Style: July 06, 2018

24 STYLE | travel
- 10 SINGAPORE FACTS -
SINGAPORE AIRLINES
-
STOPOVER PACKAGE
-
An easy way to make the most of your time on the ground
is with a package that opens the door to more than 20 deals
– from attractions and transport to food. We used it to help
guide us as to where we went and what we did. Available to
travellers on the airline, packages include accommodation (ours
was the highly commendable Concorde Hotel on Orchard
Road) and complimentary use of the SIA Hop-on Bus.
NEXT TIME…
Despite our best efforts, three days on the ground didn’t
seem to be quite enough time to get to all that Singapore has
to offer. Here’s our list for next time:
• Raffles – is not your 2018 destination. The legendary hotel
is currently closed for restoration, set to reopen at the
end of the year. If you truly can’t leave the island without
that ‘Singapore Sling’, they’re being served at the nearby
pop-up Long Bar (next to the gift shop).
• Bugis Street Market. Souvenir city, yet less touristy than
Chinatown.
• Boon Tat Street. Known also as ‘Satay Street’, this place
comes alive between 7pm and 2am, for all the satay you
can imagine.
• 1-Altitude Bar. We could see this prime location from
atop Marina Bay Sands. It’s the highest al-fresco bar, sitting
at 282m above the ground. We would have loved to have
tried a Zen Breeze – vodka, green tea, lemongrass
and mint.
• Atlas Bar. The glitz and glamour of the Great Gatsby
has been recreated in Singapore’s Parkview Square
building. Complete with waitstaff decked out in white
dinner jackets, it’s decadent in style and servings.
• Tamarind Hill. It’s Thai food served up in an atmosphere
on chill. We’ve been told it’s one of the city’s best-kept
secrets.
1. You’ll need an umbrella. Yes, it’s warm, but a
downpour can happen at any stage.
2. Taxis are cheap. Travel between 9.30am and
5.30pm and you’ll be pleasantly surprised by the
final flag fall.
3. Shopping isn’t cheaper. Unless you’re there for
The Great Singapore Sale (June 8–12 August this
year), the annual event that sees discounts of
up to 70 per cent, you’re not in bargain city for
mainstream goods.
4. Shops don’t open until at least 10am. Good for
those who like to sleep in!
5. Shopping can continue until 10pm! Yes, the
flipside to a late start is a late finish.
6. Typically, those on motorbikes late at night
are people coming over the bridge from
Malaysia to work night shifts. (Singapore has been
an independent state since only 1965.)
7. Lunchtime is at lunch time. We Kiwis are used
to eating as and when hunger strikes, but in
Singapore, many of the restaurants won’t open
their doors until 11am for a true lunch service.
8. Hawker centres are clean, safe and authentic.
You’ll find many equipped with a couple of
outdoor basins to wash your hands before
getting stuck into those satay chicken skewers
and chicken wings.
9. There are two ‘Merlions’ in Singapore. One
spouts water into Marina Bay, while the other is
a 37m tower on Sentosa Island that offers yet
another viewpoint.
10. Personal vehicles are discouraged. The traffic is
lighter in the central city because there are tolls in
place for those coming into it.
- HOW TO GET THERE -
For direct flights from Christchurch – without
even a stop in Auckland – it’s Singapore Airlines
or bust. From January 8, 2019, this route will be
travelled with the A350, a next generation aircraft
with all the trimmings (see page 75 for more).