The heritage buildings and heritage institutions of Singapore.

1. Bugis Village - Restored shophouses along Rochor Road.
2. Capitol Building - Historic building that was one of the first air-conditioned theatres in Singapore.
3. Central Fire Station - Oldest existing fire station in Singapore.
4. Changi Murals - Murals depicting Biblical themes created by World War II prisoner-of-war at        Changi Prison.
5. CHIJMES - The former Church of the Holy Infant Jesus Middle Education School, today an entertainment centre.
6. Chinatown Heritage Centre
7. Chinese Heritage Centre
8. City Hall- Imposing structure on St Andrew's Road.
9. Civil Defence Heritage Gallery
10. Clifford Pier- Historic pier next to Collyer Quay in the Financial District of downtown Singapore.
11. Cupolas of Fort Canning- Historic structures built by George Coleman at Fort Canning.
12. Eu Yan Sang- Chinese medical hall in Chinatown.
13. Fort Canning- British fort on the small hill in southeastern Singapore.
14. Fort Canning Archaeological Excavation Site
15. Fort Canning Centre- Former British army barracks now used for performing arts.
16. Fort Canning Lighthouse- Lighthouse on Fort Canning Hill, first lit in 1903.
17. Fort Siloso- Defense fortress on Sentosa Island.
18. Fort Pasir Panjang- Also called Labrador Battery, one of the 11 coastal artillery forts built by the British.
19. Gates of Fort Canning- Entrance to Fort Canning.
20. Heritage Conservation Centre
21. Hotel 1929- Boutique hotel housed in an elegant row of townhouses along Keong Saik Road.
22. House of Tan Yeok Nee- One of the four grand mansions of 19th century Singapore.
23. Jinricksha Station- Former depot for rickshas in Singapore.
24. Lau Pa Sat- Former wet market in the Financial District of downtown Singapore.
25. Macdonald House- Historic building on Orchard Road.
26. Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Hall- Family service centre named after the father of modern India.
27. Malay Heritage Centre- Malay cultural centre housed in the former Istana Kampong Glam, the old sultan's palace.
28. MICA Building- The old Hill Street police station, now a arts centre.
29. National Archives of Singapore
30. New Majestic Hotel- Row of 1928 townhouses turned into a boutique hotel.
31. Old Supreme Court Building- One of the most handsome buildings in Singapore.
32. Police Heritage Centre
33. Raffles Hotel- One of the most famous hotels in the Orient.
34. Reflections at Bukit Chandu
35. Sally Port, Fort Canning- Hidden doorway at Fort Canning.
36. SCCCI Building- Building that blends the Oriental with the Western architectural styles.
37. Sculpture Square- Centre for contemporary three-dimensional art, housed in the former Middle Road Methodist Church building.
38. St James Power Station- The first coal-fired power station now refurbished as a nightlife entertainment venue.
39. Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall
40. Teochew Cultural Centre
41. The Fullerton Hotel- Luxury hotel housed in the former Singapore General Post Office building.
42. The Majestic- Historic theatre building along Eu Tong Sen Street in Chinatown.

Source http://www.asiaexplorers.com

China Town

Singapore's Chinatown is the traditional Chinese quarters of town, and while the entire city is largely Chinese these days the area does retain some of its own charm. The area is also known as Niu Che Shui  in Chinese and Kreta Ayer in Malay, both names meaning "bullock cart water", a reference to the carts that used to haul in drinking water. 

The area between Pagoda Street and Smith Street has been tarted up considerably for tourists, but workaday Chinatown continues south and east, merging seamlessly into the Central Business District. Tanjong Pagar is the unofficial home of Singapore's gay community, with many watering holes in restored shophouses, while Club Street caters more to the expat and yuppie crowd with small, intimate eateries offering excellent (if pricy) Western fare.

Unlike most of predominantly Hokkien Singapore, the dominant Chinese dialect in Chinatown is Cantonese.

The Budha Tooth Relic Temple

The Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum is a Buddhist temple and museum complex located in the Chinatown district of Singapore. "The temple is based on the Tang dynasty architectural style and built to house the tooth relic of the historical Buddha. The ground breaking ceremony was conducted on 13 March 2005. Costing S$62 million and 2 years later, a soft launch was held to coincide with the 2007 Vesak Day celebration." It is claimed that the relic of Buddha from which it gains its name was found in 1980 in a collapsed stupa in Myanmar.

Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum Inside.

