Singapore (Chinese: 新加坡 Xīnjiāpō; Malay: Singapura; Tamil: சிங்கப்பூர் Chingappur) is a city-state in Southeast Asia. Modern Singapore was founded as a British trading colony in 1819, and since independence, it has become one of the world's most prosperous countries and boasts one of the world's busiest ports. Singaporean food is legendary, with bustling hawker centres and 24-hour coffee shops offering affordable food from all parts of Asia.
Photos: Wikimedia Commons contributors.
Sometimes referred to as the Little Red Dot (originally coined as a pejorative by the former Indonesian president B. J. Habibie) or the Lion City (a literal translation of the original Sanskrit name), Singapore is a small country on a small island with six million people. It is a fairly crowded city and in fact, it is second only to Monaco as the world's most densely populated country. However, Singapore has over 50% of its area covered in greenery and with over 50 major parks and 4 nature reserves, it is an enchanting garden city.
Singapore is a microcosm of Asia, populated by Chinese, Malays, Indians and a large group of workers and expatriates from all around the globe, in a country that can be crossed in barely an hour. Having celebrated its 50th birthday in 2015, Singapore has more often than not chosen economic pragmatism over social concerns, encouraging constant reuse and redevelopment of land with huge projects like the Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World Sentosa integrated resorts as well as becoming a significant Asian financial hub, but there has also been a growing push-back to preserve local heritage in Balestier and elsewhere; just one of the many decisions to balance for the country's future. The firs…
Getting around Singapore is easy: the public transport network is extremely easy to use, affordable, and covers populated areas extensively. Furthermore, taxis/rideshares are reasonably priced and easy to hail via apps. CityMapper, Google Maps, and Apple Maps are all capable of figuring out the fastest route by rail and bus and even estimating taxi/rideshare fares between any two points. Fares are charged based on distance and mode of transport. The easiest way to pay for all public transport is to use a contactless Visa, Mastercard or American Express, which you can use to tap in to and out of any train or bus, including the Sentosa Express.
Sights in Singapore are covered in more detail under the various districts. Broadly speaking: Beaches and tourist resorts: Head to one of the three beaches on Sentosa or its southern islands. Other beaches can be found on the East Coast. Culture and cuisine: See Chinatown for Chinese treats, Little India for Indian flavours, Geylang Serai for a Malay experience or the East Coast for Eurasian and Peranakan culture and delicious seafood, including the famous chilli and black pepper crab. History and museums: The Bras Basah area east of Orchard and north of the Singapore River is Singapore's colonial core, with historical buildings and museums.
While you can find a place to practice nearly any sport in Singapore — golfing, surfing, scuba diving, even ice skating and snow skiing — due to the country's small size your options are rather limited and prices are relatively high. For watersports in particular, the busy shipping lanes and sheer population pressure mean that the sea around Singapore is murky, and most locals head up to Pulau Tioman, Sibu Island (Malaysia) or Bintan (Indonesia) instead.
Singapore is a melting pot of cuisines from around the world, and many Singaporeans are obsessive gourmands who love to makan ("eat" in Malay). You will find quality Chinese, Malay, Indian, Japanese, Korean, Thai, Italian, French, British, American and other food in this city-state. Eating habits run the gamut, but most foods are eaten by fork and spoon: push and cut with the fork in the left hand, and eat with the spoon in the right. Noodles and Chinese dishes typically come with chopsticks, while Malay and Indian food can be eaten by hand, but nobody will blink an eye if you ask for a fork and spoon instead.
Singapore's nightlife isn't quite a match for Patpong, but it's no slouch either: some clubs have 24 hr licences and few places close before 3AM. Singapore's nightlife is largely concentrated along the three quays — Boat, Clarke and Robertson — of the Riverside, with the clubs of Sentosa giving party animals even more reason to dance the night away and the casino on Marina Bay also entering the fray. Any artists touring Asia are pretty much guaranteed to stop in Singapore, with superclub Zouk (Clarke Quay) in particular regularly clocking high on lists of the world's best nightclubs and Marquee at Marina Bay Sands drawing big names.
Singapore is one of the safest major cities in the world by virtually any measure. Most people, including female travellers, will not face any problems walking along the streets alone at night. But as the local police say, "low crime does not mean no crime" — beware of pickpockets in crowded areas and don't forget your common sense entirely. The Singapore Police Force is responsible for law enforcement throughout the country, and you can recognise police officers by their distinctive dark blue uniforms. Police officers are required to carry their warrant cards while on duty, and are required to present it when performing their duties out of uniform (e.g.
Guide content from Wikivoyage contributors (CC BY-SA) — abridged; the full article has much more.
Top-rated tours and tickets from €52 — book ahead for the popular ones.
Tours and tickets provided by Viator (a Tripadvisor company). Some links earn Stayonomy a commission.
In Jul, Singapore typically sees ~31°C daytime highs and 25 rainy days.
Cheapest destinations travellers searched recently — refreshed daily.
Flight prices are real fares travellers found in the last 48 hours, refreshed daily — the booking site confirms the final price. Train, bus and ferry fares are shown on the operators' booking sites. Weather data by Open-Meteo; exchange rates: ECB reference. Data updated 2026-07-23. Some links earn Stayonomy a commission at no cost to you.
stayonomy