By Harry Nara · Last updated
Yes, and Singapore is the least stressful first trip in Asia by a wide margin, which is both its appeal and the thing people hold against it. Nothing goes wrong. The transport takes the bank card already in your pocket, the tap water is drinkable, the street food is world class and costs almost nothing, and the rules that made the country a punchline are mostly invisible if you behave the way you would at home. Budget for the hotel and the drinks, because those are where the money goes.
Singapore is the city where the practical sections of a guide like this get short, because the infrastructure removes most of the problems other places require you to plan around. You will not be scammed, you will not get lost, you will not be ill, and the airport is a genuine attraction rather than an obstacle between you and the city.
What is worth knowing divides into two things: how to eat well for very little, which is the whole point of the place, and which of the famous rules are real. The answer to the second is that most of them are, and none of them will trouble a visitor who is not trying to find out.
How long do you need in Singapore?
Three days. Singapore is small, dense and efficient, and three days covers it without rushing: one for the colonial core and Marina Bay, one for the neighbourhoods, one for the gardens and the islands. A fourth is a pleasure rather than a necessity, and many people sensibly use Singapore as a two-day stop inside a longer trip.
Before you go
Singapore’s buses and MRT take contactless bank cards directly through SimplyGo, including American Express, Mastercard, Visa and NETS, and cards loaded into a phone wallet. There is no registration, no top-up and no separate ticket, and the fare reader confirms it by displaying Bank Card SimplyGo as you tap. Tap the same card in and out, everyone needs their own, and the fares appear on your statement as BUS/MRT.
Singapore sits just above the equator and does not have seasons in any useful sense: it is hot and humid every day of the year, and it rains hard and briefly at any time. There is no better month to choose. What this means practically is that outdoor plans should be morning or evening and the hours either side of noon belong indoors, and that an umbrella is more useful than a forecast.
Eating and drinking on the MRT is fined, including water. Littering, jaywalking and smoking outside designated areas are all enforced. The chewing gum law is about sale rather than possession, and no one will search you for it. Durian is banned on public transport and the signs are serious. None of this is difficult, and the upside is a city where the pavements are clean and the trains do not smell of anything.
Once you are there
The best eating in Singapore is in open-sided government-run food courts where individual stalls have cooked one dish for decades, and a plate costs less than a coffee elsewhere in the city. Find a table first, then order, and know that a packet of tissues on a table means it is taken, which is a genuine local convention rather than an abandoned item. Queue at the stall with the longest queue; the length of it is the review.
The network is comprehensive, immaculate, air-conditioned and signposted in English, and stations connect directly into malls and basements so that a surprising amount of the city can be crossed without going outside. In a climate like this that is not a novelty, it is the reason the city works.
Heavy duties make beer, wine and spirits cost several times what they do in neighbouring countries, and a cocktail in Marina Bay can cost more than a day of excellent food. Nothing about this is avoidable, but knowing it in advance changes how you plan an evening, and the duty-free allowance on arrival is worth using.
What it costs
Singapore is expensive and cheap at the same time, which confuses people who arrive with one figure in their head. Accommodation is costly, alcohol is heavily taxed, and imported goods are priced accordingly. Food, however, is the cheapest good eating anywhere on this site, provided you eat where Singaporeans eat, and public transport costs very little. A day can cost a great deal or almost nothing depending entirely on whether you sit down in a hotel bar.
Cards are accepted everywhere and contactless is the default, including for transit. The exception is the older hawker stalls, a number of which remain cash-only or prefer a local QR payment app, so a small amount of cash is worth carrying for exactly the meals you most want to eat.
Tipping is not practised and is not expected. Restaurants typically add a ten percent service charge and GST on top of the menu price, which means the bill is higher than the listed number, but that is tax and service rather than anything you need to add to.
Going with children
Singapore may be the single easiest city in Asia to visit with small children, and the reasons are mundane and decisive: everything is clean, the tap water is drinkable, baby-changing facilities are standard, lifts exist at every MRT station, and nothing you eat will make anyone ill. Gardens by the Bay, the zoo and the science centre are all built to a standard that treats children as the main audience rather than an afterthought, and Sentosa exists more or less for this purpose. The genuine constraint is the climate, which is relentless rather than seasonal: prams and toddlers wilt in the humidity, and the sensible rhythm is outdoors early, indoors through the worst of the afternoon, and out again at dusk. Almost every indoor option is air-conditioned to the point of being cold, so bring a layer.
