Insight Guides - Insight Guides Explore Singapore (Travel Guide eBook)

How To Use This E-Book

This Explore Guide has been produced by the editors of Insight Guides, whose books have set the standard for visual travel guides since 1970. With top-quality photography and authoritative recommendations, these guidebooks bring you the very best routes and itineraries in the worlds most exciting destinations.

Best Routes

The routes in this book provide something to suit all budgets, tastes and trip lengths. As well as covering the destinations many classic attractions, the itineraries track lesser-known sights, and there are also excursions for those who want to extend their visit outside the city. The routes embrace a range of interests, so whether you are an art fan, a gourmet, a history buff or have kids to entertain, you will find an option to suit.

We recommend reading the whole of a route before setting out. This should help you to familiarise yourself with it and enable you to plan where to stop for refreshments options are shown in the Food and Drink box at the end of each tour.

Introduction

The routes are set in context by this introductory section, giving an overview of the destination to set the scene, plus background information on food and drink, shopping and more, while a succinct history timeline highlights the key events over the centuries.

Directory

Also supporting the routes is a Directory chapter, with a clearly organised AZ of practical information, our pick of where to stay while you are there and select restaurant listings; these eateries complement the more low-key cafs and restaurants that feature within the routes and are intended to offer a wider choice for evening dining. Also included here are some nightlife listings, and our recommendations for books and films about the destination.

Getting around the e-book

In the Table of Contents and throughout this e-book you will see hyperlinked references. Just tap a hyperlink once to skip to the section you would like to read. Practical information and listings are also hyperlinked, so as long as you have an external connection to the internet, you can tap a link to go directly to the website for more information.

Maps

All key attractions and sights mentioned in the text are numbered and cross-referenced to high-quality maps. Wherever you see the reference [map] just tap this to go straight to the related map. You can also double-tap any map for a zoom view.

Images

Youll find hundreds of beautiful high-resolution images that capture the essence of the destination. Simply double-tap on an image to see it full-screen.

2018 Apa Digital (CH) AG and Apa Publications (UK) Ltd

Table of Contents

Recommended Routes For...

Architecture

Dont miss grand colonial-era buildings in the Civic District ().

Timothy Hursley/Marina Bay Sands

The arts

Take in a music or theatre performance at The Esplanade Theatres on the Bay ().

Getty Images

Foodies

Food-lovers wont be disappointed with the Singapore-style seafood in the East Coast ().

Singapore Tourism Board

Local culture

Explore the citys eclectic cultures in its ethnic neighbourhoods ().

Vincent Ng/Apa Publications

Nightlife

Flashy clubs at Clarke Quay ().

Singapore Tourism Board

Parks and gardens

Opt for a leisurely walk in Gardens by the Bay ().

iStock

Shopaholics

Mall-hop on Orchard Road ().

Vincent Ng/Apa Publications

Wildlife

The citys zoos and safaris boast naturalistic habitats with a focus on conservation. You should absolutely set aside a day for Singapore Zoo, River Safari and Night Safari ().

Singapore Tourism Board

Explore Singapore

The small city-island state of Singapore has achieved much and has even grander ambitions, but its most distinct joys are to be found in its warm, eclectic people, ethnic neighbourhoods, and the pleasure afforded by its food culture, shopping and nightlife.

For some, Singapore is merely a welcome stopover, with its top-rated airport making it the perfect gateway to Southeast Asia. For others, this tiny island, with its legendary cleanliness, widespread use of English and celebrated sights, shops, eateries and colourful ethnic neighbourhoods, is an appealing destination in its own right. Indeed, Singapore is an ideal introduction, in fact, to all of Asia in one fell swoop.

Chinatowns night market from above

Singapore Tourism Board

Development

In 1819, Englishman Thomas Stamford Raffles from the British East India Company recognised the potential of this tiny island. At the time, it was shrouded in jungle and swamp, occupied only by Orang Laut (Sea People), a few Malay families and some Chinese traders. Raffles ordered the land to be cleared, oversaw an ambitious construction campaign and brought labourers and merchants from China, India and all over Southeast Asia to set up a trading post. His free-trade policies soon created a thriving port town of around 10,000 residents. In short, Raffles can confidently be described as the founding father of modern-day Singapore: both his energy and foresight are embedded in the cultural DNA of this city-state.

The Raffles statue

Dreamstime

Modern-day Singapore

Singapore owes much of its success to the visionary leadership of visionary Lee Kuan Yew (19232015), the countrys first prime minister (from 1958 to 1990). Under the direction of Yew and his successors, Goh Chok Tong and Lee Hsien Loong, Singapore has continued to flourish as one of Southeast Asias brightest stars. The governments paternal approach has defused racial and labour disputes, whereas its public housing schemes have provided most citizens with their own homes. In turn, savvy economic policies have attracted foreign trade and investment.