Day trips from Singapore

Singapore is very well connected to every place in Southeast Asia. It is so efficient and simple, you can make use of every hour you have on your travel plan to hop on to various day trips out of Singapore, be it to Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand or Cambodia

See the map of Singapore places of interest here

Sentosa island

Sentosa appears on everyone’s itinerary. If you head to Sentosa early in morning, there is so much to do along the beaches, on the nature trails. It is quite bigger than we expect, but there are always shuttle buses to get you back to transportation points back to city. Earlier Sentosa used to be isolated and used to take even a day to go around, now with new public transport options from Harbourfront, it is even good for your early morning run. It is definitely a place to be in, if you just cover all the beaches and nature trails without visiting any advertised outfits or restaurants in Sentosa Island. Please look for the new attraction on Sentosa, the "Casino"

MacRitchie Reservoir

MacRItchie is one of the best places in Singapore to witness the Rain forest and tropical side of Singapore. This is a great nature park, for walking, running, trails, and even just for picnics

MacRitchie is one of the biggest reservoir in Singapore, and offers amazing panoramic views and is a great place for nature lovers. They have well marked trails starting with 1-3 km to even up to 13km. One of the trails also offers Tree Top Walk, walking on a suspension bridge

Sungai Buloh wetland reserve

Sungai Buloh gives a taste of mangroves in South East Asia. It has a long boardwalk, good flora and fauna, home on the way to migratory birds, it is a quite place when you have lots of time on hand as it is quite away from the city (even in small city like Singapore)

Singapore botanic gardens

Situated very close to Orchard road, Singapore Botanic Garden is a great place to start your day. Tall trees, birds singing, nice scenery around lakes, many of the Singapore Heritage trees, aroma around the ginger gardens, groups practicing Yoga, newly wed couples posing for snaps next to the waterfall, other couples having romantic breakfast, and countless number of amateur photographers trying to catch the dew drops on tropical trees & orchids, there is everything you can wish on a beautiful morning

Singapore Little India and China Town

Little India is actually like mini India in Singapore. Home to Mustafa Singapore (biggest Indian shopping mall in Singapore), some of the old Hindu temples, festivals & traditions, great north & south Indian restaurants. This place gives you nice taste of Indian spices on Singaporean land

China town in Singapore is where you can find the Chinese souvenirs, authentic Chinese food, old Chinese houses. It is very nice around Lunar new year !

Singapore Zoo & Night Safari

Singapore Zoo is a feast for zoo lovers, it is for adults as much as for kids. It is almost like a picnic place, you can spend a day or more going around every animal exhibit. There are animal shows and also feeding times, every one them is worth it

Singapore Night Safari, is different to the Zoo. It has its own land, set of nocturnal animals and themes. And it keeps renovating itself all the time to remain relevant even to Singaporean visitors, who usually have a yearly family pass. The show in the Night Safari is very good, not to be missed

Singapore Jurong Bird Park, is a great place for bird lovers, for photographers, and picnic lovers. It is quite green and hosts some of the nice birds around the world including the "horn bills" from Sarawak, which are difficult to find these days even in their natural habitat

Pulao Ubin

In Malay, Pulau means island and ubin means Granite. Ubin pulau takes its name from the old granite quarries there. It is a village like place, long mountain biking trails going up & down. You need to take a ferry from Changi Jetty to reach to Pulau Ubin. This is a perfect place to hide for a day with a big group of friends, all on bikes and almost all island prepared for you. There is only local food available, but you get such a nice reception every time you visit there

See the map of Malaysia attractions here

Johor Bahru

This is probably similar to Singapore in terms of land mass, but totally different to life style. Though it improves every day, tries to attract new investments, it is quite different to Singapore. Johor Bahru has good buildings from colonial era, very good shopping options, and many of the best seafood places near Singapore. It is also home to Senai Airport, from where you can take Air Asia to many places in Asia

Tioman island

This is probably the best place to visit out of Singapore. It is a small island, hosting some of the great corals in region. It is also great place in the region for snorkeling, even better than places like Bali & Phuket, as the corals are really in shallow water. Other than the rainy season (Oct-Feb period), it is a great place to visit

Mallaca (Melaka)

Strait of Malacca has lot of importance in shipping world, but Mallaca today is really a laidback town with great historic significance. It has main town square, called "Stadthuys", is where most of the action is, also historic fort, cathedral, museums, and the famous night market of Jonker Street.

