Weekend retreats

After the conference, you may want to extend your stay through the weekend. Below are some favourite visitor destinations. It is so easy to get around that you can cover many of these destinations in a single day’s sightseeing. You may also wish to check out Visit Singapore, a Singapore Tourism Board website which has a wealth of information for people visiting Singapore.


Culture & Heritage

 

Ride on the bumboat

Start with a bumboat ride along Singapore River. The Singapore River has seen 150 years of commercial activity and has been at the heart of Singapore’s transformation from an obscure fishing village to seaport and metropolis. A 30-minute ride takes you past restored warehouses that now quayside dining and entertainment spots, magnificent colonial buildings, historical bridges as well as the skyscrapers of the central business district. The tour begins from Parliament House Landing Steps.

 

Chinatown/Chinatown Heritage Centre


The historical district of Chinatown is the cultural hub of the Chinese community in Singapore and is rich in Chinese heritage. The area has a total of 1,200 conservation buildings including Jamae Mosque (1835), Sri Mariamman Temple (1843), Al-Abrar Mosque (1855), Nagore Durgha (1830) and the Thian Hock Keng Temple(1842). While in the area, you should also pay a visit to the Chinatown Heritage Centre (www.chinatownheritage.com.sg) at Pagoda Street, which occupies three shophouses at the ethnic quarters of Chinatown. The Centre was re-created based on the recollections of former residents, as are the exhibits and displays, giving visitors an authentic and personal account of life in Chinatown. Guided tours of the Gallery are conducted on the hour.

 

Little India


Little India at Serangoon Road is a colourful, thriving hub of activity where shops abound selling brassware, fabrics, bangles and traditional snacks or sweets. Here, you can find astrologers, other fortune tellers with their parrots, betel nut sellers, spice grinders, henna artists and other tradesmen. Landmarks in the area include P. Govindasamy Pillai & Sons, one of the earliest sari shops in Serangoon Road; Abdul Gaffoor Mosque, one of Singapore's 32 national gazetted monuments; Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple, which was built by indentured Bengali labourers in 1881; and Mustaffa Centre, a popular shopping haven for electronics, PDAs and household items.

 

Kampong Glam


Named after the Gelam tree which used to grow in the area, Kampong Glam was the historic seat of Malay royalty in Singapore. Today, the former Istana Kampong Glam (Sultan’s palace) has been converted into a heritage museum, the Malay heritage Centre. A key building in Kampong Glam is Sultan Mosque (or Masjid Sultan) at Bussorah Street, the largest mosque in Singapore. Built in 1928, the mosque features a massive golden dome and is one of Singapore’s most imposing religious institutions. Fronting the mosque is Bussorah Mall, where the beautifully restored shophouses sell traditional clothes, artefacts, handicraft, furniture and jewelry.

 

Museum Day


The National Museum of Singapore, venue of the DMfest Opening Night Film & Video Screening, was built by Colonel Sir H.E. McCallum as the former Raffles library and museum in 1887. It was re-opened in 2006 after a three-year restoration which saw the neo-classical building joined by a new modernist extension of glass and metal. Other interesting museums are the Asian Civilisations Museum, the first museum in the region to present a broad yet integrated perspective of pan-Asian cultures and civilizations, and the newly-opened Peranakan Museum at Armenian Street which provides fascinating insights into the Peranakan culture unique to Southeast Asia.


Nature & Wildlife

 

Night Safari


The Night Safari is the world's first nocturnal zoo and one of the most popular tourist attractions in Singapore. It houses over 1,000 animals of 120 species, of which nearly a third are threatened species. The park is divided into eight geographical zones, which can be explored either on foot via three walking trails, or by tram.

 

Singapore Botanic Gardens and National Orchid Garden


Singapore Botanic Gardens is a 63.7-hectare botanical garden in Singapore and the birthplace of the Malayan rubber industry. It opens from 5 am to 12 midnight every day. Admission is free but a small fee is charged for entry to the National Orchid Garden within its grounds.

 

Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve


The Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve in the northwest area of Singapore is the first wetlands reserve to be gazetted here. Its global importance as a stop-over point for migratory birds was also recognised by the Wetlands International's inclusion of the reserve into the East Asian Australasian Shorebird Site Network.

 

Pulau Ubin


Pulau Ubin is a small island (10.19 sq km) off the north east of Singapore. It is one of the few areas in Singapore that is largely free from urban development and is best explored on bicycles that can be rented from several kiosks on the island. One of the popular tourist attractions on the island is Chek Jawa, the remnants of a coral reef that is home to a variety of marine wildlife comparable to other islands. Pulau Ubin can be reached via a 10-minute bumboat ride from the Changi Village jetty.


Wine & Dine

 

Clarke Quay


Clarke Quay offers an amazing array of F&B options by the riverside. Featuring five blocks of restored warehouses, the area is named after Sir Andrew Clarke, Singapore's second governor. Near the entrance to Clarke Quay on River Valley Road is Whampoa's Ice House which belonged to Hoo Ah Kay, an early immigrant from Whampoa, China who imported ice from Boston in the mid-1800s before ice-making facilities were available in Singapore. Also located at Clarke Quay is the G-Max Reverse Bungy, Singapore's first extreme high adrenaline experience which catapults thrillseekers up to 60m in the air at speeds of 200kph.

 

Lau Pa Sat

Located in the heart of Singapore’s business district, Lau Pa Sat is a popular destination for the local “hawker experience”. Built in 1894, it is the largest remaining Victorian filigree cast-iron structure in Southeast Asia. During the day, this food centre caters mostly to the office crowd. At dusk, Boon Tat Road is closed to traffic and pushcarts hawking teh tarik (hand-pulled milk tea), barbequed meats and seafood line the street.

 

Tanglin Village/Dempsey Hill

Just off Holland Road and outside the Orchard Road area, the Tanglin Village/ Dempsey Hill (www.dempseyhill.com) area has made a name for itself as a wine-and-dine destination with lush gardens and secluded soft-lit surroundings that make it an ideal chill-out location.

 

Seafood Centre, East Coast Park


The East Coast offers beachfront recreation and relaxation for many Singaporeans and travellers alike. The Seafood Centre is a cluster of restaurants located by the sea, many of which serve the famous Singapore chilli crab, which is cooked in a sweet, spicy gravy with lots of garlic. The other equally tempting variation, the black pepper crab, is stir fried with crushed black pepper.


Island Retreats

 

Indonesian resorts


South of Singapore are some beautiful island resorts, most of which are accessible via a 40-minute boat ride. These Indonesian resorts can offer a great weekend holiday after the Conference. They are typically decorated in a Balinese style, and offer spas, hiking, water-sports, golf and dining on sumptuous local fare. The pubs in these resorts serve drinks late into the night. Worth checking out are the Banyan Tree and Club Med resorts. Banyan Tree in Bintan is about 45 minutes by ferry.