Holidays in Singapore

Singapore’s skyline is best experienced high with a drink in hand. The Cé La Vi Restaurant and Sky Bar atop the Marina Bay Sands is a bucket-list option for most people and its dreamy front-row views of Singapore’s futuristic marina one side and the Gardens by the Bay on the other are incredible. If you want a view of the iconic hotel itself, though, 1-Altitude at the summit of One Raffles Place is the loftiest trendy bar in Singapore, while LeVel33 is the world’s highest microbrewery. Cheers!

Even though Singapore is compact, its beautiful green spaces make it feel like a Tardis – far bigger than how it appears on a map. The Singapore Botanic Gardens, the only tropical gardens to be named a World Heritage site, is a lush wonderland of lakes, sculpted lawns, thick rainforest and themed gardens and are the city’s lungs. Its star attraction is the National Orchid Garden, where over 1,000 species of the flower blanket every inch of its landscaped splendour. At the city’s Marina Bay, the Gardens by the Bay fuses sleekly sculptured structures with natural beauty. Its space-age Supertrees are iconic images of the city, twinkling in kaleidoscopic colours come the evening for its nightly Garden Rhapsody music and light show. The equally eye-catching biodomes house floral displays mimicking the Mediterranean and the tropics.

As well as its green spaces filled with flora, Singapore has plenty of wildlife hotspots, too. The Rivers Wonders is a great place for families, with children fascinated with its array of animals, including manatees and monkeys, piranhas and pandas. Singapore Zoo combines spacious enclosures filled with wildlife like white tigers and baboons with gorgeously landscaped gardens bursting with eye-popping flora, while its sister park, the Night Safari, provides a unique after-dark experience where a combination of trams and walking trails afford close-up glimpses of wildlife. They’re brilliantly fun days out for both couples and families alike.

Singapore’s island of Sentosa Island is designed for fun. Across its entirety lies a world-class selection of theme parks and amusements, including the thrilling rides at Universal Studios, an enormous waterpark and a wealth of marine life at SEA Aquarium. Every square inch is covered with entertainment and you could easily lose at least a day or two here. Even the route into the island is fun, with the option of a cable car rewarding you with fine aerial views of both Singapore’s dramatic skyline and Sentosa itself. It’s ideal for children and kids at heart, with the island fringed with golden beaches and studded with cool bars.

The most famous cocktail in town, the Singapore Sling has garnered something akin to celebrity status in the 100 years or so it has been drunk. Created by Raffles Hotel barman Ngiam Tong Boon, having a glass of the gin-based cocktail has become a must-do experience while you’re on holiday in Singapore. Of course, the iconic place to sip a Sling is at the colonial-inspired hotel’s Long Bar.

Fully vaccinated travellers from the UK may enter Singapore via VTL* flights without quarantine and just need to undergo a pre-departure PCR or ART test within two days before departing for Singapore. When in Singapore they will only need to take a supervised self-administered ART (S$15) within 24 hours of arrival. Full details 

* VTL (Vaccinated Travel Lane) countries: Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Canada, Denmark, Fiji, Finland, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, Maldives, the Netherlands, the Republic of Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, the United Kingdom, United States, Hong Kong, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE and from 3rd March Israel and the Philippines

Hepatitis A, Typhoid, Polio and Tetanus-Diphtheria vaccinations are currently recommended and Singapore is deemed to have a risk of the Zika virus. If you’re entering Singapore from a Yellow Fever zone, possession of a valid Yellow Fever inoculation certificate is required. For any current travel health advice, you should seek guidance from your GP at least four to six weeks prior to travel.

The time difference is GMT +8 hours.

The flight time from London to Singapore is 12 hours.

The currency is the Singapore dollar.

British passport holders don’t need a visa to visit Singapore.