A traveler's guide to Singapore
Eat at hawker centers more than once. The fancy skyline is pleasant and it is not why this city is famous among people who care about food.
Singapore is hot, green, and obsessively edible. The hawker center is the civic institution. The skyline and the gardens are the easy afternoon. Stay for chili crab or a plate of noodles that costs less than the taxi and tastes like the whole point.
When to go
It is warm all year. February to April is slightly less wet. Afternoon storms are normal. The haze season, when it happens, is worth checking. December holidays fill the bay hotels.
Neighborhoods
The bay and Marina for the postcard hour. Chinatown, Kampong Glam, and Little India for street scale. Tiong Bahru for cafes and architecture. Sentosa is a resort day. The better meal is almost never there.
Eating
Chicken rice, laksa, chili crab with the messy bib, and a breakfast kopi. Hawker food is the cuisine. Air-conditioned food courts in malls can be excellent too. Follow the queue that is mostly not carrying shopping bags.
If you only remember this
- The MRT is clean, cheap, and the way.
- Laws on litter, gum, and the metro are enforced.
- Afternoon rain is brief and heavy.
- Book chili crab if you want a famous room. The dish exists elsewhere too.