Singapore Skyline
A Brief History Of Singapore
Singapore, the second smallest country in Asia, is located off the southern point of the Malay Peninsular in South East Asia 86 miles (138 kilometres) north of the Equator. Strategically situated at the natural intersecting point of sea routes, Singapore lies just off the south-most tip of the Malay Peninsula. Singapore and the Malay Peninsula are linked by a 1 kilometre bridge crossing the narrow Johor Straits. The city-state of Singapore in Southeast Asia consists of the island of Singapore and about 54 smaller islands with a total area of 720 sq km (278 sq miles).
Singapore was named by Sang Nila Utama, a Sumatran Prince, who joined two Sanskirt words ‘Simha’ (lion) and ‘Pura’ (city) to arrive at the name ‘Singapura’.
Modern Singapore was founded in 1819 by Sir Stamford Raffles who made an agreement with local rulers giving dominion of Singapura to the British East India Company. The new trading post grew quickly. Europeans, Chinese, Indians and Malays arrived to live and work. By the early 20th century the population had risen to about 220,000. In 1924, a causeway opened linking the northern part of Singapore to Johor Bahru.
In World War II Singapore’s rise came to an abrupt halt when the island was forced to unconditionally surrender to the Japanese in 1942. Three and a half years later Japan capitulated and the British re-occupied Singapore.
In 1958 the British Parliament passed legislation to raise the status of Singapore from a British colony to a sovereign state. The following year Singapore ran its first ever elections for a government.
Today many pieces of Singapore’s colonial, wartime and multi-cultural past are preserved all around the city. The tourist can take a walk back through time along a heritage trail such as the Jubilee walk, the World War 2 trail or the Singapore River walk visiting important monuments, quays and bridges.
Cruise Ship Itineraries
Thailand cruises and Malaysia cruises are the two most popular routes for cruise ships leaving from Singapore. Enjoyable shore excursions on offer from ports-of-call include the amazingly preserved buildings of Penang’s old city, the superb Batu Caves (from Klang), the towering Grand Palace of Bangkok and the fine sand and blue seas of Patong beach in Phuket.
Singapore’s Cruise Ports
Singapore has two cruise centres, the Singapore Cruise Centre at the Sentosa-HarbourFront precinct constructed in 1991 and the newer Marina Bay Cruise Centre at Marina South constructed in 2012.
Singapore Cruise Centre
Singapore Cruise Centre
The Singapore Cruise Centre cruise terminal provides state-of-the-art management of up to 4000 passengers on two base porting ships. Passengers may enjoy a range of amenities at the centre including an information counter, food and beverage options, left baggage services and free Wi-Fi. The cruise terminal can cater for for two cruise ships, with one quay 1020ft long, 38ft deep and the other 890ft long, 36ft deep. Parking can be found at the adjacent HarbourFront Centre multi-storey car park at a cost of about S$40 per day.
Marina Bay Cruise Centre
Marina Bay Cruise Center
The cruise centre was designed to hand up to 8000 passengers on two large cruise ships, and boasts large departure and arrival halls as well as a sizeable lower level transportation area with coach area, taxi bays and bus stop. You’ll find a spacious waiting area, along with restrooms, a foreign exchange desk, an information point, a stylish cafe-bar and luggage porters. The terminal possesses two berths each 1180ft long with a draft of 38ft. The Centre has its own car park, with cruise parking availabe at a cost of around S$25 per day. If you’re taking a late flight after your cruise you can take advantage of the CruiseFly service. You are able to check-in and drop your bags for your flight at the cruise centre allowing you a luggage free day sightseeing in the city.
Traveling to the Cruise Ports
The easiest way to travel from Singapore Changi Airport to either of the cruise terminals is via taxi. The fare is approximately S$35.
Sightseeing Near the Cruise Ports
Merlion
Merlion Park
To really ‘do’ Singapore you have to see the impressive Merlion statue in Merlion Park. From the park there’s a fantastic panoramic view of Marina Bay Sands across the water and the towering skyscrapers of the city centre looking inland. From Merlion Park you can take a river cruise and enjoy other famous sights along the Singapore River such as the Singapore Flyer, Boat Quay and Parliament House.
National Gallery Singapore
National Gallery Singapore
Costing over $500 million, taking 10 years and finished in 2015, the refurbishment of the City Hall and Supreme Court buildings created the impressive National Gallery Singapore. Reflecting Singapore’s unique heritage and geographical location, the Gallery presents Singapore and Southeast Asian artworks spread across a capacious 64000 square metres.
ArtScience Museum
ArtScience Museum
The ArtScience Museum is in a stunning building with an appearance resembling the welcoming hands of Singapore. The fixed exhibition at ArtScience is ‘Future World: Where Art Meets Science’, here the visitor is immersed in a 1,500-square-metre digital universe of art installations revolving around the themes of Park, Town, Science and Nature.
Raffles Bar
The Long Bar Raffles Hotel
Raffles Hotel, immortalized by writing heavyweights like Somerset Maugham, Ernest Hemingway and Joseph Conrad, is a colonial-style luxury hotel established by the Sarkies Brothers, Armenian hoteliers, in 1887. Home of the Singapore Sling, the 2 storied Long Bar found on the second floor of the hotel is where to go to enjoy this heavenly cocktail.
Gardens by the Bay
Gardens By The Bay
Opened in 2012 Gardens by the Bay is a masterpiece of horticulture and garden creativity that displays plants in a truly imaginative way.
A short distance away from busy traffic and overwhelming skyscrapers, the Gardens give a soothing space to admire lush vegetation from across the globe and the Cloud Forest, the Flower Dome and the Supertrees show plants in a way never seen before.
Go in the evening and you can see a wonderful lightshow as the Supertrees come alive with lights powered by solar energy stored over the day.
Siloso Beach
Siloso beach on Singapore’s Sentosa Island is a long stretch of well-kept white sand, here you can sunbath in the warm sunshine and swim in the protected lagoons. Several hire concessions rent out a variety of equipment so you can try out cycling, inline skating, canoeing or skim boarding. The beach is also home to the Wave House, here the adventurous can enjoy two flowriders.
Resources
Cruises from Singapore
Singapore Cruise Centre
Marina Bay Cruise Centre
ArtScience Museum
National Gallery Singapore
Gardens by the Bay
Cruise Notes 