Singapore was the first stop this time around on our Asian adventures, and let me tell you, it was awesome! Singapore is clean, orderly, and ultra modern. It may be more expensive than your average Asian country, but there are also firm driving laws + rules against littering that make it one of the cleanest and quietest big cities we have ever been to (not just in Asia, but in the world).

We spent a week exploring Singapore, and here are our top recommendations:

1.Take the MRT

Standing for Mass Rapid Travel, the MRT is one of the most efficient public transit systems we’ve ever taken. The trains are consistent + speedy, and they always show up on time. As an added bonus, there is no eating or drinking allowed on the trains, so they are SUPER clean.

On one of our first rides, we looked around us, only to realize that there was no litter anywhere AND it didn’t smell bad. For anyone who has been on the London, NYC or Paris subway systems, you know how badly they can smell. Singapore is not like that at all, making riding the MRT a pretty pleasant experience. So get out and explore the city using the affordable MRT system!

2.Eat at one of the many food courts in the city

Food can be pretty expensive in Singapore, but the best way to save money on your food (and to eat local delicacies) is to check out one of the many food courts in the city. We enjoyed chicken rice, fruit juices, Indian curries, Thai green curry and more at Maxwell’s Food Centre, Telak Ayer, and the Tekka Centre.

3. Explore the Gardens by the Bay

The Gardens by the Bay is located behind the Marina Bay Sands hotel and is free to enter (there is an extra charge to go into the flower pavilions). You can explore this reclaimed green space for hours, taking in the plants, trees and flowers; however, the highlight for us was seeing the supertrees. Only in Singapore do you find trees that collect rain water for hydro-power + have solar panels on top of them!

4. Take a visit to the top of the Marina Bay Sands

The Marina Bay Sands hotel is a well known tourist destination, and it lived up to our expectations. We were dreaming of taking a dip in the infinity pool located at the top, but unfortunately that is for hotel guests only, and we can’t quite afford to stay at the MBS (yet!).

If you want to take a trip to the top of the MBS to check out the view of the bay, the Gardens by the Bay and the unreal Singapore skyline, you have a couple of options:

You can pay to go up to the viewing deck at the top of the hotel. It costs $24 Singapore dollars per person, and you can stay up there as long as you want. We went to the top, and enjoyed checking out the view from all sides of the viewing platform. The only downside to this was that there wasn’t anywhere to sit + we didn’t get a very good view of the infinity pool. Ideally, we would have loved to sit and soak up the view for a while to get our full $24 worth.

Upon arriving back down in the lobby of the hotel, we saw a separate option to go up to the 57th floor (where the viewing deck is) for free, with access to the lounge. The only catch is that you have to buy a drink. We wanted to sit and take in the view, so we decided to check out this option. The lounge is beautiful, the view of the infinity pool is unreal, and there is a decent amount of seating available. Food + drinks are not really affordable, but they are comparable with the price to get up to the viewing deck. It’s approximately $15 for a beer + $24 for a cocktail.

We ended up doing both of the above options and blowing our budget out of the water for the day (the views are worth it!), but we would suggest just choosing one option and saving a bit of money.

5. Walk around in the Botanical Gardens

The botanical gardens are located a little more north of the city center, but are easily reachable by the MRT. Everything but the Orchid Pavilion is free, and you can walk for hours, taking in the flowers, trees, lakes + overall beautiful green space. Singapore isn’t really a big, loud city that needs escaping from, but it is always nice to take a moment to enjoy the peace and quiet of nature. The botanical gardens are the perfect place to do that!

The Orchid Pavilion only costs $5 to enter, and it is worth the extra cost. There are phenomenal orchid arrangements, rare orchids from around the world, and beautiful displays set up for your viewing pleasure. I know very little about orchids (flowers in general) and I really enjoyed it!

6. Watch the sunset at the Bay

Singapore was mostly overcast while we were there, but we did get one beautiful night where the cloud cover was sparse and we were able to watch an unreal sunset at the by. We chose to watch the sunset where we had a view of the MBS and we were able to see the sun reflect off the building, lighting it up to a gold color. We stayed until the sun had completely set and watched as the building changed colors as the sun set. It really is beautiful all times of the day, but it was pretty spectacular to see the sun reflect off of it!

From there, we made our way around the Bay to check out the Singapore skyline at night. The Singapore skyline is easily one of the most modern + magnificent skylines we’ve ever seen.

7. Eat Indian in Little India

Singapore is made up of three primary cultures: Malay, Chinese + Indian. Make your way up to Little India (also easily accessible on the MRT), and get a taste for the Indian side of Singapore.

As we stepped out of the MRT station, we expected something to change… it to be louder, smellier, more India like. But it wasn’t. The streets were, however, bustling with Indian people selling common foods, spices, and products, the attire had changed, and the language was different.

We made our way to an Indian restaurant that we had read was good called Komala Villas Vegetarian Restaurant. We had massive portions of the most delicious Indian food for only $9. If vegetarian isn’t your thing, there are a ton of other great options lining the streets!

8. Explore the shops at Marina Bay Sands

Did we mention that there is also a luxury mall attached to the MBS hotel? This place really has it all. Most of the shops were not in our budget, but it was fun to window shop and take in the sights and sounds of this beautiful mall.

One of the highlights here was stepping foot in the floating Louis Vuitton shop that is located in front of the mall in the bay itself.

9. Get re-acquainted with your favorite things from home

Singapore has everything from nice movie theaters, to all kinds of western restaurants, to lululemon, to Universal Studios, to an array of hipster coffee shops (see below). Whatever it is that you are craving from home, you can probably find in Singapore. As much as travel is about the adventure + the thrill of taking in new sights and sounds different from the culture you grew up in, there is nothing quite like getting a salad + a soy latte that tastes exactly like home and isn’t going to make you sick!

10. Hang out at great coffee shops in the city

While in Singapore, we went on a hunt for Singapore’s best hipster coffee shop, and there are a ton! Here are a couple of our favorites:

The Daily Roundup – great latte + amazing buckwheat crepes

The Bravery Cafe – great wifi + unreal lavendar latte. Oh, and the avocado smash + eggs on toast is pretty delicious!

My Awesome Cafe – we enjoyed a salad + a green juice. Nothing like a taste of home after living off rice for a while!

The Company of Cats – maybe not the best place to work, but definitely a fun place to check out, especially if you’ve never been to a cat cafe before (we hadn’t!).

If you have any questions about our time in Singapore, please don’t hesitate to reach out + if you have any other suggestions that didn’t make the list, please let us know!