What to do on a One-Day Layover in Singapore
I wasn't planning to head to Singapore during my Asia/Pacific trip this year, but when one of the best flight deals from Bali to Krabi, Thailand flew through Singapore...with a long layover...I had to take advantage of the opportunity!
I promptly booked the flight and added Singapore to the itinerary.
This would be a short visit but nice introduction to the city. My flight landed at Changi Airport around 9 pm, and I got to my place of stay around 10:45.
I was there for about another twelve hours or so, as I left at 11 am the next morning for my flight to Thailand.
With limited time on the mind, I squeezed in the couple of things I always try to do when I'm exploring a new city: find a high viewpoint and have a good meal!
Singapore Supertrees at Night
My first order of business was intended to view the light show downtown. I aimed to make the 11pm show, but got there too late.
Since I got in so late, I barely missed the light show, which is okay! I requested my Uber driver take me from Clarke Quay (the neighborhood I stayed in) to the Bay of Gardens as I had to see these crazy looking Supertrees lit up at night.
How beautiful are they? They change color, too!
Breakfast at a Hawker Market
There are plenty of hawker markets (markets with food stalls) all around Singapore. After waking up I wanted to head over to the Marina Bay Sands observation deck and looked up a market along the way.
With a plate of fried rice and a watermelon juice for the road, I had plenty of energy to walk the 20 minutes or so to downtown.
Hawker markets are a great place to find many different foods for cheap!
Marina Bay Sands Sky Deck (Observation Tower)
If you've seen photos of Singapore on Instagram, chances are you've seen the famous shot of the Marina Bay Sands hotel infinity pool overlooking the skyline.
You must be a guest at the MBS hotel to access the infinity pool, though if you can't afford the high price tag for a room - no fear! You can gain access to the Sky Deck for only $23 Singapore Dollars.
I went up the sky deck with the other peasants (ha, just kidding) and caught this incredible view:
It was one of those breathtaking moments, coming up the stairs and seeing the view for the first time. No, really - I actually gasped as I saw the view!
Back to the airport
Around 11 am I took another Uber to the airport, ready to fly to Krabi and spend five days in Ao Nang and the Thailand islands.
There's much more to do in Singapore, especially if you have more time! I only scratched the surface but was happy I got to do the top three things I wanted to do in the short layover.
Singapore is a cool, modern city, and if you get a chance to visit (on a layover or a longer trip) definitely take advantage of the opportunity!
Quick Tips:
English and Chinese (Mandarin) are the main languages spoken in Singapore. It is very easy to get around speaking English as all the signage is written in English.
It's a very clean, modern, and safe city.
There are plenty of expats from around the world that live here, too.
It's not cheap. Compared to Bali or Thailand, Singapore costs more for just about anything.
Transportation is easy and you have options like the MTR (subway), bus, taxi, Uber, or Grab. I used Uber and Grab (Grab is similar to Uber and Lyft) and it was super easy...and cheaper than a taxi!