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Singapore

February 2017

By Danica Eliana Ferino

March 2^nd, 2017

This is an overview of our 4-day, 3-night vacation in Singapore last February 2017.

Actual itinerary is on the preceeding sections while a better itinerary and a breakdown of expenses are listed on the latter part.

Actual Itinerary

Day 1: Changi Airport and Chinatown

We traveled from Manila to Singapore aboard Tigerair. There was a sale on their regular fares to Singapore and we booked two tickets (one for me and another for my sister). Total cost for roundtrip airfare sans the travel insurance and choice seat payment is less than Php5,000. There are definitely better deals out there, you just need to have patience and determination when looking for them. :) There's also a travel tax of Php1,620 which you'll have to pay before you fly.

Since we booked a promo fare, our flight schedule is not exactly ideal. We left Manila around 10:30PM and arrived in Changi Airport around 1:45AM the following day. My sister managed to sleep at the benches at the airport. I wasn't able to sleep, unfortunately. So I was dizzy and groggy for the tour later that day.

There's plenty enough to do at Changi Airport, by the way. It's like a tourist attraction on its own. It has several exhibits, mostly floral ones like the orchid garden and the sunflower garden at the roofdeck of Terminal 2 (which we, unfortunately, didn't see). But if there's one thing that you'll have to see, check the Kinetic Rain at the Terminal 1. If you're coming from the other terminals, you'll have to ride the skytrain to reach Terminal 1. It's free. :)

More on Changi Airport: http://danicaeliana.com/changi-airport

Before leaving the airport for our hotel, we bought our Singapore Tourist Pass at the TransitLink Ticket Office at Terminal 2. It's near the MRT Station and beside one of the escalators. If you're planning to use more of the public buses and MRT to get around Singapore, this is definitely worth buying. But it's important to note that the first time you use the tourist pass, it's already considered as your day 1 until 11:59PM. So if you used it, say, around 2PM, your 'day 1' will finish by 11:59 in the evening.

We stayed at Fragrance Hotel Emerald. It's located in Geylang. The nearest MRT station, Kallang, is a bit far - around 15 to 20 minutes walk from the hotel. The hotel itself is pretty much okay. But take note that it is in Geylang. It's the red light district of Singapore. The place is relatively safe, but really, I won't risk staying out and coming to the hotel late at night. We booked this hotel because it is somewhat cheaper than the others and also because we booked late. :(

We were supposed to go to Chinatown AND MERLION PARK on our first day in Singapore. Too bad, the Merlion is undergoing a cleaning/ maintenance during our stay.

We bought our pasalubong in the Pagoda Street of Chinatown. It has lots of cheap stuff and food.

More on Chinatown: http://danicaeliana.com/exploring-pagoda-street

Day 2: Sentosa

We went to Universal Studios Singapore and S.E.A. Aquarium on our second day. Click here for some more thoughts on Sentosa.

Day 3: Mint Museum, Kampong Glam, and Gardens by the Bay

Day 3 is a bit more jampacked.

We also got lost on our way to the MINT Museum of Toys.

The MINT Museum of Toys is a last minute decision. I'm not even sure why I bought a ticket for this. But, anyway, it's a nice museum. If you're a fan of vintage toys, you definitely have to go here.

And I realized, all I've eaten in Singapore are mostly noodle dishes. I missed rice.

By the way, you'll find cheap food in hawker centers.

After a late lunch, we headed to Bugis MRT Station. From there it's a short walk to Arab Street and Haji Lane. We were a little short on time so we just took a quick stroll in these two streets of Kampong Glam. This is actually my biggest frustration in our Singapore trip. We had so little time to explore Kampong Glam because we usually leave the hotel late.

More photos here: http://danicaeliana.com/haji-lane

After Haji Lane, our next stop is at the Bayfront MRT Station to get to the Gardens by the Bay. We weren't able to go up the skydeck in Marina Bay Sands because it was already 6PM and we might not have enough time to check out the two observatories.

