Chinese Garden:

How to get there: Chinese Garden Station (East-West Line) – Walk out of the station for 5min. 

Tip: Climb up the 7 storey Pagoda to get a view of the entire garden and the neighbourhood and don’t miss the Bonsai Garden and the Garden of Abundance.

Note: the Japanese Garden is nearby, however, I did not get the time to visit. 

Henderson Wave Bridge:

How to get there: Telok Blangah (Circle Line) – Walk out of the station and stay on Henderson Road for 10min, in the direction of Telok Banglah hill park. Climb up the stairs on the right side of the road. At the top of the stairs, turn on your left for the bridge. 

My first reaction was that the bridge is a lot shorter than it appears on the pictures. I now understand why this place is not on top of the list of tourist destinations. Especially after the climb to reach the top. The view is not that great either, you can get the same view from other places.

Mount Faber:

How to get there: Leave the Henderson Wave Bridge and turn on your left in the direction of HarbourFront station. You will reach Mount Faber after a 10min walk. 

Get a Mocktail (I recommend the Wild Berries) from the Arbora restaurant and enjoy the view of cable cars going to and coming from Sentosa. The view is worth the price. 

If you have the time, take a cable car from Mount Faber to Sentosa. I heard the trip is worth it. 

The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands:

How to get there: Bayfront station (Central Line) – From Mount Faber walk down to Harbourfront station to take the Central Line. The ride lasts close to 1 hour. 

This is probably one of the biggest malls in the world and if you are into shopping then you will be served. Prices seem to be on the high end though, so I hope your wallet can take it.

To do: there is a waterway on the ground floor of the mall and you can take a little boat to cross it. 

Step out of the mall to see the Art and Science Museum, the Helix bridge and it is a 10min walk from the Garden by the Bay. 

Ramadan Sultan Bazaar 2019 (Ramadan period only):

How to get there: Bugis Station (Downtown Line) – Walk for about 5min to Arab Street in Kampong Glam and stop at the Ramadan Sultan Bazaar from some local cuisine (try the Lemang) and take a seat on one of the benches in the Malay Heritage Center. 

Golden Tower Tower:

How to get there: There might be a train that goes here, however, I walked from my hotel on Arab Street. According to Google Map, it’s an 8min walk and it’s more or less accurate. 

Get the bus from here to Kuala Lumpur. The different buses are Billion Stars, StarMart, etc. The ride lasts less than 6 hours and it will cost anywhere around $15 to $20 US and you can buy them on the spot or using an app like EasyBook.com. Note: tickets are non-refundable and cannot be exchanged either. 

Tips:

• I took the 12:30 am trip to Kuala Lumpur thinking that I would have time to sleep on the bus and arrive around 7 am. However, this was not the case. You will have to go immigration at both the Singaporean and Malaysian borders and depending on the driver, you might not really get any sleep. We arrived in Kuala Lumpur at 5 am and my hotel booking was only from 3 pm that day, so I ended up paying a walk-in rate for the just 3 to 4 hours of sleep. So my recommendation is to get an early morning bus instead unless you already have a hotel room booked. You might not be able to sleep on the bus. 
• Do not buy a return ticket if you are coming back to Singapore. My original return ticket cost me around $US21. However, I ended up not using it and bought a new one while in Kuala Lumpur for $15 I think. 

Must see places that I did not get the chance to see:

• Jurong Bird Bark: There was no direct train to the park (not that I knew of) and according to the reviews, it would take a whole day to really get the full experience. 
• Sentosa: It started raining and half of the day was already gone. 

Botanic Garden:

How to get there: Botanic Garden station (Downtown Line) – the station is right at the entrance of the garden. 

The garden is rather large so you are more likely to need a whole afternoon to make the most of the experience. 

Clarke Quay:

How to get there: Clarke Quay station (North East Line)

Set out of the Clarke Quay Central to take some pictures of the Old Hill Street Police station and enjoy the nightlife (probably the best in Singapore), with all the bars and nightclubs around the quay. 

