05 October 2023

Singapore is the perfect stopover location for flying to Asia and Australasia. I spent 3 days there in July with three teenagers on my way to Bali. I had been there before, but in the past had caught up with friends so hadn’t explored much of the city itself. We stayed at the Hard Rock Hotel on Sentosa Island , so we were close to Universal theme park and the water park as this would be a fun place for the kids and somewhere to escape the humidity which always seems worse when you are a little jet lagged. The hotel was big and very busy at breakfast as all the families were up early to get the day going. There was a good choice of food and plenty of staff to keep things moving. The location was perfect and has great access to the city by the monorail and the MRT. Singapore is a very safe , clean city and easy to explore by public transport. The highlight of our trip was the Gardens by the Bay. We managed to navigate the MRT and work out how to pay for tickets , and only took one wrong train. Its better if you can by card to tap in and out, so make sure each of your party has a card they can use. Gardens by the Bay has its own MRT station so we departed there are walked through the park to the large domes. We had pre-bought tickets for Avatar exhibition online which meant we didn’t have to queue. Inside the domes they are spectacular, with a huge array of giant plants and incredible waterfalls. You can go up the inside of the structure and view from different levels and angles. My very hard to please teenagers were very enthused by it all. The Avatar exhibition meant there were alien like life forms dotted around the plants. Once you exit the domes you can see the giant ‘triffids , the famous plant like structures that are lit up at dusk in a spectacular fashion. We timed it perfectly arriving just as the sun was setting. There is a light show with music you can watch from the ground. We made the mistake of going to the top of one of the plant towers while the light show was on, as its actually better to view from below. The view from the top of the city it amazing though so it was worth the 20 minute queue. Finally as dusk had settled and the lights of the city were twinkling in the distance we had an incredible view of the famous Marina Bay Sands Hotel and its iconic three pillar building. It’s a great view of the city and the teens were loving the instgramable moments. We made our way back to Sentosa via the very swanky shopping centre at the bottom of the hotel , I have never seen so many designer brands in one place – even in Dubai or London. The food court also amazing with a huge choice of different Asian cuisines. Its busy and hard to find table but you can pick from many different outlets try lots of different tastes all one place. This is my 3rd time stopping in Singapore and it is a firm stopover favourite with so much to see and do , we’ve only just scratched the surface.