Things to do in Singapore

22 places worth the trip in Singapore, grouped by what they are. Every guide explains what to see, the best time to go and the practical details, checked against official sources. Best time to visit Singapore: Feb–Apr.

Landmarks (3)
Mosques & temples (3)
Cities (3)
Nature (3)
Heritage (2)
Wildlife (2)
Islands (2)
Museums (2)
Food (1)
Viewpoints (1)

Landmarks in Singapore

Aerial view of Marina Bay Sands and the lotus-shaped ArtScience Museum on Marina Bay at sunset

Downtown Core, Central Region

Marina Bay

A freshwater bay at the heart of Singapore's new downtown, circled by a 3.5 km promenade linking Marina Bay Sands, the Helix Bridge, the Esplanade and the Merlion, with a free nightly light and water show.

The white Merlion statue spouting water from its pier, with stone terraces and CBD towers behind on an overcast morning

Downtown Core, Central Region

Merlion Park

A small waterfront park beside The Fullerton Hotel where the 8.6 m Merlion statue, unveiled in 1972, spouts water into Marina Bay with Marina Bay Sands across the water.

The Rain Vortex pouring through Jewel's glass dome, with Skytrain cars passing in front and forest terraces below

Changi, East Region

Jewel Changi Airport and Rain Vortex

A doughnut-shaped glass and steel complex linking Changi Airport's terminals, designed by Moshe Safdie and opened in 2019, centred on the 40-metre HSBC Rain Vortex falling through a terraced indoor forest.

Mosques & temples in Singapore

Tiered red and white Tang-style facade of the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple under a clear blue sky

South Bridge Road, Chinatown, Central Region

Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum

A multi-storey temple in Tang dynasty style, opened in 2007, with a relic chamber, Buddhist culture museum and rooftop pagoda above South Bridge Road.

The tiered gopuram of Sri Mariamman Temple covered in painted figures of deities against a pale sky

South Bridge Road, Chinatown, Central Region

Sri Mariamman Temple

Founded by 1827 and administered by the Hindu Endowments Board, this National Monument in Chinatown is known for its tiered gopuram and the annual Theemithi fire-walking festival.

Sultan Mosque's golden dome, cream facade with arched windows and a white minaret under a blue sky

Kampong Gelam, Rochor, Central Region

Kampong Gelam and Sultan Mosque

The royal mosque of the former Sultan, rebuilt with two golden domes and completed in 1932, anchors a quarter of shophouses, textile shops, cafés and halal restaurants.

Cities in Singapore

Clarke Quay's colourful riverside blocks and canopies, with bumboats moored on the Singapore River

Singapore River, Central Region

Singapore River & Clarke Quay

The river where modern Singapore began trading, now lined by restored warehouses and shophouses at Clarke Quay and Boat Quay, with riverside dining and bumboat cruises down to Marina Bay.

Colourful Chinatown shophouses with strings of red lanterns overhead and office towers rising behind

Outram, Central Region

Chinatown

Lantern-hung streets of restored shophouses where a Buddhist temple, Singapore's oldest Hindu temple and an early mosque stand within a few minutes' walk of one another.

Serangoon Road lined with shophouses, with peacock and oil-lamp festive decorations strung across the street

Serangoon Road, Rochor, Central Region

Little India and Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple

The historic heart of Singapore's Indian community, gazetted for conservation in 1989, with the Kali temple on Serangoon Road, Tekka Centre's market and food stalls and a dazzling Deepavali light-up.

Nature in Singapore

Supertrees with skyway walkway at Gardens by the Bay, with the Flower Dome conservatory behind

Marina Bay, Central Region

Gardens by the Bay

A 105-hectare garden on reclaimed land at Marina Bay, known for its 18 steel-and-concrete Supertrees, two climate-controlled conservatories and a free nightly light and music show.

The white Bandstand gazebo in Singapore Botanic Gardens, ringed by clipped hedges, lawn and tall trees

Tanglin, Central Region

Singapore Botanic Gardens

An 82-hectare garden founded in 1859 and inscribed by UNESCO in 2015, with free entry, lakes, rainforest, heritage trees and the National Orchid Garden's vast orchid collection.

Red-roofed pavilion on a boardwalk over MacRitchie Reservoir, with forest and blue sky behind

Central Catchment Nature Reserve, central Singapore

MacRitchie Reservoir and TreeTop Walk

Singapore's first reservoir, completed in the 1860s, is now the gateway to the Central Catchment Nature Reserve, with lakeside boardwalks, forest trails and the 250-metre TreeTop Walk 25 metres above the forest floor.