 

The Sri Mariamman Temple is Singapore's oldest Hindu temple. It is an agamic temple, built in the Dravidian style. Located at No. 244 South Bridge Road, in the downtown Chinatown district, the temple serves mainly South Indian Tamil Hindu Singaporeans in the city-state. Due to its architectural and historical significance, the temple has been gazetted a National Monument and is a major tourist attraction. Sri Mariamman Temple is managed by the Hindu Endowments Board

Pagoda Street (Chinese: bao ta jie)is a street located in Chinatown within the Outram Planning Area in Singapore. The road links New Bridge Road and South Bridge Road, but has since been converted to a pedestrian mall with the construction of an entrance to Chinatown MRT Station at its New Bridge Road end.

The colourful past of Chinatown comes alive within the walls of these three beautifully-restored shophouses along Pagoda Street, comfortably nestled in the midst of Singapore's bustling Chinatown district. Every nook and cranny in the Chinatown Heritage Centre pulsates with the memories of yesteryear, offering an experience like no other, as one is transported to Chinatown in the budding years of Singapore's establishment as a seaport.

How to Get there:

BY MRT
China Town MRT Exit A and C. Exit A  will lead you to the more touristy area where you will visit places such as Chinatown Heritage Centre, and rows of tourist souvenir shops and restaurants serving Seafood and other local Chinese food.

Outram Park MRT , Tanjong Pagar  and Raffles Place are also all within walking distance, as is Clarke Quay and the Singapore River to the north. 


To try authentic local food, go to Jalan Besar Town Chinatown Complex which is a short 3 minutes walk from Exit A. Go to the second floor hawker centre. They serve wonderful local Chinese food from Cantonese to Hokkien and fusion styles at very reasonable prices. For more information of Chinatown Complex, click here...


Exit C will lead you to the places where the locals go to. Besides hawker food stalls and retail shops, there are Chinese Medical Clinics. If you are looking for inexpensive Chinese Tailoring, go to People's Park Complex

BY BUS 

South Bridge Road, opposite Sri Marimman Temple:
166, 197

New Bridge Road, at New Bridge Centre:
2, 12, 33, 54, 63, 124, 143, 147, 147A, CT18, CT8

Upper Cross Street, opposite Hong Lim Complex:
51, 63, 124, 174, 174e, 186

The Old Supreme Court Building

View of the Old Supreme Court Building from the Padang-Source www.asiaexplores.com

The Old Supreme Court Building is one of the most handsome buildings in Singapore. It is located along Saint Andrew's Road, Singapore 178957, just beside the equally historic City Hall building.

Front façade of the Old Supreme Court Building with its grand staircase and elegant corinthian colonnade of composite columns- Source www.asiaexplores.com

The Old Supreme Court Building is the former courthouse of the Supreme Court of Singapore, before it moved out of the building and commenced operations in the new building on 20 June 2005. The building was the last Classical architecture building to be built on the former British colony. Built in front of the historical Padang grounds between 1937 and 1939, it was designed by Frank Dorrington Ward of the Public Works Department, and was his last and most significant work. The building is planned to become an arts and cultural centre in future, with plans to refurbish the building.

Close-up of the pediment with the tympanum sculpture, and the dome-Source www.asiaexplores.com

Explanation of the figures on the tympanum.

Architecture and design

The Old Singapore Supreme Court building was designed by Frank Dorrington Ward of the Public Works Department, and was his last and most significant piece of work. It was constructed by United Engineers. The former courthouse features Corinthian columns, classical design, and spacious interiors with murals by the Italian artists. The four-storey steel structure was erected by United Engineers. The building consists of four blocks surrounding a central courtyard which houses the circular law library with its significant dome and Travertine columns supporting two balconies on two levels. Behind the main dome, there is a smaller dome. The pediment sculpture (an allegory of Justice) and the Corinthian columns which characterised the Supreme Court are works by Italian sculptor Cavaliere Rudolfo Nolli.[1] Nolli also carried works for the general building, pre-cast works, imitation stone, sculptures, artistic decorations, special plastering and bush-hammered facing works.

Dome of the old Supreme Court Building at night - Source Wikipedia

Orchard Road

Orchard Road is the main shopping street of Singapore.

Orchard Road is Singapore's answer to Paris' Champs-Elysées and New York's Fifth Avenue. It is forever work in progress as the drilling and building activities have not stopped especially in the last 20 years , the latest additions in 2009 are three new (but not necessary best) malls at the super prime locations of Orchard Road: ION Orchard (Orchard Road MRT), Orchard Central and 313 @ Somerset (both at Somerset MRT).

Almost all the branded goods can be found in Orchard Road. Previously most branded boutiques are at Ngee Ann City, with the opening of ION Orchard, some boutiques has moved to ION or have another branch in this new shopping mall.

Get in
The MRT stations of Orchard, Somerset, Dhoby Ghaut and City Hall on the North-South Line follow the alignment of Orchard Rd. Change to the North-East Line at Dhoby Ghaut or the East-West Line at City Hall.

