World Travel Guide

City Guide  - Singapore  - Key Attractions
Key Attractions

Raffles Hotel: Built in 1887, Raffles Hotel is one of the world's last remaining grand hotels of the East. Somerset Maugham, Rudyard Kipling, Joseph Conrad and Charlie Chaplin made it a favourite retreat, and its recent 160-million-Singapore-Dollar facelift has ensured the hotel retains the unique charm of the colonial era. Tourists flock for afternoon tea in the Tiffin Room and a Singapore Sling in the Long Bar. But a visit to Raffles does not have to be a cliché: the Tiffin Room's Saturday night buffet is one of the best meals in town, while the cool high ceilings of Bar & Billiard, with its snooker tables at the far end, offer a very pleasant spot for a gin and tonic. The new arcade houses 70 boutiques as well as restaurants, a museum and the Victorian-style playhouse, Jubilee Hall.

Beach Road
Tel: (65) 337 1886. Fax: (65) 339 7650.
E-mail: raffles@pacific.net.sg
Web site: www.raffles.com
Transport: MRT City Hall Station (C2), then short walk to Beach Road.

Chinatown
: Singapore's Chinatown evolved in about 1821 when the first Chinese junk arrived from Xiamen, Fujian province. Its four main districts - Kreta Ayer, Telok Ayer, Tanjong Pagar and Bukit Pasoh - each have a distinctive flavour of their own. The Chinese heart, in the Trengganu/Smith Street area, is marked by the Fuk Tak Chi and Thian Hock Keng temples. A number of Chinatown's landmarks, however, are not Chinese, most notably the Nagore Durga Shrine and the Al Abrar Mosque on Telok Ayer Street, and the Jamae Mosque and Sri Mariamman Temple on South Bridge Road.

Transport: MRT Outram (W2).

Night Safari
: Next to the Singapore Zoological Gardens, the Night Safari is billed as the world's first and only night zoo. There are over 1200 animals, covering 110 exotic species in eight zones that recreate geographic regions, including the South East Asian rainforest, African savannah, Nepalese river valley, South American pampas and Burmese jungle. A tram offers a leisurely alternative to the walking trail.

Mandai Lake Road
Tel: (65) 269 3411. Fax: (65) 367 2974.
E-mail: singzoo@pacific.net.sg
Web site: www.zoo.com.sg/safari/index.htm
Transport: SBS bus 138 from Ang Mo Kio MRT (N9) or TIBS bus 927 from Choa Chu Kang MRT (N21).
Opening hours: 1930-2400 daily.
Admission: S$15.45; tram rides S$3 (concessions available).

Sentosa
: A purpose-built island theme park, Sentosa offers beaches, history, golf, gastronomy and a host of theme attractions including VolcanoLand, the Asian Village, the water rides of Fantasy Island and Underwater World, one of Asia's largest tropical fish aquariums.

Sentosa Island
Tel: (65) 275 0388. Fax: (65) 275 0161.
Web site: www.sentosa.com.sg
Transport: Orchard bus E from Orchard Road; Sentosa bus A and C from World Trade Centre and Tiong Bahru MRT (W3); cable car from Mount Faber.
Opening hours: Daily 24 hours.
Admission: S$5 before 1830 and S$3 after 1830; additional charges apply for individual attractions (concessions available).

Asian Civilisations Museum
: Housed in a restored neo-classical building dating back to 1910, the museum focuses on the world of Chinese beliefs, symbolism, connoisseurship and the Chinese scholar tradition, with a collection of Buddhist artefacts, imperial porcelain and seventeenth-century Ming-style furniture.

39 Armenian Street
Tel: (65) 332 3015. Fax: (65) 332 7993.
Web site: www.museum.org.sg/acm/acm.html
Transport: MRT City Hall (C2), then short walk to Armenian Street.
Opening hours: 0900-1730 Tues, Thurs-Sun, 0900-2100 Wed.
Admission: S$3 (concessions available).

