Singapore Stopover: How to Make the Most Out of a Short Stay

Usually, I don’t leave Singapore’s marvelous Changi airport – there is certainly enough to explore in the 3 terminals to keep me busy while transiting to a further destination. However, this trip, we decided to break up our long journey to Tanzania by lingering a little and exploring the city on a short 2-day Singapore stopover.

Wow! Did we pack a lot into those 2 days! In this post, I will explain how to make the most out of a short visit, where to stay, top things to see and do and some travel tips I picked up along the way.

Make the Most of Your Time

The trick is the timing of your flights. We are from Australia, so a direct flight to Singapore is only around 8 hours, depending on which capital city you are flying from. We flew overnight, arriving in Singapore around 5.30am. Yes, we were flying business class and yes, I was able to sleep on the plane. So, it was with lots of energy and enthusiasm that we hit the ground running ready to explore this amazing compact city.

We also timed our next flight to leave Singapore the following evening, which gave us 2 whole days to explore and only required staying 1 night!

Where to Stay on a Singapore Stopover

This was a big decision, so many fabulous options. Our selection criteria included being close to an MRT (train) station, close to good food and it had to be comfortable. We decided on the fabulous PARKROYAL Collection Pickering. If the Hanging Gardens of Babylon and the Bali rice terraces had a baby, it would be the PARKROYAL Pickering! I just loved the look of this place as soon as I saw it!

Located right next to the Chinatown MRT station, the sight of terraces of cascading greenery instantly has a cooling effect from the infamous Singapore humidity.

We arrived before dawn, entered the fabulously cool air-conditioned lobby and checked in. Obviously, our room was not ready to occupy, so our luggage was securely stored and the helpful staff allowed us access to the pool deck with showers and bathroom facilities so we could freshen up after our flight. I also took the opportunity to take some early morning photos of this amazing space while the guests were mostly still sleeping.

PARKROYAL Pickering is a mid-range priced hotel. The rooms, like the exterior offer calm, with muted tones and warm wood finishes. The room is compact without feeling small, A generous floor to ceiling window frames the outside terrace gardens, inviting the curtain of hanging green into your room.

The Michelin Star Lime restaurant is located downstairs if you want a fine dining experience literally at your doorstep. We were keen to experience the hawker centres for our eats, and so another drawcard for us was the location of the hotel within walking distance of the Maxwell Food Centre – home to Anthony Bourdain’s favourite Michelin Star Chicken Rice! I’m getting ahead of myself, more on dining options later. Let me finish here by saying that we loved our stay at the PARKROYAL COLLECTION Pickering, highly recommend!

Of course, there are so many hotel options to choose from you will be spoilt for choice, but we were very satisfied with ours.

Top Things to See and Do on a Singapore Stopover

Naturally this will be influenced by what you are interested in, but you should also think about what Singapore is famous for and what they do well and try and experience that while you are there. We were not traveling with children, so Sentosa Island was not a priority for us. Singapore also has some highly rated zoos, but we were about to head on safari in Tanzania and experience the real thing!

When I think about Singapore, I think about the gardens, the iconic landmarks, the food culture, sophisticated bars and a multicultural mix. I wanted to experience all of that in just 2 days. Doable? Absolutely!

Singapore Gardens

Singapore’s gardens are nothing short of extraordinary and should not be missed! Even on a short Singapore stopover, these iconic green spaces can easily be explored and enjoyed. With a reputation as a ‘City in a Garden’, there are several stunning gardens to choose from.

At the heart of the city is the Gardens by the Bay, where the Supertree Grove lights up the skyline and the climate-controlled Cloud Forest and Flower Dome transports visitors across continents and even into the Jurassic period! The UNESCO-listed Singapore Botanic Gardens offers a more traditional escape, with sprawling lawns, rainforest pockets and the stunning National Orchid Garden.

Gardens by the Bay

Gardens by the Bay is where Singapore really shows off. Set right on the waterfront at Marina Bay, this futuristic garden is home to the towering Supertrees, misty cloud forests and vibrant floral displays. All located in the one area, it is easy to see all three in a relatively short time.

Supertree Grove

The Supertree Grove is the star of Gardens by the Bay. These towering vertical gardens – ranging from 25-50 metres tall were built as part of the Garden’s opening in 2012. They are an impressive sight by day but it’s at night that they really steal the show. The free Garden Rhapsody light and sound show usually runs at 7.45pm and again at 8.45pm and it’s worth timing your visit around it. For the best experience, lie down under the trees and look up as they come to life. You can even walk between them on the OCBC Skyway, if you’re up for a different perspective.