Singapore Visitors Centre

Get around
Orchard Rd is walkable, at least allowing plenty of breaks in air-conditioned shopping centers. You can no longer cross the central Orchard/Scotts intersection on foot: instead, take the air-conditioned underground walkway system that links Orchard MRT/Ion Orchard to Wisma Atria, Ngee Ann City and Lucky Plaza (east), to CK Tang/Marriott (north), and to Shaw House and Wheelock Place (west)

Mall in Orchard Road:

    Far East Plaza, 14 Scotts Road. Frequented mostly by teenagers, this mall is a bargain hunter's paradise slowly creeping upmarket. Not bad for unique clothes and accessories at reasonable prices. 

    Wheelock Place, 501 Orchard Road (Orchard MRT). Notable primarily for the giant Borders bookstore on the ground level, there's also a smallish Marks & Spencer department store buried in the basement and a pretty good selection of restaurants.  

    ION Orchard, 2 Orchard Turn (Orchard MRT). Opened 2009, this is the largest new shopping mall on Orchard in years, extending four floors both above and under ground. While the spacey, pulsating, neon-lit facade is dominated by high-street flagships for Louis Vuitton and co, the interior has plenty of more affordable options including Japanese retailers Uniqlo and Muji. The fourth floor has the ION Art gallery, while the basement 4 Food Opera food court, while a bit pricey by Singapore standards, is enormous and very popular. Located on levels 55 and 56, at 218 metres, ION Sky offers a 360-degree view from the highest point on Orchard Road. It houses an observatory and contemporary restaurant Salt grill, helmed by Australian chef Luke Mangan.

ION Orchard

    CK Tangs, 320 Orchard Road (Orchard MRT). Singapore's very own old-school department store.
    Wisma Atria, 435 Orchard Road. Designer boutiques and international brands populate this architecturally fascinating mall.

     Ngee Ann City is by far the biggest mall along Orchard Road while CK Tang is probably the only oldest large retailer in Orchard that still surviving despite the challenges post by new malls that has been sprouting over the years. Want a taste of local food at fast food price, a unique experience is to take an escalator to the fourth floor of Wisma Atria's Food Republic Foodcourt in a unique setting and delicious local fares.

 

Ngee Ann City

 

    Lucky Plaza, 304 Orchard Road. Most visitors end up in Lucky Plaza thanks to the dubious street-level camera and electronics stores, which are legendary for ripoffs and poor customer service, and are best avoided unless you really know your stuff. However, there's more to the mall than that: cheap souvenirs (2nd floor), low cost salons that offer most services such as manicures, pedicures, facials, waxing and hair services (fourth floor), off-season designer perfumes and cosmetics (most floors) and a cheap and surprisingly good food court in the basement. Lucky Plaza is also the favorite hangout spot for the Filipino community and gets packed on weekends.  

    Paragon, 290 Orchard Rd (opp Takashimaya). Long one of Singapore's flashiest malls, packed with Prada, Gucci and other luxury brands, although ION has stolen some of its thunder.

    The Heeren, 260 Orchard Rd. Trendy youth clothing  

    Orchard Central, 181 Orchard Rd. Modern, soaring twelve-story mall with a funky series of outdoor escalators and nice views from the terraces. Floors 7 and above are devoted to food, with restaurants including Korean barbeque masters Nolboo and Japanese set meal specialist Ootoya. The mall also houses the world's tallest indoor Via Ferrata climbing wall, a collection of public art installations by acclaimed international artists and a 24/7-operational Roof Garden.  

    313@Somerset, 313 Orchard Road (Somerset MRT). 313@somerset is directly linked to the Somerset MRT station and features a concentration of mid-range retail and dining outlets. Retail options include local and global fashion labels including Zara, Uniqlo, New Look, Esprit and a Forever 21 flagship spanning 4 floors. There are also some popular dining options including a cluster of restaurants and lounges such as Brotzeit German Bier Bar & Restaurant, Kamado Japanese Wood Fire, Central Hong Kong Café, Flying Chillies and Trattoria Cuccina Italiana on Level 1.  

    Plaza Singapura, 68 Orchard Road (Dhoby Ghaut MRT). Singapore's oldest air-conditioned shopping mall, located just above the MRT interchange and recently given a thorough facelift. Huge Carrefour multilevel hypermarket, numerous eating options and a large cinema complex on the top floors

Marina Bay Sands Casino

With the same developers behind the world's most popular casino destination, known as the "city that never sleeps", the Marina Bay Sands Casino promises to offer you world-class offerings, similar to that of what you'd find in Las Vegas.

