Wow Singapore, just wow.
I'm not sure what I was expecting on our recent trip to Singapore with some of the MMT team, but I know that it absolutely blew me away. Within 24 hours of being there, I knew it would take a spot as one of my favourite countries I've been to. I've never been anywhere like this before and I was a bit apprehensive of how 'different' it would feel from home. I quickly realised it was different but in all the best ways. It was cleaner, safer, more green, more sunny and more friendly than the UK!
Day 1 - What's a Hawker Centre and why do I love them?
The flight from London to Singapore is about 13 hours each way, which goes very quickly if you can book nighttime flights. I found this also massively helped with jetlag as the time difference (+8 hours) doesn't feel as extreme. When we arrived in Singapore it was roughly 5pm, meaning we could check into our gorgeous hotel, The Clan Hotel, have some dinner then relax before heading to bed, jumping straight into Singapore time!
The Clan Hotel is not only stunning decor wise, but also has a fantastic location opposite a metro station (Singapore is very well linked by affordable public transportation), and was only a 5 minute walk away from La Pau Sat. This is one of the most popular 'Hawker Centers', an open food court with various independent food stalls, in Singapore. As a group we made use of the massive variety of cuisines available here, with some trying the massive Naan's and curry from one of the Indian stalls, me having Gyoza (fried dumplings) from an another stall, and others trying the famous Satay skewers from 'Satay Street”. As a foodie myself, a Hawker centre is a dream come true, as you’re surrounded by so much delicious food! The cherry on top is that the food is incredibly well priced here, you can get a whole meal from £4, and some of the stalls even have Michelin stars.
DAY 2 - Experiencing a slice of Singapore history & luxury
Our second day in Singapore started with a tour of the hotel we were staying in, The Clan. We got to see the other room types available, as well as being told more about the history of the hotel. The Clan’s focus is on feeling like home and treating their guests like family. They have a daily tea ceremony where their resident tea master crafts you a cup of tea with a Chinese pastry, to mimic how you would offer your guests a cup of tea when they arrive at your house. This is free for all guests and is available every day, I would highly recommend trying it out!
We then moved on to visit the Oasis Novena Hotel where we had a tour and got to try out the hotel restaurant. This was a completely different feel to The Clan as the decor is much lighter and has more of a ‘spa’ feel. The drinks on the menu stood out to me, with options like a beetroot or turmeric latte! I had the turmeric one and it was delicious, great for if you want a hot drink but not the caffeine.
After eating lots of yummy food, we decided to have an hour lounging by the hotel pool with amazing views over the city, before getting ready for the exciting evening ahead. This evening we got to visit Raffles Hotel, a Singapore classic. We were lucky enough to view the Presidential Suite, where the Queen, Michael Jackson and many more celebrities have stayed!
We dined in the amazing Butcher’s Block restaurant where we tried out the Hawaiian inspired 7 course tasting menu. There was SO much food and it was great to try things you wouldn’t normally eat, it was all delicious.
We followed the meal with a Singapore Sling in the one and only Long Bar, a must when in Singapore. This is where this iconic cocktail was created! You can sip on your cocktail whilst snacking on peanuts, the shells being thrown straight onto the floor, a rare sight in Singapore but this makes for a unique experience.
DAY 3 - A morning exploring with the best guide ever, an afternoon filled with delicious food
A new day in Singapore and even more to explore. Today we met our amazing guide Cathy, and we started the morning with a tour around Singapore, visiting Chinatown, Little India and much more. I would highly recommend Cathy as a tour guide as she was so funny and told us so much interesting information about the places we were seeing. She even helped us take lots of photos to capture our time in Singapore! If you’d like a tour with Cathy, let one of our Travel Specialists know and they’ll be able to book this for you.
We couldn’t help ourselves and ended back at La Pau Sat for lunch to try even more of the delicious, affordable food. I went for a lemon chicken & rice with a chicken broth for only £4, delicious!
In the afternoon, we had a whirlwind tour of Pan Pacific Singapore, where we got to try a custom cocktail in the bar, a treat from the bakery counter, and a glass of champagne in the bar at the top of the hotel! We had a delicious dinner in one of the hotel’s restaurants that currently has a Vietnamese focus, as well as a variety of other cuisines.
We ended our night with a trip to Marina Bay Sands to try out the iconic rooftop bar for a cocktail and incredible views of the whole city. You need to pay to get up to the bar, but this can then be redeemed against a drink when you’re there. The views from here are unlike anywhere else in the city, and I would recommend visiting both in the day and the night to really experience it.
DAY 4 - The worlds Largest Glass Greenhouse & Universal Studios!
We had another morning with our lovely guide Cathy, who took us to the Gardens by the Bay to explore the Flower Dome and the Cloud Dome. As it’s currently Sakura season in Japan, the Flower Dome was full of cherry blossoms and themed around Japan. You could easily spend a good couple of hours exploring these domes and all the plants inside. It’s also a great way to cool off from the hot weather, whilst also feeling like you’re outside. I would recommend to visit the Gardens by the Bay in the night too, as they have an amazing free light show.
After our tour, we visited the PARKROYAL COLLECTION Marina Bay to see the hotel and try out the restaurant. The thing that really stood out to me here was that they have 4 live birds in the main space of the hotel, meaning you can hear bird song from most places in the hotel! It’s a very open plan space with lots of natural light, making it very relaxing.
