your baby food is longing for.

My recommendation: In addition to all the restaurants from all over the world, there are food markets in every district where a visit with an empty stomach is definitely worthwhile. We visit the Ramadan Sultan Bazar (which we discovered by accident) for several hours. Because we were two people and wanted to try as much as possible, we only ordered and shared one portion at each shop. This is how we worked from one culinary highlight to the next. Heaven!

Probably the best dinner in town | Gardens by the Bay
We found the most ingenious dinner in the food court Satay by the Bay in Gardens by the Bay. For 30 SGD there was an all you can eat hot pot! I really briefly considered whether I should really spend 30 SGD for dinner. Conclusion: YES! And you have to invest those dollars too! It was fantastic!
In the middle of your own cooking station you can, for example, cook the many different types of pasta, your chosen vegetables or just a complete soup according to your wishes. The hot stone is somewhat reminiscent of the well-known raclette. The selection was gigantic: fish, shrimps, different types of meat, vegetables to the point, eggs, potatoes, sauces. The subsequent food coma was really record-breaking.

Singapore is one of the cities with the highest cost of living in the world. However, if you stay away from the restaurants and rather hit the street food markets and don’t get into the next taxi or Grab, but travel a few stops with the MRT, the costs will be significantly lower.
Probably the highest item is accommodation in Singapore. Before we got here I looked around for a hostel: The cheapest price range is around 200 € per bed for 6 nights. Ciao.

The solution: couch surfing! We were lucky that the first couch surfing host canceled. Otherwise we would probably never have met the most wonderful couch surfing host in all of Singapore.

Thank you Vinay! Thank you for your incomparable, humorous and loving personality with whom you immediately received us unbelievably hospitable! Thank you for making us feel at home and that you moved to the couch for one night when your apartment was occupied by four couch surfers at the same time. Thank you for the culinary experiences, the trip to the rooftop bar on the first evening and for unforgettable singing sessions. Perfect by Ed Sheeran — your song forever. As soon as my money allows it, I’ll come back to Singapore! Miss you ♥

• Feels like ten pounds gained thanks to the delicious and versatile food
• The budget unfortunately says goodbye quickly – alcohol in particular is quite expensive
• The city enchants with many cultures living together
• Attention heat! Or even whining at a high level
• There! A mall. Another one. Aha. The next mall […]
• Breathtaking architecture and at the same time countless green spaces to relax
• Supertrees ♥

For me, Singapore means above all a wonderful great couch surfing friendship. The 5 days in Singapore were even extended by a spontaneous weekend in Bali. In addition, these days were the start of a four-week trip together with Kais, who brought me a piece of home to the other end of the world and with him I was able to experience unforgettable, fun, food-rich moments in Singapore. #kitschy

Lots of Love ♥