By the time we finished our quick exploration of Gardens by the Bay, it was already past 9PM. That's the last of our adventures in Singapore.

More on Gardens by the Bay: http://danicaeliana.com/gardens-by-the-bay

Day 4...

... is pretty much uneventful. We were too tired from our previous days' excursions. We woke up late. After packing up our things, we headed to the airport for our flight back to Manila.

HERE’S A BETTER ITINERARY

This is how I would do it again if ever I come back to Singapore. I'm planning a leisurely trip - not one where I have to visit every tourist site in the country.

DAY 1:

Arrival at Changi Airport. Note #1) If possible, get a flight where you'll arrive in Singapore in the morning or early afternoon. This allows you to have plenty of time in exploring the exhibits around the airport. And you'll just be in time for your hotel check-in. Most of them only allow check-in at 3PM. Note #2) Get a hotel around Bugis/ Kampong Glam or Chinatown.

Go on a city tour in Chinatown and Kampong Glam. If you feel you don't have enough time, you can still go on another city tour on the last day.

DAY 2

Enjoy Sentosa. There's plenty of stuff to do there. If you have the money, you can splurge on anywhere you want to go, any activity you want to do. :) Or if you want, you can spend the whole day at Universal Studios. Just try to leave your hotel by 9PM so you can be at the theme park when it opens if you'll be qeueing for the tickets.

Or...

Go on another city tour. Visit Little India too. :)

DAY 3

Go to Clarke Quay, Merlion Park, Marina Bay Sands, and Gardens by the Bay.

Note: Days 2 and 3 are interchangeable.

DAY 4

Maybe you can scrunch some more activities here before you leave for the airport. But that's up to you so I'm leaving this blank. I'd prefer to just enjoy the hotel bed for a while. :)

BUDGET BREAKDOWN

This is excluding airfare and the PhP1,620 travel tax, and is in Philippine Peso. Exchange rate at that time is PhP36 = S$1.

3,656 - Hotel Accommodation for 3 nights (7,312 for two persons)

2,171 - Universal Studios Singapore

783 - Gardens by the Bay

747 - S.E.A. Aquarium

720 - Singapore Tourist Pass

800 - Food for 4 days. (Note: We brought a loaf of bread and several packs of pancit canton so we saved some money here. :D )

79 - MRT fare from Kallang to Changi Airport (on last day)

Total cost is PhP 8,956. You'll save more if you find a cheaper hotel and if you pass up on USS. Add to that PhP 540 for pasalubong (2 packs of Old Town Coffee at S$7.5 each).

If you have a better itinerary and/or budget, that's good! Will you please share it in the comments section? Thank you. :)

Here are some tips.

Book your hotels early. Some hotels offer discounts on early booking.
Buy vouchers online. For us, we bought our Sentosa, MINT Museum and Gardens by the Bay vouchers from Klook. They are usually cheaper than buying at the ticket booths when you get there. And it saves you time from queuing up for the tickets.
Try to leave your hotel at least before 10AM if you want a leisurely visit on all your agenda for the day.
Wear comfortable shoes. I can't stress enough how important this is. You'll walk most of the time. Note that some transfers on MRT stations are a long distance from each other.
Visit the Flower Dome while there's still daylight. Enter Cloud Forest before dusk. The place glows at night. It's beautiful, I promise.
Check the schedules for the Garden Rhapsody at the Supertree Grove. Set an alarm so you won't forget about it. I almost forgot about it when we went there.
Sunset is usually around 7PM during February.
Eat at hawker centers. The food is cheap but it tastes good.
Buy a tourist pass for the MRT and public buses so you won't have to worry if you missed your station and/or transferred at the wrong line.
There's a lot of interesting shops around the city, especially in Haji Lane and Chinatown. It's better if you'll allot some money in case you see something you want to buy. My sister saw a squishy toy pig and she feels she needs to buy it. So yeah.
Mind the currency exchange rates. If possible, just exchange enough currency that you think you will spend while in Singapore. Note that exchange rates for buying and selling are different so you might lose some peso on those unspent singapore dollars.