Supreme Court and City Hall: Built in 1939, the Supreme Court's Corinthian columns surround stately interiors featuring murals by Italian artist Cavaliere Rodolfo Nolli. Next door is City Hall, built in 1929, and the site of the Japanese surrender to Lord Mountbatten in 1945. Visitors may tour the premises and attend most open court hearings.

St Andrew's Road
Tel: (65) 332 4270. Fax: (65) 337 9450.
E-mail: supcourt_qsm@supcourt.gov.sg
Web site: www.gov.sg/judiciary/supremect
Transport: MRT City Hall (C2); then short walk along St Andrew's Road towards the Padang.
Opening hours: 0830-1700 Mon-Fri, 0830-1300 Sat.

Jurong BirdPark

One of the world's largest aviaries, Jurong BirdPark is a refuge for over 8000 birds of 600 different species from all over the world. Bird shows feature flamingos, macaws, hornbills and cockatoos and one of the biggest attractions is the Penguin Parade, housing more than 200 penguins of five species. An air-conditioned monorail covers the entire park.

2 Jurong Hill
Tel: (65) 265 0022. Fax: (65) 261 1869.
E-mail: birdpark@singnet.com.sg
Web site: www.birdpark.com.sg
Transport: MRT Boon Lay Station (W12), then SBS bus 194 or 251.
Opening hours: 0900-1800 Mon-Fri, 0800-1800 Sat and Sun.
Admission: S$10.30; monorail $2.50 (concessions available).

Tang Dynasty City
: This theme park is a recreation of Chang-An, the capital of seventh-century China during the prolific Tang dynasty when arts and culture flourished on an unprecedented scale. Highlights are the Great Wall of China, the Underground Palace with 2000 life-sized terracotta replicas of the Xi'an warriors, a Chinese ghost mansion and the Imperial Wax Museum.

2 Yuan Ching Road
Tel: (65) 261 1116. Fax: (65) 261 1110.
Web site: www.tangdynasty.com.sg
Transport: MRT Lakeside (W11), then SBS bus 154 or 240.
Opening hours: 1000-1600 daily.
Admission: S$15.45 (concessions available).

Singapore Art Museum
: A beautifully restored school building, the Singapore Art Museum has 13 galleries showcasing an impressive collection of contemporary local and South East Asian art.

71 Bras Basah Road
Tel: (65) 332 3222. Fax: (65) 334 7919.
Web site: www.museum.org.sg/nhb
Transport: MRT Dhoby Ghaut (N1) or City Hall Station (C2), then short walk towards Bras Basah Road.
Opening hours: 0900-1730 Tues and Thurs-Sun, 0900-2100 Wed.
Admission: S$3 (concessions available).

Changi Prison Chapel & Museum
: The museum records the daily life of prisoners in photographs, paintings and sketches. It also features a pair of rail spikes from the infamous Burma railroad. Next to the museum is a replica of a chapel built by Allied prisoners-of-war during World War II.

Upper Changi Road North
Tel: (65) 543 0893. Fax: (65) 447 8405.
Transport: MRT (E9) Tanah Merah, then SBS bus 2.
Opening hours: 1000-1700 Mon-Sat.
Admission: Free.

Singapore Botanic Gardens: The gardens epitomise the tropical island's luxuriant parks with a combination of primary jungle and elegantly laid out flowerbeds and shrubs. Spread over 52 hectares (128 acres), the gardens hold over half a million species of plant life. The National Orchid Garden has the world's largest orchid display featuring over 20,000 orchids.

Cluny Road
Tel: (1800) 471 9943. Fax: (65) 475 4295.
Web site: www.nparks.gov.sg/sbg/
Transport: MRT to Orchard (N3) and then SBS bus 7, 105, 106, 123 or 174 from Orchard Boulevard.
Opening hours: 0500 to midnight daily.
Admission: Free.
National Orchid Garden: S$2 adults, S$1 children and seniors.



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