Kuala Lumpur (KL), capital of Malaysia, has a lot to offer. Petronas Twin towers are a great place to stay and walk around, it is a great icon, telling the world "Malaysia has arrived". In KL, you can get south Indian food at every corner of the city and at probably lower prices than it is available in Chennai these days. There are museums, nature parks and lot of electronics shopping to be done

You can also travel to nearby Batu caves (limestone caves), hosting Indian temple, which can be reached by climbing 272 stairs

Genting highlands have cool climate all year round. It has casino, theme park, nature treks, good food, it is worth a visit

Langkawi, is an island resort. You can fly there directly from Singapore. It has lots of beach activity, diving & snorkeling along with jungle trekking. It has not been popular like the Phuket or Krabi, but it is definitely as good as rest in the region

Desaru beach

Another weekend destination away by a boat ride from Singapore. More of a family place, and holiday activities along with beach and some short nature walks

See the map of Indonesia attractions here

Bintan

Coming to Singapore, you really miss quality natural beaches, you can make up for that by visiting Bintan in Indonesia. Bintan is a short boat ride away from Singapore. You take a ferry from Tanah Marah Ferry Terminal and reach Bintan in less than an hour. Bintan is a nice weekend destination, good resorts, recreation options. It has many day tours for nature lovers to explore the rain forests and river rides

Jakarta

Capital of Jakarta, is a great place to visit, it has great beaches, museums, Islamic architecture, lots of things to shop like the carvings, paintings, batiks. It also offers great food options

Bali

Probably the best holiday place in Asia. Bali has everything for everybody. It has beaches, temples, jungles, villages, hanging gardens, shopping, food, night life, active sports. Bali is a great place for art lovers, showing you great display of carvings on stone, bones, paintings, metal work, furniture, lamps, leather and so on

Yogyakarta

Yogyakarta is located in Java and can be reached via direct flight from Singapore. It is home to famous temples of Borobudur and cultural heritage. There are lot of beaches nearby from Yogyakarta, nice scenery and all

See the map of Thailand attractions here

Bangkok

Almost like the shopping capital of Asia, Bangkok is very modern, young, and is also another hub-like place to connect to anywhere in the world. Bangkok is good place for every type of shopping, you can experience the Thai food to its best, experience some of the best massage & spa services, amazing night-life, entertain yourself to great local crafts, performances

Phuket

Phuket is one of the best places in Asia to have your holiday. It is commercial, it is a big beach resort, it has every type of accommodation in the world. Though you can find private & quiet beaches, it is more about enjoying with big crowds, particularly on new year eve.

Krabi

This is like the untold secret of Thailand. It is an hour's drive from Phuket, but totally kept aside. It has amazing islands and views, if offers good rock climbing, great food and accommodation

Hua Hin

This quiet town, couple of hours from Bangkok, is a beach resort. It is a place to meditate, get away from the crowds and enjoy your "self" once more

See the map of Cambodia attractions here

Phnom penh, capital of Cambodia, is also a place to see French colonial architecture and historic beauty

From Singapore you can also fly to Siem Reap, which hosts the Angkor Wat. Angkor Wat, built in the Khmer era, is great place to see majestic Hindu temple architecture

See the map of Vietnam attractions here

Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC city)

If you want to get a quick feel & account of Vietnam war, you need to visit the Cuchi tunnels, about an hour drive from Ho Chi Minh City. HCMC is also called Saigon as it was called during the Vietnam war. HCMC is like a connecting hub to great tourist attractions in Vietnam like Dalat, Nha Trang beaches, Mekong Delta tours (going up to Cambodia)

Hanoi

Hanoi, capital of Vietnam, is also gateway to Halong bay (World Heritage Centre), Sapah (famous trekking place north of Vietnam)

See the map of Philippines attractions here

Singapore to Manila

Tagalog speaking filipino capital is good place for shopping. It is gateway to nice beaches in Philippines like boracay & palawan. Manila has most authentic Spanish food in Asia

Singapore to Cebu

Cebu is second biggest city in Philippines and is sort of a beach resort. It has some great accommodation options, beaches, old fort, churches & architecture, nature parks. It is also home to great diving place Moalboal. Cebu is also an hour away from Bohol, home to famous Chocolate hills

Looks like there is lot of choice of place to go from Singapore. Here are my favorites

• If you like beaches, go to Bintan or Langkawi
• If you like quiet & histroric place, go over to Malacca
• If you are after theme parks & gambling, go to Genting Highlands (but Singapore has them too)
• If you are after shopping, head to Bangkok
• If you are have more than a day, then explore Bali or Krabi. You can keep Phuket for next time around
• Another good idea is to go on a cruise, which can be from 1 day to 3-4 days, covering nice places like Phuket, Langkawi (and originating from Singapore)