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Jewel Changi Airport, Singapore

Solo travel · Singapore

Solo travel in Singapore

How to enjoy Singapore at your own pace.

Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team

Photo: LN9267, CC BY-SA 4.0

Quick answer

Singapore is easy for solo travellers: hawker centres make eating alone normal and inexpensive, the MRT is simple, and English is spoken everywhere. Many solo travellers base themselves in Chinatown.

Key facts

Base
Chinatown
Getting around
Metro
Emergency number
999 (police), 995 (ambulance and fire)
Language
English, Mandarin, Malay and Tamil

Solo travel tips

  • Sit at a shared hawker table and order from several stalls; it is the most economical way to try many dishes.
  • Capsule hotels and hostels in Chinatown, Little India and Bugis keep accommodation costs down.
  • Free guided walks and museum tours are a good way to meet people.
  • Hike the Southern Ridges or MacRitchie in daylight, carrying water and telling someone your route.
  • Download Grab for late nights once the MRT has stopped.

Where to stay

$$ · Best for first-timers, food lovers, budget, culture and solo travellers

Chinatown

Chinatown mixes the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and the Hindu Sri Mariamman Temple with shophouse streets, the Chinatown Complex hawker centre and Maxwell Food Centre. Its southern edge around Keong Saik Road, Club Street and Ann Siang Hill has boutique hotels, cocktail bars and restaurants, and the MRT reaches Marina Bay in a few stops.

Good
Excellent hawker food on every block; Wide range of hotel prices; Central, with three MRT lines
Watch out
Souvenir stalls on Pagoda Street are touristy; Some budget rooms are windowless
Nearby
Buddha Tooth Relic Temple, Maxwell Food Centre, Ann Siang Hill, Tanjong Pagar

Great on your own

Merlion Park and the Marina Bay promenade, Singapore
Photo: Bjørn Christian Tørrissen, CC BY-SA 3.0

Waterfront · Marina Bay

Merlion Park and the Marina Bay promenade

Walk the loop at dusk when it is cooler, timing your arrival at the Event Plaza for a Spectra show.

Time needed
1–2 hours
Cost
Free
  • Iconic
  • Free
  • After dark
  • Views
  • Photo spot
  • Kids
Singapore Botanic Gardens, Singapore
Photo: Velela, Public domain

Garden · Tanglin

Singapore Botanic Gardens

Come at 7–8am with the joggers, when it is cool and the swans and terrapins on Swan Lake are most active.

Time needed
2–3 hours
Cost
Free
  • Free
  • Nature
  • Kids
  • Outdoors
  • Couples
  • History
Buddha Tooth Relic Temple, Singapore
Photo: Chainwit., CC BY 4.0

Religious site · Chinatown

Buddha Tooth Relic Temple

Cover shoulders and knees (shawls are provided), then cross to Maxwell Food Centre for lunch.

Time needed
1 hour
Cost
Free
  • Free
  • History
  • Architecture
  • Rainy day
Kampong Glam and Sultan Mosque, Singapore
Photo: Robert Sim, CC BY-SA 4.0

Neighbourhood · Kampong Glam

Kampong Glam and Sultan Mosque

Visitors can enter the mosque outside prayer times; robes are lent at the door.

Time needed
2–3 hours
Cost
Free
  • Free
  • History
  • Shopping
  • Food
  • Architecture
National Gallery Singapore, Singapore
Photo: Basile Morin, CC BY-SA 4.0

Gallery · Civic District

National Gallery Singapore

Even without a gallery ticket, head to the rooftop for the view over the Padang and the bay.

Time needed
2–3 hours
Cost
Mid-priced
  • Art
  • Rainy day
  • Architecture
  • Views

Meeting people

  • Hawker centre crawl — Share several plates at one centre — Maxwell or Chinatown Complex for Chinese classics, Tekka for Indian and Malay, Lau Pa Sat for satay in the evening — ordering from multiple stalls to the same table.
  • Seafood night on the East Coast — East Coast Seafood Centre faces the sea along East Coast Park; order chilli and black pepper crab with mantou and cereal prawns, and go with a group to share.
  • Clarke Quay — Neon riverside bars and clubs in restored warehouses, busiest on Friday and Saturday nights.
  • Ann Siang Hill, Club Street and Keong Saik Road — Cocktail bars, wine bars and restaurants in restored shophouses on the southern edge of Chinatown.

Sensible precautions

Street crime against visitors is uncommon, but laws are strict and fines are enforced for littering, smoking in non-designated areas and other offences. The main hazards are heat, sudden lightning storms and dehydration on long walks.

Emergency number
999 (police), 995 (ambulance and fire)
Staying connected
Free Wi-Fi is widespread in malls, Changi Airport and public buildings; eSIMs and prepaid SIMs from local operators are easy to buy at the airport.

Questions travellers ask

+Is Singapore good for solo travellers?

Singapore is easy for solo travellers: hawker centres make eating alone normal and inexpensive, the MRT is simple, and English is spoken everywhere.

+Where should solo travellers stay in Singapore?

Chinatown: Restored shophouses, temples, Maxwell Food Centre and Keong Saik bars.