The whole project priced at US 5.5 billion, it is one of the most expensive in the region. However the size of the casino is not even 3% of the total size of the whole development. If one would wonder if Marina Bay Sands Singapore is just another casino, well that is so wrong! The concept of the whole Marina Bay Sands Singapore is similar to the Las Vegas Sands, a hotel casino resort. It’s more to a resort than just gambling alone.

Marina Bay Casino prides itself on being Asia's most spectacular destination for business, leisure and entertainment. In our casino, smart casual wear is required and we would appreciate if patrons are appropriately attired. For all of our guests, beach wear including flip flops, slippers, casual short pants and sleeveless shirts are not allowed.

 

Opening Hours: 24 hours
Location: Marina Bay Sands is located at 10 Bayfront Avenue, along the Marina Bay Waterfront, in the heart of Singapore, only 10 minutes from Changi International Airport.
Tel: +65 6688 8868

Merlion Park.

The Merlion Park in Singapore is a popular tourist attraction and took its place among the famous landmarks of great cities of the world.

It is originally located at the Esplanade Bridge, about 20meters from its current location and was shifted in 2002. It is now adjacent to One Fullerton.

The Merlion, is Singapore’s tourism icon, is a creature with a lion’s head and the body of a fish. The "Singa" or lion represents the animal that a Sumatran prince saw which resembled a lion, and the fish is a tribute to Singapore's history as "Temasek", the ancient sea town.

The statue was completed in 1972, and measures 8.6 metres (26 feet) high and weighs 40 tonnes!

Visitors can take photos of the Merlion on its viewing deck. The viewing deck can hold up to 300 people. The area also comprises a promontory with terraced seating, as well as a boat landing point that allows visitors to disembark from river taxis.

Today, more than one million visitors come here to witness the awesomeness of the Merlion every year!.

Have you visited Merlion Park before, if you have we would love to hear your great memories of your visit, and we will then share with our readers!

The Merlion Park is home to the half-lion, half-fish sculpture which is a national icon. Officially installed on 15 September 1972, the Merlion statue, situated at the mouth of the Singapore River, is a favorite among photographers and tourists.

How to get there: Take the MRT, get off at Raffles Place station. Exit towards United Overseas Bank (UOB) Plaza (refer to the map in the station for more details). From the middle of the plaza, you'll see Fullerton Hotel. Merlion Park is immediately behind it. Or by Bus 167 or 182 from Orchard Road.

A group usually take a picture in Merlion Park like this.

Raffles Hotel Singapore.

Raffles Hotel  is a colonial-style hotel in Singapore, and one of the world's most famous hotels. Opened in 1899, it was named after Singapore's founder Sir Stamford Raffles. Managed by Raffles International, it is known for its luxurious accommodation and superb restaurants. The hotel houses a tropical garden courtyard, museum and Victorian-style theater.

Raffles Hotel is one of Singapore's most graceful landmarks.  More legend than hotel, this luxury Singapore hotel celebrates a tradition of unwavering service excellence spanning more than 120 years.

Immortalized in the novels of Somerset Maugham and Rudyard Kipling, Raffles Hotel, Singapore’s colonial-styled architecture and lush tropical gardens exude an atmosphere of timeless elegance. 

Unique Quality: according to it's own website, it was voted as:

'Best Luxury Hotel', 20th Annual TTG Travel Awards, 2009

'Top 500 World’s Best Hotels', Travel + Leisure, 2009

'Condé Nast Traveler Gold List', Condé Nast Traveler, 2009

'Top 100 World's Best Hotels', World's Best Awards,Travel + Leisure, 2008

'Best Hotels And Resorts', DestinAsian Readers' Choice Awards, 2008

'Best Hotel- International Awards', Singapore Tatler, 2008

'Luxury Hotels: The World's Ultimate City Escapes', Robb's Report, 2008

‘Best Luxury Hotel’, 18th Annual TTG Travel Awards, 2007

‘Best Boutique Hotel in Asia-Pacific’, Business Traveller Asia-Pacific Magazine (HK), 2007

#40 in the ‘'Top 100 World's Best Hotels', World's Best Awards, Travel + Leisure, 2007

'Best Hotel in Asia', The Daily Telegraph's UltraTravel Awards, 2007

'Best Luxury Hotel', 17th Annual TTG Travel Awards, 2006

'Ultimate Address for the Luxury Traveller', Robb Report Luxury Hotels, 2006

'Top 100 World's Best Hotels', World's Best Awards,Travel + Leisure, 2006

'World's Best Places to Stay',Condé Nast Traveler (US) Gold List, 1995-2006

Living Room Raffles Hotel

 Lobby Hotel

Raffles Hotel Singapore
1 Beach Road
Singapore 189673
Tel: +65 6337 1886
Fax: +65 6339 7650