Alternatively, head to Marina Bay Sands for a wider skyline view, they have a viewing platform accessible from the shops on the ground floor. Just follow the signs or ask at the information desk for directions.

The Cloud Forest

Conveniently sitting side by side, are 2 climate-controlled garden displays that are definitely worth a visit.

The Cloud Forest is like stepping into another world, with misty walkways, a towering indoor waterfall and lush greenery, it’s a jungle in the virtual clouds.

The Jurassic-themed displays make it a hit with the kids. Even though we weren’t traveling with kids, we enjoyed this one. Lots of Jurassic Park references and a cool retreat from the Singapore humidity.

The Flower Dome

Next to the Cloud Forest is another cool air-conditioned glass dome known as The Flower Dome. Inside you can wander through floral displays that reflect different regions of the world.

My favourites being the African garden, the Australian garden (obviously) and the Asian garden was beautifully done. The huge Baobab tree in the Succulent garden section is a stand-out, but the Flower Dome also contains an Australian species of the Baobab tree – who knew there was an Australian species!?!

Singapore Botanic Gardens

Apart from a taxi from the airport, this was the only time we used a taxi to get somewhere in Singapore. The Botanical Gardens are reachable by public transport but wanting to make the most out of our limited time, we chose the quick and easy route -a taxi, which cost $10SGD from Chinatown.

It is free entry into the Botanical Gardens and they are beautiful, with large rolling green lawns, art installations, heritage buildings like the old bandstand, and a large outdoor Stage. There are various garden displays to wander through including the rainforest, the ginger garden, the frangipani garden.

National Orchid Garden

This garden located within the Botanical Garden has an entrance fee of $15pp to enter but is definitely worth it. To my mind, Singapore and orchids are synonymous.

Inside you’ll find every orchid under the sun! Beautiful displays everywhere, but my favourite was the celebrity garden. Here you’ll find hybrid orchids named after the different celebrities they were created for. The former PM of New Zealand, Jacinda Ardern has an orchid, and Pope Francis has an orchid!

Don’t miss the Mist House for a cool retreat, full of cooler climate plants and orchid displays. We didn’t want to leave… it was such a welcome relief from the heat.

Of course, you exit the gardens through the gift shop, and I couldn’t help myself….my first souvenir of the trip – a pair of orchid earrings that perfectly matched the dress I was wearing.

Iconic Landmarks

A lot of the iconic Singapore landmarks are located in Marina Bay. A fun and easy way to see them all is on a Bumboat tour, a Singapore icon in itself! Not only do you get a commentary on the history of each one, but your tired and aching feet get a little rest!

We boarded our Bumboat at the colourful and pretty Clarke Quay, which is worth a little look around while you wait for your boat tour to begin. The tour costs $28SGD per adult at the kiosk or book online here. The cruise takes you around Marina Bay exploring the historic waterfront, the Merlion, the Marina Bay Sands (MBS) hotel, and the ArtScience Museum with its iconic lotus-flower shape.

In the evening, Marina Bay Sands hosts a laser light and fountain show called Spectra and is a nice excuse for a sit down if you can find a vantage point to view it from. When we were there people were staking their spot quite early. We decided to keep going but managed to see most of the show from one of the levels of the Marina Bay Sands hotel when we were on our way to see the Rhapsody light and sound show from the MBS viewing platform.

You can combine all of these and do a bumboat cruise at night to take in the sights, as well as the Spectra show by boat, all timed to see the Rhapsody sound and light show as well. More details on night tour here.

Singapore Food Culture: Where to Eat

I was most excited about exploring the food options in the various Hawker centres that Singapore is famous for. The hygiene standards are so high in Singapore, you know that you are not going to get sick or have tummy troubles from a dodgy vendor. In fact, there are many Michelin star destinations in Singapore’s Hawker centres. So, we looked forward to eating with great enthusiasm!

To kick things off, we headed to the Maxwell Food Centre.

Maxwell Food Centre

Normally this place gets pretty crowded, but we headed there straight after we had checked in to our hotel, so it was very early in the morning, around 8am. Not many of the vendors were open at that time, but a few were open for the breakfast crowd.

We managed to see the famous Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice store, which was open, but without a single person lining up! Normally the crowds are lined up around the corner. This is the vendor that Anthony Bourdain made famous with his raving review.