Singapore Zam Zam (Kampong Glam):

How to get there: Bugis Station (Downtown Line) – Walk from the station to Arab Street, continue in the direction of the Malay Heritage Center, the restaurant will be on your left at the red light. 

Singapore Zam Zam is famous for their Murtabaks, a kind of meat pancake. They usually recommend the lamb. 

Kampong Glam: 

How to get there: Bugis Station (Downtown Line) – my hotel was located here. 

Kampong Glam is mostly a Muslim-Malay neighbourhood with beautiful shops on Arab Street. One of the most must-see sites is the Masjid Sultan mosque and the Malay Heritage Center (closed on Mondays). During the Ramadan period, there is a bazaar at the entrance of the mosque where you can find local foods and souvenirs. 

Little India:

How to get there: Little India station (North East Line) – Walk from Arab Street to Weld road, in direction of Little India. 

Take 10 to 15 minutes to visit the Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple, the House of Tan Teng Niah. 

I did not go to the Little India Arcade but if you are into shopping, stop by. 

Chinatown:

How to get there: Chinatown station (North-East line) – Take the metro at the Little Indian station, near the House of Tan Teng Niah.

Stop by the little shops on both sides of the street as you step out the Chinatown station. A good place for nice bargains (Do not settle for the first price you are given, I bought a camera filter for $20 Singaporean instead of the $40 proposed)! 

You can visit the China Heritage Center (not free) on Pagoda Street, the Sri Mariamman Temple on South Bridge Road. Stop by the Chinatown Street Food market to enjoy the local Chinese cuisine. End your visit of Chinatown with the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple. One of the most beautiful Buddhist temples in the world and the story is that Buddha’s tooth is kept in the temple, thus the name. 

Raffles Place:

How to get there: Raffles Place station (East-West Line / North-South Line) – Take the North-East line from Chinatown station to Outram Park, exchanged for East-West line to Raffles Place. Get out of the station toward One Raffle Place. Walk down to Singapore river, the view is amazing for taking pictures. 

Walk alongside the quay on your left for the little seafood restaurants by the river. A good place to eat a crab (gigantic ones) or enjoy a beer and the view. Walk up to Elgin bridge to see the Parliament, the National Gallery, Victoria Theatre, and the Mirror Balls. 

Walk alongside Queen Elizabeth Walk and take a 5min break to admire the view.

Esplanade / Merlion Park / Promenade:

How to get there: Keep walking along Queen Elizabeth Walk until you reach the Esplanade on your right. 

One of the best views of Singapore is from the Esplanade. The right place to take pictures of the Marina Bay Sands Luxury Hotel, the Art Science Museum, the business district, the Merlion etc.

Cross the Esplanade Bridge to the Merlion Park.

Cross the Esplanade Bridge, take a walk on the Promenade. Buy one of the world-famous Coconut Ice Cream and take a few minutes to try one the local cuisine at the Makansutra Gluttons Bay, a large outdoor court with Asian eats. 

Gardens by the Bay:

How to get there: Walk from the Promenade, past the Formula One race course, and go up the Helix Bridge. At the end of the bridge, turn left for the Gardens by the Bay. 

One of the most visited places in Singapore. Unfortunately, I did not spend much time here. But the Gardens by the Bay is essential for a complete Singapore experience. 

Marina Skypark:

How to get there: Walk back from Gardens by the Bay in direction of the Marina Skypark. 

The entrance fee is $28 Singaporean dollars but the view is worth the price. One of the best places to take amazing pictures of Singapore, especially if you have great lenses. 

Wait for the 7:45 pm light show in the Gardens by the Bay and the 8 pm one near the ArtScience Museum.  

Ramadan Sultan Bazaar 2019 (Ramadan period only):

How to get there: Bugis Station (Downtown Line) – Walk up to Arab Street, in direction of the Masjid Sultan mosque. 

During the Ramadan, the best and cheapest place to try the local cuisine (Malay, Chinese and Indian). Try the Takoyakis, Sweetcorn and Peanut butter pancake, etc.