We then transferred to our next hotel that we were staying at, The Outpost Hotel in Sentosa. You may not know about Sentosa, but it’s a small island in Singapore that’s connected by a bridge only 20 minutes from the city centre. There’s so much to do here including Universal Studios, a waterpark, beaches, and a few really unique hotels.
For the afternoon we got to be big kids and take a visit to Universal Studios. As someone who absolutely loves rides and theme parks, this was a fantastic way to spend the afternoon! Whilst not one of the biggest Universal Studios, there’s still plenty of rides and attractions to try here. This park is focused on Minions, Transformers and Shrek, with themed attractions for these franchises as well as a selection of others.
DAY 5 - A sneak peak at a BRAND NEW hotel opening later this year!
This morning we had a tour of our new hotel and a selection of other hotels in Sentosa. My favourite hotel that we saw is the The Barracks Hotel, which was once a British artillery outpost. It’s now been made into a ‘heritage hideaway’, and has the most gorgeous rooms and pool area. I liked this hotel so much that I’ve made a note of it for my own honeymoon!
We were extremely lucky to be invited to have a look around 'Mandai Rainforest Resort by Banyan Tree', a brand-new hotel that is opening to the public in April 2025. This gorgeous hotel is nestled in the Mandai Wildlife Reserve in Singapore, making it a fantastic location to explore the 5 different wildlife parks in this area. There is only 150 meters to walk before you reach the entrance to wildlife parks! Guests of the hotel will also receive discounted entrance tickets if they book these with their hotel stay and this is something our Travel Specialists will be able to add on for you. Plus, this is the first property in Singapore to be awarded the Super Low Energy Mark!
The hotel building is brand new, and has been externally decorated with plants that over the next few months and years will grow to cover the sides of the building, making it into a plant paradise! There are 5 levels, covering 338 rooms, including the suites and Treehouses (the top category room). We saw a variety of rooms, from the lead in category all the way up to the Treehouses, and they were all absolutely stunning. My favourite rooms (apart from the gorgeous Treehouses!) were definitely the 'Sanctuary' rooms, with views over the reservoir from the bedroom and the shower space.
A lovely touch in the rooms is that the wallpaper reflects the levels in the rainforest that you are staying on. For example if you're on the bottom floor of the hotel, your wallpaper will show the rainforest floor, creating an extension of what can be seen outside your window.
There is a spa available at the hotel that currently offers treatments to hotel guests plus a well stocked gym. We tried out the 'Planter's Shed' restaurant which had an amazing range of delicious foods and drinks. I tried the Chrysanthemum & Pandan Iced tea and it was so yummy!
DAY 6 - Do we really have to leave?
Our final day in Singapore was nice and long as our flight wasn’t until the evening. We started the morning with getting the cable car on Sentosa to Siloso point and the beach there. This cost about £9 for a round trip and takes around 15-20 minutes. You get lovely views of the island whilst you travel too. There is lots of wildlife in this area, and if you take the free lift up at Fort Siloso, you can walk through a tree lined walkway. You may see monkeys if you’re lucky, plus there’s lots of different species of birds, we saw a group of peacocks! At the end of the walkway is the Fort, where you can explore this old military base for free.
Our final hotel visit was to PARKROYAL COLLECTION Pickering. We had unknowingly seen this hotel multiple times whilst driving around Singapore as it definitely catches your eye. The majority of the external building is covered in trees and plants and looks like something out of the ‘Avatar’ films. It’s a gorgeous hotel with lovely rooms, fantastic food and even a walking path around the hotel on the 7th floor, where you can take a stroll surrounded by all the plants and a mini waterfall! They refer to themselves as a ‘hotel-in-a-garden’, and it is the ‘World's Leading Green City Hotel’, awarded at the World Travel Awards. This was definitely one of my favourite hotels that we saw.
With only a few hours left in Singapore, we decided to squeeze a few more sights in. We went over to the Marina Bay Area and visited the floating Apple Store, a huge Louis Vuitton store, and I also tried out the ArtScience museum. If you’re into interactive art exhibitions I’d definitely recommend going here. Alternatively if you’re more into shopping, the humungous shopping center is next door!
We made our way to the airport with a few extra hours to spare so that we could experience the ‘Jewel’ in the airport, a nature-themed entertainment and retail complex. In the center of the Jewel is the world's tallest indoor waterfall, the Rain Vortex, which is surrounded by a terraced forest setting. This is incredible to see, and if you’re here in the evening don’t miss the light show that is usually on around 7-8pm. You could spend the whole day here!
The end of a fantastic trip
A note on the weather in Singapore. You may have heard that Singapore is known for being very hot and humid, and whilst this is true, it was also not as bad as I was expecting. Most places where you walk in the city have covered walkways so you’re not under the sun, and majority of the buildings and attractions have strong aircon inside. I don’t usually deal very well in the sun and I didn’t find it too bad at all. I would however recommend wearing cool clothing when walking around Chinatown as there’s not loads of cover here. I also brought a hand held electric fan with me that was really helpful in those extra warm moments.
I found it really hard to try and summarise this trip into only one blog, and there’s still so much more I could say about this incredible country. Please don’t hesitate to give this country a go and experience it for yourself, I promise that you’ll love it! You can get in touch with one of our Travel Specialists to book your own dream Singapore trip, find your nearest Miles Morgan Travel shop here: https://milesmorgantravel.co.uk/shops
