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.
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| 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.
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| 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.
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.
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| 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
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