A bit too early in the day for chicken rice though, that would come later, it was the classic toast set-meal for us. For $3.60 you get 2 pieces of classic toast (which contains some sort of yummy relish in it), 2 half-boiled eggs and a coffee. The egg is super soft boiled, so that you can dip your toast in it and scoop it up. Yum!

We returned to the Maxwell Centre later on for the chicken rice but not from Tian Tian, from one of the other vendors that were still open when we came back later the next night.

A tip on Hawker centre etiquette…. it is perfectly acceptable to ask to share a table with people already seated, if there are some spare seats available. It is also expected that you clean up after yourself by returning your tray and placing any rubbish in the bins.

Satay Street

This place you will smell before you see it….and it smells divine! Satay street is a series of street vendors barbequing various meats in the open air. Customers sit at long tables under the stars to enjoy their food and drinks. Eating satay sticks can get messy, consider bringing along some wet wipes to clean your hands. Alternatively, I noticed at all of the Hawker centres, there are plenty of sinks outside the bathroom areas just to wash your hands.

The food was yum, but you do pay for the Satay Street experience. What I mean is the same food is available in Lau Pa Sat Hawker centre adjacent to Satay Street quite a lot cheaper than it is on the famous street. You are paying a bit more for the experience. If you are watching the dollars, eat inside the hawker centre instead.

Tekka Centre

Located in Little India, this food centre offers delicious Indian fare, as well as other options. We tried some Roti Chenai – flat bread with a delicious dipping sauce, and in honour of my daughter who loves Mi Goreng noodles at home, I ordered some Mi Goreng….maybe a little food colouring added?? Not Indian but it was so delicious!

Sophisticated Bars: Where to have a Special Drink

Everyone knows about Raffles and the famous Singapore Sling. Well, I am allergic to pineapple so no Singapore Sling for me! I wanted to try somewhere different, somewhere that looked so stylish and sophisticated, that I added it to my Singapore bucket list as soon as I saw it online.

Let me introduce you to The Atlas Bar.

The Atlas Bar

Located in the very Gotham City looking Parkview Square building, the Atlas Bar has been voted as the 4th best bar in the world and is absolutely stunning! You must book ahead….and I mean months ahead! It is so worth it though.

Opened in 2017, the Art Deco design instantly transports you back to the glamour of the 1920’s. With towering ceilings, brass fittings and velvet, leather and brocade seating, it screams Great Gatsby. The huge gin tower centerpiece, houses over 1300 bottles of gin. I was lucky enough to be given a personal tour of the gin tower by a lovely staff member, who also gave me a little history lesson on the bar.

Before becoming The Atlas Bar, it used to be a champagne bar….and the gin tower, used to be a champagne tower. I was shown the electric hoist that was once used to raise a harnessed waitress up, around and down the tower to retrieve bottles of champagne! You can’t get more Great Gatsby than that!

I had a specific drink in mind for my visit to the Atlas Bar. Being known for its gin tower, for me it had to be a gin. My late grandmother was a legend and would have a pink gin every night before bed. To honour her, I wanted to have a pink gin. I think there was some confusion, and the gin I was given came from a bottle with a pink label, but it wasn’t pink.

The staff were very accommodating though and agreed to put my gin in a stemmed glass so I could do my best Leo impersonation from the Great Gatsby. 🤣

The drinks are expensive, as you would expect, however, I nearly fell off my chair when I saw the cost of my gin and tonic – $39!! That said, the whole experience was probably the highlight of our short stay in Singapore. I absolutely loved this place.

Lavo Italian Restaurant and Bar

We had prebooked a sunset dinner at Arden rooftop restaurant in the Capitaspring building, that is supposed to have one of the best views of Singapore, only to have them cancel our booking a few weeks before we were due to arrive – rude!! We were quite disappointed at first, but as it turns out, it was a blessing in disguise, because we then discovered Lavo!

A little research told us that you don’t necessarily need to have a booking if you just want to go and have a few drinks. So, with fingers crossed, we ascended to level 57 of Tower 1 in the Marina Bay Sands Hotel. Sure enough, within a few minutes, we were shown to a few stools at the bar, ordered a drink each and got to enjoy the stunning views of Marina Bay including a beautiful sunset.

There is a minimum spend of $30pp, easy to achieve with a drink or two and so much cheaper than the prebooked dinner we were going to fork out for.

The staff were also a standout, super friendly and hospitable even though we were only there for a few drinks.

