For a long time now my friends from Singapore have been telling me that the weather there is always perfect. It’s just 1-degree north of the equator so even the rainy season has warm rain!
New Japanese friends
Generally, the temperature varies throughout the year from a low of 25 degrees to a High of 37 degrees. Sure it’s coastal so it gets humid but it’s not that sticky humidity we get along the Indian Ocean coastline back home. Luckily we knew when to go to Singapore and go the perfect climate.
Despite measuring a tiny 720 square kilometres and with a population of 5.6 million the main island and its roughly 62 smaller islets that make up this country have some fantastic adventure sports opportunities for families and lone travelers.
My guide JD heading into the jungle
Singapore was originally founded in 1819 by Stamford Raffles as a trading post for the British East India Company. In WW2 it was occupied by Japan and in 1963 it gained independence from the British along with Malaysia and in 1965 became a Sovereign Nation separate from Malaysia. The name Singapore is derived from the Sanskrit “Simhapura,” in which Simha means lion and Pura means City. Singapore is often referred to as the “Lion City” which is the origin of its name.
Singapore now ranks 5th on the UN Human Development Index and has the 3rd highest GDP per capita. It is recognized as a safe haven for tax and has the second busiest container port in the World. As a travel destination, it is fantastic! It has 4 officially recognized languages (English, Chinese, Tamil and Malay) and it is one of the safest and cleanest countries in the World. Yes, it is expensive but you know you are always getting the highest standard and the customer service is excellent. Also, the shopping opportunities are as good as Dubai and if you travel during the Sales then you are going to get some great deals!
In the last week of February, I had some unused annual leave days which I was required to use or lose and since Singapore is just a 6-hour flight away and with a British passport I can walk in with a free stamp at immigration, I thought, “Well, why not? Let’s try Singapore!” I have to say, it was a brilliant decision!
I arrived with Silk Air on an early morning flight at Changi Airport (Rated as one of the top 3 airports in the World) at 0430 am. Immigration and luggage collection was really quick and inside 1 hour of landing I was already checked into my Hotel at the; Holiday Inn, Orchard Street which is pretty much the center of town ($230 sgd/night). At the airport, I picked up a local SIM card for $30 sgd (about 85 AED). This entitled me to 10 days’ service on Singtel with 90 minutes of international calls, 1000 local texts, unlimited local calls and a staggering 100gb of internet connectivity!
I was advised on arrival at my hotel by the front desk to download the UBER app to my phone to enable me to call for pickups anywhere and I quickly realized that Singapore is so small that at most times of the day every destination is a maximum of half an hour away!
I had pre-booked an adventure package with a local company I do some work within the UAE, that provides Corporate training to the Business community in Singapore and also adventure camps for kids and adults! I wanted to make the most of my week in the sun so I had picked activities that would get me close to nature and give me a chance to really see the whole main island and some of the smaller islands offshore too. It’s easy to book the popular tourist activities on your own when you reach Singapore (Cheaper to book tickets online than to pay at the destinations). But the adventure package needs to be booked in advance.
Roller coaster
On the first Sunday (Which is part of their 2-day weekend off work) I took the monorail to Sentosa Island and visited Universal Studios. What an amazing day – would be even better if you went as a family – I rode the huge roller coaster and the Jurassic Park rides and went to the 4D cinema and watched the Water World Stage show. When I say stage what I mean is huge, water-filled, film set that they use for an action-packed 30-minute performance based on the Kevin Costner movie “Water World.” Whilst queueing for the Roller Coaster I joined up with a Japanese group that I then ran into later on the beach as well, we exchanged emails and they sent me a picture of us all together – holidays are all about meeting people and trying new things!
I tried throughout the week to stagger my activities between shopping and relaxing and tasting all the different freshly cooked cuisines available in the city and going out to do different activities.
