Whether you live here or are just visiting, Singapore is a notoriously expensive city. For anyone planning a trip to Singapore, here are some free activities to build into your itinerary, and they’ll likely give you a different perspective of the Lion City.
MacRitchie Reservoir Treetop Walk
MacRitchie Reservoir Park is itself a lovely place to visit – think manicured lawns, pagodas and boardwalks over the water. But the Treetop Walk gives you a glimpse of Singapore pre urbanisation, when the island was mostly jungle.
It’s a 3km round trip, but you have to walk through the park to get there which is another 2km each way (Venus Drive entrance shortens this somewhat), so it is not for the faint hearted, especially in the Singapore heat. But it is so worth it and, as well as the local flora and fauna, you are likely to see some local wildlife up close, including wild monkeys and maybe even a flying squirrel, as we were lucky enough to see on our last trip. If you look really close, you’ll see the baby flying squirrel too.
The nearest MRT station for the main park entrance is Caldecott, on the Circle and Thomson-East Coast Line. For the Venus Drive entrance, head to Upper Thomson MRT Station on the Thomson-East Coast Line.
Concerts in the Gardens
There are regular, free, open-air concerts held on the Shaw Foundation Symphony Stage at Singapore Botanic Gardens, which is also free to enter. It’s a stunning setting, with the stage sitting at the centre of a lake of Lilly pads, surrounded by rolling lawns. It’s worth a visit even if your trip dates don’t line up with a free concert.
Take a picnic blanket and let the kids run around on the grass while you soak up the atmosphere. You can get there easily on the Circle or Downtown MRT lines.
You can tie in the concert with a walk around Singapore Botanic Gardens. Expect tropical garden vistas, rainforest and boardwalks, accompanied by a cacophony of cicadas and the occasional wandering monitor lizard.
There is also a free, nature themed park for kids – the Jacob Ballas Children’s Garden, designed to encourage a love of nature, with interactive play equipment in a woodland area. There’s even a free water play area to cool off after trekking around the gardens.
National Gallery
Singapore’s National Gallery is in an imposing old municipal building close to City Hall MRT Station (East-West and North-South Lines). General admission to the permanent galleries is free for Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents, but admission to the Keppel Centre for Art Education, housed within the National Gallery, is completely free for all.
The Centre is designed to foster a love of art in children, and it houses a number of interactive zones where children can play and take part in creative activities. I recently took my two for the umpteenth time and the current activities included an interactive forest fire brush zone, colour play corridors, a peace forest with woodblock drawing, a Lightbox room for abstract creations, an expression workshop using sticker designs to represent feelings and the makers studio where they could use 3D pens to create simple designs.
It’s a lovely space, perfect for a morning escaping the heat or rain, and works for a variety of ages.
Labrador Nature Reserve Boardwalk
There is a really enjoyable, relatively short, boardwalk and trail in Labrador Nature Reserve that gives you a glimpse of Singapore’s different habitats. It is pushchair and wheelchair friendly and only 2.1km, so even little legs can handle it (with some help).
It takes you on a trail through mudflats, mangroves and coastal forest to an elevated coastal boardwalk that connects to the promenade at Reflections at Keppel Bay. You can expect to see marine life, many different bird species and views of Keppel Harbour and Sentosa Island.
It’s easy to reach, with Labrador Park MRT Station on the Circle Line, and it shows an unexpected side of Singapore that we really love.
Sentosa Island Beaches
Singapore isn’t exactly known for its beaches, though there are many. Maybe that’s because they tend to come with a view of hundreds of tankers. But what can you do, Singapore does have the second largest port in Asia.
However, there are some beautiful beaches none the less. Palawan beach is a typical tropical beach with golden sand, turquoise water and palm trees. There is also a rope bridge over the water to a small island at the Southernmost Point of Continental Asia. The Palawan Food Trucks is also a great, casual place to grab a bite to eat, with choices from around the world that will satisfy everyone.
Siloso Beach is lively, with a lot of atmosphere and you can access the Fort Siloso Skywalk, which is also free. The Skywalk is 11 storeys high and features a glass floor section. It offers great views of Siloso Fort and the beach, as well as Mount Faber and Keppel Harbour.
Tanjong Beach is the quietest of the three, with calm, clear waters. If you are looking to get away from the crowds, this is a great option. Think sunbathing, swimming and relaxing.
To get to Sentosa’s beaches, the nearest MRT Station is Harbourfront on the Circle or North-East Line. You can then walk to VivoCity (a large mall connected to the station) and take the Sentosa Express, the Beach Shuttle or the Sentosa Boardwalk.
Happy Exploring!
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