Going alone
Singapore is safe to a degree that surprises people, including late at night and including for women travelling alone, and that changes what a solo trip feels like more than any other factor. Hawker centres remove the awkwardness of eating alone entirely, since you are at a shared table with strangers doing the same thing. The trade-off is that the city can feel socially closed if you are hoping to fall into company: it is a working city rather than a travelling one, and the backpacker scene that makes Bangkok easy to meet people in barely exists here. Go for the food, the architecture and the ease, and treat any company you find as a bonus.
Mistakes worth avoiding
Your own contactless bank card or phone works on the MRT and buses with nothing to set up. The separate card is a solution to a problem Singapore no longer has.
You will pay ten times as much for food that is usually worse. The stalls are the reason to come, not the budget option.
A packet of tissues left on a hawker centre table means it is reserved. It looks like litter and it is not.
The humidity does not relent and there is no cooler season to wait for. Morning, indoor afternoon, evening: that is the shape that works.
Alcohol carries heavy duty and costs several times what it does in the region. A round in Marina Bay can outprice a day of eating brilliantly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Singapore worth visiting for a first-time traveller?
Yes, and it is the gentlest possible introduction to Asia: English is an official language, the transport is immaculate, the tap water is drinkable, and there is no scam culture to navigate. The criticism that it is sanitised has some truth in the centre and much less in the neighbourhoods. Come for the food above all, which is world class and remarkably cheap.
How many days do you need in Singapore?
Three covers it comfortably: one for the colonial core and Marina Bay, one for Chinatown, Little India and Kampong Glam, and one for the gardens and Sentosa. It is a small and efficient city, so a fourth day is a luxury rather than a requirement, and using Singapore as a two-day stop inside a longer trip is entirely sensible.
Do I need an EZ-Link card in Singapore?
No. Buses and the MRT accept contactless bank cards directly through SimplyGo, including Visa, Mastercard, American Express and NETS, and cards held in a phone wallet. There is nothing to register and nothing to top up; the reader displays Bank Card SimplyGo when you tap, and fares appear on your statement as BUS/MRT. Use the same card for both taps, and each traveller needs their own.
Are Singapore’s strict laws a problem for tourists?
Not in practice. Eating or drinking on the MRT is fined, as are littering, jaywalking and smoking outside designated areas, and durian is banned on public transport. The chewing gum law restricts sale rather than possession. A visitor behaving normally will never encounter any of it, and the payoff is a city that is spotless.
Where should I eat in Singapore?
Hawker centres. They are open-sided food courts where individual stalls have specialised in one dish for decades, and a superb plate costs less than a coffee in the business district. Secure a table before you order, and note that a packet of tissues on a table means it is already taken. The longest queue is the recommendation.
Why is alcohol so expensive in Singapore?
Heavy excise duty, which puts beer, wine and spirits at several times the price of neighbouring countries. A cocktail at a Marina Bay rooftop can cost more than an entire day of outstanding hawker food. It is not avoidable, but know it before you plan your evenings, and the duty-free allowance on arrival is worth using.
Is Singapore good for families with young children?
It is probably the easiest city in Asia for it. Everything is clean, the water is safe, lifts are at every MRT station, and the zoo, Gardens by the Bay and Sentosa are all built with children as the primary audience. The one real constraint is the climate, which is hot and humid every single day, so plan outdoors for early morning and evening and use the air-conditioned middle of the day.
When is the best time to visit Singapore?
There is no meaningfully better month. Sitting almost on the equator, Singapore is hot and humid all year and rain arrives as short heavy downpours in any season rather than as a wet and dry divide. Choose your dates on flight prices and events rather than weather, and plan each day around the heat instead.
Is Singapore good for solo travellers?
It is exceptionally safe, including late at night and for women travelling by themselves, which changes the whole texture of a trip alone. Hawker centres remove any awkwardness about eating by yourself, since you share a table with strangers doing the same. The trade-off is social: this is a working city rather than a travelling one, with little of the backpacker scene that makes meeting people easy elsewhere in the region. Come for the food and the ease.
Checked against SimplyGo, contactless bank cards, Land Transport Authority, plan your journey, Visit Singapore, official tourism site.
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