City tours

Combined tours

East-West Executive Travelers PTE Ltd is an association of tour operators based in Australia and offers a range of unusual and interesting tours in Singapore. For visitors who are not only interested in exploring outside but also within the city, half-hour tours through downtown Singapore are offered, which are followed by tarot, aura or reiki therapy. You can also take a seven-hour island tour, including a lunch boat ride in Changi Village, that starts and ends at 8:30 a.m. in the surrounding suburbs. If you are willing to dig deeper into your pocket, you can also do this tour with an overnight stay at the Raffles Hotel.

Tel: (+61) (02) 99 97 80 10 (East-West Executive Travelers PTE Ltd)
Website: http://www.singapore.travelmall.com

Tram and bus tours

The Singapore trolley is an imitation of the red trams from the 1920s and leads on a commented, one-hour tour to 17 locations between Orchard Road, the colonial district and Clarke Quay. A tour with a river boat is included in the price; there are six round trips per day (at 09.45, 10.45, 12.45, 13.45, 15.00 and 16.00) Meeting point: Clarke Quay.

Holiday Tours & Travel offers a three and a half hour city tour every day at 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. The Singapore by Night tour by the same operator also lasts three and a half hours and begins with dinner at Boat Quay, followed by a drive through the central business district, where you can see the fantastic nightly skyline. Afterwards, go shopping at the night market in the Bugis district. The tour ends with a Singapore Sling cocktail at the Raffles Hotel. Departures daily at 6.30 p.m.

Phone: (65) 63 39 68 33 (Singapore Trolley); (65) 67 34 70 91 (Holiday Tours & Travel)

Tours

The Singapore Tourism Board produces free city maps that allow you to explore specific areas, such as Singapore River, Chinatown and Little India, on foot in one hour. You can get these plans from the tourist information office or on the Internet.

Singapore Sightseeing Tour East offers a longer tour of Little India from 10:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. On this tour, visitors are also given an insight into flower binding, the production of the perfect curry and spice mixture and the secrets of Ayurvedic medicine.

Phone: (65) 63 32 37 55 (Singapore Sightseeing Tour East)
Website: http://www.newasia-singapore.com (free city maps)

Trips

Riau Islands

The Indonesian islands of Batam and Bintan, with their luxurious hotel complexes, golf courses, beaches, duty-free shops and delicious fish and seafood, are popular destinations and are practically on the doorstep. Ferries depart daily from the World Trade Center (WTC) and Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal (TM). Major companies include Auto Batam Ferries ; Channel Holidays ; Bintan Resort Ferries and Dino Shipping.
Phone: (65) 271 48 66 (Auto Batam Ferries) and (65) 270 22 28 (Channel Holidays) and (65) 542 43 69 (Bintan Resort Ferries) and (65) 273 82 13 (Dino Shipping)

Malacca

This island can be reached from Singapore in three to four hours by car and was the seat of the Malay Sultanate in the fifteenth century. This island was later colonized by the Portuguese, Dutch and British who tried to control this region and the profitable spice trade. Although the island appears very inconspicuous and calm today, it is nevertheless of historical importance: the Malay folk hero Hang Tuah lived here and St. Francis Xavier preached on St Paul’s Hill. RMG Tours offers daily excursions (departure 8.30 a.m.), lunch is included in the price (discounts available).

Pulau Ubin

This boomerang-shaped island with only 200 inhabitants is also known as ‘Steinberg’ because of its high granite deposits and is a popular destination. Thatched roof huts, rubber plantations, mangrove swamps and kelongs, traditional fishermen’s huts, show what life was like in Singapore. Fish restaurants offer traditional food with prawns, crabs and lobsters in black pepper, which is served with the local tiger beer. The boat ride from the pier at Changi Point takes 10 minutes, but visitors can also rent the whole boat. There are regular ferry connections between 6 a.m. and 11 p.m.

Johor Bahru

Singaporeans very often go to Johor Bahru – also known as JB – to buy groceries, play golf or enjoy the beaches. It is right on the other side of the dam and could be reached in less than an hour under normal conditions, but since it is extremely popular, the trip can take three hours or more due to heavy traffic and a train ride from the Singapore train station itself prove to be a better travel option. The architecture on Johor Bahru is a mixture of historical and modern buildings, the most striking is the Royal Bakar Mosque, whose graceful domes and minarets overlook the Johor Strait.