If thinking of using your travel cover for Singapore, it’s a safe bet you will enjoy memorable travels. However, as noted on the UK government’s website, having travel cover in place is most advisable if visiting the ‘Lion City’. Why? Well, Singapore has an excellent healthcare system but it’s also a very expensive one.
Europesure worldwide travel cover, either single trip or annual can be your best travel buddy if you do fall ill or sustain an injury in Singapore. What travel cover can’t do, however, is get you out of a fix if you break one of the cultural rules. And this sovereign island city-state, which celebrated its 60th birthday on August 11, has plenty of those.
Travel cover won’t protect against a cultural faux pas
Packing your case and hand luggage takes some thought, if opting to use your travel cover for Singapore exploration. You cannot take any chewing gum into Singapore, or cigarettes or e-cigarettes. Any of these items found on you will be confiscated and you could face a tricky time explaining your faux pas.
Smoking is actually banned in all public parks, beaches and other areas, including the acclaimed Orchard Road, which is a No Smoking Zone. You have to be aged over 21 to use tobacco products but do not throw the butt of your cigarette on the floor. There is a strict anti-littering law in Singapore and you can receive an on-the-spot fine. Do not argue with the official levying it, either. It is illegal to disrespect or intimidate a public official.
Other cultural rules
There are also Liquor Control Zones, around areas such as the Malay settlement district of Geylang and Little India. This means no alcohol throughout the weekend, on public holidays and on the eve of public holidays. There is zero toleration for drunken and disorderly behaviour and also of vandalism of any kind, including graffiti. When it comes to drugs, use those and you could face the death penalty.
But on the plus side, all of this creates a very safe environment where, as long as you also avoid pointing your feet directly at any one, eating or drinking on public transport, or touching another person’s head, you should get on swimmingly.
When to visit Singapore with your Europesure travel cover
It’s usually best to avoid visiting between June and October, when land clearance fires in Indonesia can negatively impact Singapore’s air quality, creating a known ‘haze’. This is not good for those with respiratory and heart issues but also unpleasant for others.
At other times of year, it can be a joy to explore Singapore and that starts with its airport, Jewel Changi. This is home to the world’s tallest indoor waterfall, the Jewel Rain Vortex, down which water tumbles over a height equating to seven storeys. Light and music shows are all part of this amazing sight every evening and there are plenty of places to relax and enjoy the show. But this is not all to find. The airport is pretty much a visitor attraction in its own right, with plenty of other absorbing nature-inspired features.
Compelling cultural diversity
Singapore’s blend of cultures and religions is compelling, allowing you to be indulging in the colourful temples in Little India one minute and then hearing the beat of the drum that signals that the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple is nearby. Peranakan architecture in Katong-Joo Chiat, with its café culture, mingles with incredible modern architecture elsewhere. Meanwhile, reasons for Singapore’s other name – the Garden City – are evident all over Singapore, from the UNESCO World Heritage site of the Singapore Botanic Gardens, to Fort Canning Park and then the stunning Gardens by the Bay.
In the latter, the Cloud Forest with its huge indoor waterfall and lush mountain, and the Flower Dome will all get the camera clicking. Just don’t forget to grab the views from the Supertree Observatory and OCBC Skyway.
Other things to do in Singapore
If it’s views you want, then the 165m (540-foot-tall) Singapore Flyer offers wonderful vistas over Marina Bay – the spot where the famous Marina Bay Hotel sports its rooftop infinity pool. The incredible ArtScience Museum building at Marina Bay Sands is another stunning feature in its own right. You could also enjoy the vista from the highest pedestrian bridge in Singapore, the Henderson Waves Bridge at Telok Blangah Hill Park, and head to the trails in the hill parks at Southern Ridges for treetop walks and more city vistas and views of the Henderson Waves Bridge.
Hop on board a ferry from the mainland and you can soon reach Lazarus Island or St John’s Island, or head off for a spot of cycling, trail walking and kayaking on Pulau Ubin island.
Wildlife can be tracked down in the Singapore Zoo, where you can have breakfast with orangutans and macaws. If it’s nighttime wildlife adventure you want, simply head to the nearby Mandai Wildlife Reserve for a Night Safari by tram.
Covering off other highlights
With river cruises or hop on, hop off amphibious Singapore Duck tour rides, not to mention trishaws to get you around, you can explore to your heart’s content. Maybe you will end up at the National Gallery, Universal Studios Singapore or the Kranji War Cemetery, if honouring a loved one (do watch out for the wild boar if visiting). Perhaps you will be soaking up the rainbow hues of the historic Old Hall Street Police Station, or queuing for the Raffles Hotel Long Bar, for a Singapore Sling cocktail in the place it was invented in 1915. Deep pockets might be needed but sometimes these things need to be done!
Sentosa Island is another must-see, with its colossal statue of the Merlion – half lion and half fish. You can ride the Singapore Cable Car from Mount Faber Park, to arrive on the island in style! Once there, tootle around on the Sentosa Bus and Beach Shuttle or the Sentosa Express. If you want golden sands, head to the Tanjong Beach Club or Palawan beach.
Food and shopping exploration in Singapore
Food is a major part of any Singapore experience too, whether you are enjoying the most acclaimed street food of laksa, or sipping the Tarik – a special Singaporean black tea. Enjoy the culinary jumble you will find in the various hawker centres, where taste bud tingling food from various cultures is available all around and truly enticing. Don’t forget to make a bee line for the Museum of Ice Cream in the Dempsey neighbourhood, if you want to combine your love of ice cream with unique children’s play.
How to fit it all in might be the challenge, particularly if you are only on a shortish stopover, enroute to elsewhere. Making time to properly explore Singapore is probably a wise move. You certainly wouldn’t want to miss out on the dining, nightlife and shopping hub of Clarke Quay, or fail to have time to wander down Orchard Road, Singapore’s world-famous shopping district.
How to cover things off to have a great Singapore travel experience
It might be tropical, humid and a melting pot of cultures, but Singapore is compelling and must-see place to see, whether you call the UK home, are an expat, or are a European resident venturing long-haul. Just afford it the time it deserves, safeguard against disease in the advised way through pre-planned vaccinations, if necessary, and pack comprehensive Europesure travel cover.