Cultural Highlights

Singapore is known for its cultural diversity, and you can get a snapshot of the city’s rich cultural heritage by exploring these 3 cultural districts – Chinatown, Little India and Kampong Glam.

Chinatown

This was an easy walk from our hotel, and we explored temples, bustling markets and admired amazing street art that tells the story of the area and its history. If you are short on time but want to see as much of the fabulous street art and colourful building facades the city has to offer, consider a guided street art tour.

Don’t miss the Sri Mariamman Temple, with its impressive decorative facade. We didn’t get a close up look at it, because there was a wedding in progress …. at 7.30 in the morning! How early did the bride need to start getting ready for that one?!

The Tang Dynasty style Buddha Tooth Relic Temple, which is believed to house the Buddha’s left canine tooth recovered from his funeral pyre, is easy to find on the main South Bridge Road.

The Maxwell food centre is also located in Chinatown, which is a must-do.

Little India

I’ve never been to India, but I think Little India kind of captured the essence of India without the chaos of it. Actually, navigating the insane Mustafa Centre did give me a sense of the craziness of India! It’s a multi-story department/grocery store that sells anything and everything and is a bit of a maze to explore. We managed to pick up some supplies we needed here before we felt the strong desire to escape!

The Tekka Centre is also located here and should be your stop for a bite to eat.

Don’t miss the colourful Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple

Kampong Glam

One of Singapore’s vibrant neighbourhoods is Kampong Glam, known for its strong Malay and Arab heritage. At its centre stands the stunning Sultan Mosque with its gold domes. The surrounding streets, including the famous Haji Lane, are colourful and lively full of cafes and boutique shops.

This is where we made a lunch stop at Bumba – non-negotiable was that it had air-conditioning!

Each of these districts is compact, easy to explore and packed with culture, making them perfect for a quick yet memorable addition to a short Singapore stopover itinerary.

Travel Tips for a Singapore Stopover

As you can see, we managed to squeeze in a lot in just 2 days! We had a big sleep-in on our second day with a lovely late check out of 12 o’clock! Once again, our luggage was stored for the day. The beauty of PARKROYAL Pickering again, is that they allowed us access at the end of our day, to the pool, the shower, and bathroom facilities on the pool deck. We were then able to head to the airport for our flight to Tanzania smelling and looking fresh as a daisy!

So, to make the most out of a short Singapore stopover, choose a hotel that will let you store luggage and will allow you access to shower facilities after check-out.

Here are a few other tips worth noting if you are planning on a short Singapore stopover.

Electronic Singapore Arrival Card (ESAC)

You don’t need a travel visa to enter Singapore with an Australian passport, but you will need to complete an Electronic Singapore Arrival Card. This can easily be done online up to 3 days before arrival. Always best to check your country’s travel advisory website to see if any other entry requirements are needed when traveling from your country.

How to Get Around in Singapore

By far the easiest way to get around Singapore is using their MRT network. Very easy to understand, with colour-coded tracks, and station names displayed both at the station and onboard. Upon entering the station, you just tap with your card (I just used my travel money card) at the gate and again upon exiting the station.

The stations are air-conditioned as are the trains. The MRT network is extensive and can get you just about anywhere in Singapore you wish to go using it.

Stay Hydrated

There is no getting around it, Singapore is hot and humid at any time of the year. So drink water….lots and lots of water! Tap water in Singapore is safe to drink, so always make sure you carry a water bottle around, to replace the fluid you will lose throughout the day.

Dress for Comfort

Shoe choice is important, I wore the most comfortable shoes I own, I still managed to acquire a blister or two. The thing I wasn’t prepared for was chaffing! I have never experienced this before…..curse my lack of a thigh gap! High humidity leads to sweating. Sweating and lots of walking leads to chaffing. Not sure if it was my decision to wear a dress that exacerbated the problem, but our trip to the Mustafa centre was primarily to find some chaffing powder!

Don’t Litter

It’s just common sense and good manners really but still needs to be said. Singapore is a very clean city they pride themselves on it. There are harsh penalties for littering, up to $1000 for a first offence! So don’t be a grub, put your rubbish in the bin and clean up after yourself.

Is a Singapore Stopover Worth it?

Absolutely!! Even taking into consideration the couple of blisters and chaffing I acquired, these 2 days far exceeded my expectations. I loved our short stay in Singapore and it helps to break up the long flight from Australia to…well anywhere really! A chance to stretch the legs may well be the understatement of the year, but it is well worth getting out of the airport and exploring this ‘city in a garden’ that has so much to offer.