Heritage in Singapore

The long white Fort Canning Centre above a sweeping green lawn, framed by tall trees under a blue sky

Museum Planning Area, Central Region

Fort Canning Park

A 22-hectare hilltop park in the city centre, open 24 hours, where 14th-century royal history, a colonial fort and nine historical gardens sit among old, large trees.

Row of pastel green, blue, lilac and pink Peranakan terrace houses with ornate facades and visitors on the pavement

Joo Chiat and Katong, Marine Parade / Geylang, East Region

Joo Chiat and Katong

A former seaside retreat in eastern Singapore, long linked with Peranakan and Eurasian communities, where more than 800 conserved buildings include the photogenic terrace houses of Koon Seng Road.

Wildlife in Singapore

Two white tigers walking beside a stream in a planted, rocky enclosure at Singapore Zoo

Mandai, North Region

Singapore Zoo and Mandai Wildlife Reserve

Singapore Zoo, opened in 1973, pioneered an open-concept design among rainforest; it now anchors the Mandai Wildlife Reserve alongside Night Safari, River Wonders, Bird Paradise and Rainforest Wild.

Wetland pond fringed by mangrove forest in soft morning light, with low vegetation in the foreground

Kranji, North Region

Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve

A 130-hectare mangrove and wetland reserve on the Johor Strait, Singapore's first ASEAN Heritage Park, known for migratory shorebirds, monitor lizards, otters and estuarine crocodiles seen from boardwalks and hides.

Islands in Singapore

Aerial view of a sandy beach, a small linked islet and turquoise water along Sentosa's coast

Sentosa, Central Region

Sentosa

A resort island of about 500 hectares linked to the mainland by train, cable car and a boardwalk, with three sheltered beaches, a restored 19th-century coastal fort and a cluster of theme attractions.

Panoramic view of a blue quarry lake on Pulau Ubin, framed by trees and lush foliage under a bright sky

Pulau Ubin, North-East Region

Pulau Ubin

A 10-square-kilometre island off Changi, reached by a ten-minute bumboat ride, where flooded granite quarries, village houses, cycling trails and the Chek Jawa Wetlands preserve a slower, older Singapore.

Museums in Singapore

The white petal-shaped ArtScience Museum with palms and flowering shrubs in front and the bay and city towers behind

Marina Bay, Central Region

ArtScience Museum

A Moshe Safdie-designed museum on the Marina Bay waterfront, opened in 2011, whose lotus-like building hosts changing exhibitions at the meeting point of art and science.

Elevated view of the green-domed former Supreme Court and the colonnaded former City Hall, now National Gallery Singapore

Civic District, Central Region

National Gallery Singapore

A major art museum opened in 2015 in two restored national monuments, the former Supreme Court and City Hall, with a collection of more than 9,000 works of Singaporean and Southeast Asian art.

Food in Singapore

Diners at tables under the Victorian cast-iron roof of Lau Pa Sat hawker centre, Singapore

Islandwide; Lau Pa Sat at Raffles Quay, Downtown Core

Hawker centres

More than a hundred hawker centres serve Chinese, Malay, Indian and Peranakan dishes at shared tables. Singapore's hawker culture was inscribed on UNESCO's intangible heritage list in December 2020.

Viewpoints in Singapore

Henderson Waves bridge on tall concrete pillars rising above dense forest, framed by overhanging branches

Telok Blangah, Central Region

Southern Ridges and Henderson Waves

A 9-kilometre chain of hills, parks and elevated walkways in southern Singapore, centred on Henderson Waves, a 274-metre wave-shaped footbridge 36 metres above Henderson Road.

Singapore holiday packages

Supertrees with skyway walkway at Gardens by the Bay, with the Flower Dome conservatory behind

City breakFamily

Singapore · 3 nights5★ Hotel

Singapore City Stopover

Gardens by the Bay
Hawker food tour
Sentosa

Includes accommodation · private transfers · daily breakfast · guided sightseeing

Indicative from

$970 pp

Aerial view of Marina Bay Sands and the lotus-shaped ArtScience Museum on Marina Bay at sunset

BeachHoneymoon

Singapore · 10 nights5★ Resort

Singapore & Bali Twin-Centre

Marina Bay hotel
Bali pool villa
Spa day

Includes accommodation · private transfers · daily breakfast · guided sightseeing

Indicative from

$2,957 pp

Singapore travel overview Plan a Singapore trip

Singapore travel guides