Visiting Singapore for the first time means exploring a city with a thousand facets. The iconic Marina Bay Sands Hotel with its surfboard-shaped roof and the Gardens by the Bay with its giant trees, alive day and night, are all on our minds. But Singapore is much more than the "Switzerland of Asia" and that's what we'll show you in this post of our travel blog simplelive.us following a 5 days and 4 nights stay in February 2020 by testing some of the visits and activities proposed in the online magazine of the airline company Air France we arrived with, Air France Travel Guide.
Singapore is the 4th largest financial center in the world and its batch of buildings in the city center obviously reminds us of this when we arrive in town. But this ultramodern city-state also has a cosmopolitan and multicultural side that totally seduced us when we visited the Chinese, Arab and Indian districts.
The different districts are like villages in the city that preserve the heritage and unique traditions of each culture. Staying in Singapore allows you to immerse yourself in a city-nation that has managed to preserve a large part of its ethnic and cultural diversity, and that deserves its nickname of "melting pot of Asia". A real surprise for us and for many travelers who often don't expect to find this kind of atmosphere in such a city where 1 in 6 inhabitants is a billionaire. And a single subway ticket is enough!
Also called the Garden City, Singapore is a green city. You should not miss Gardens by the Bay but also the Singapore Botanical Garden, another green lung of the city. A park is accessible within 400 meters of every home in Singapore! There is no lack of green buildings either. In short, contrary to what one might think at first sight, visiting Singapore is visiting a green and human city which is far from being limited to the skyscrapers of the business center.
A real tourist and commercial crossroads of South-East Asia, Singapore, which is located between Malaysia and Indonesia, welcomes many travelers in its sublime airport for more or less long stopovers. We had been part of it 5 years ago during a long stopover when we went on a trip to Bali in Indonesia that we love so much.
We had the time to visit the Marina Bay Sands and the Gardens by the Bay which attract tourists from all over the world like magnets. We had published an article on what to do in Singapore during a stopover. We do not regret to come this time to visit Singapore for a few days. The city-state is so rich and offers so many facets to discover. We can't wait to share our 10 favorites in this blog post. We also give you all the practical advice to visit Singapore in the best conditions.
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Let's move on to the practical tips for visiting Singapore for the first time before giving you our favorites in terms of activities, visits and unmissable attractions in the city-nation.
1. When and how to visit Singapore for the first time?
Here is the interactive map of Singapore to help you find your way. Indeed, Singapore became independent in 1965 and is composed of 64 islands on a surface of 719 km2. In 40 years, the surface of the country has increased by 25% by dint of nibbling on the sea!
The population of Singapore is composed of 76% Chinese, 15% Malaysian and 7% Indian. The remaining 2% represent the rest of the world including the French community which is very well established. Here, everyone speaks English but 4 languages are official.
Singapore is located not far from the Malaka Strait, between the Indian Ocean and the China Sea. As a result of this unique geographical location, the city is on one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world. And fortunately for the inhabitants because everything is imported here.
Singapore in brief. Here are all our tips and everything you need to know before coming to Singapore.
1.1 When to visit Singapore? The weather but not only!
Singapore has a hot and humid climate with 150 days of rain per year. All year round, temperatures range from 24 to 32 degrees.
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