Jurassic World
My second activity was to visit an Adventure camp on the coast of Sentosa and to try out their 27-metre tall Spiral Assault course tower. This was a very high up experience in which each person is clipped into a system that takes them on a safety line all the way to the top following a series of challenging elements like; Hanging tires, Wire Burma Bridges, Balance beams, climbing traverse walls etc. You can go in teams all tied together (which makes it much harder) or as an individual (not tied in) but still part of a group ascending together with 2 Instructors. Despite the nerve-wracking height I still felt very safe under the expert guidance of the 2 Instructors and the whole experience was thrilling!
Jungle grocery shop – JD and his friend
On a Wednesday, my Guide Mr. JD Lee picked me up from my hotel with a set of kit for me and we headed to a coastal park to inflate our 2-man Kayak and head out into the sea. The short crossing over the channel to Pulau Ubin island took about 40 minutes and would have been quicker if we didn’t have to wait for a giant container ship to pass by and if we hadn’t explored round the outside of a floating fish farm! We reached the mangrove-covered shores of the small island and entered a mud surrounded channel into the mangroves. Everywhere we were surrounded with hermit crabs, mudskippers, Macaque monkeys and flashes of blue kingfishers! We even saw a huge wild boar (over a meter long) foraging along the water’s edge.
After several long stretches of river and jungle crowded bends we reached a very muddy beach where we pulled up the kayak, deflated it, shouldered our backpacks and headed into the Jungle. Personally, I love insects and Singapore is great for them. Huge Stag Beetles and long lines of marching ants on the leaf litter floor. The palms above us casting great shadows and giving us intermittent glimpses of the sun which made it almost feel like a night on the forest floor. All around us were calling birds, cicada and the sounds of wild animals rustling in the bushes. We entered a beautiful flooded quarry that had been allowed to go back to the Jungle and there were several white cranes and herons dotted around the shores looking for the small fish that dart between the tree roots that extend into the cool fresh waters.
By 6pm we had reached our campsite which was beside the sea and a cool breeze was blowing through the palm trees. I pitched our tents while my Guide JD went into the local village to speak to a friend of his who had a small grocery shop there. When he returned he was laden down with a big hamour wrapped in newspaper and several green coconuts and some local vegetables wrapped in banana leaves. We quickly set to barbequing all this over the fire and by the time the sun went down we were all set to enjoy a delicious feast washed down with cool Coconut water – really a tropical paradise!
Dan in Kayak in Mangroves
We awoke with the sunrise and JD took me down to the shore to swim amongst the rocks on the beach. After this, we went to visit his friend in the village who provided us with a delicious breakfast of gelatinous rice steamed in banana leaves with chicken fat and served with steamed chicken that is cooled as soon as it is cooked in cold water leaving it moist and locking in all the flavour. This simple dish of “chicken and rice” is Singapore most famous meal and the most popular with all 4 native language groups!
Whilst we ate breakfast we got chatting to a group of Nepalese Gurkhas who were off duty and had come to the island for fishing. In Singapore, there are over 2000 Gurkhas seconded to the Singapore Police and they are just as respected here as they are in India and the UK. We joined them after breakfast on the local “Bump Boat” – so named because it is surrounded with hanging tires which allow it to bump its way along crowded channels full of fishing boats – to get back to the mainland.
Ghurkas on their day-off
My final adventure on a Thursday was to head back across to Sentosa island to the Mega Adventure Park to ride their Zipline that crosses the Jungle, Beach and a short channel and ends on a tiny island. You can purchase a waterproof case on a neck leash for $10 sgd to hold your mobile phone so you can film the zip line down without risking dropping your camera into the jungle or the sea below! We were taken to the top station by electric golf buggy in groups of 5 and then the zip line can take 3 people on parallel wires at one time. The bottom station has 3 back up braking systems so it was very safe and the ride itself is thrilling!
By the time Friday came round which was my last day and my flight home, I had spent a small fortune on shopping and eating, seen a huge amount of the island of Singapore but by no means all of it and taken part in several adventure activities but my favourite was the Kayaking and Jungle Camp! I will definitely be going back again soon but next time I am taking my whole family with me!
Information:
1. Flights – I flew the cheap route to Singapore, using Fly Dubai to get to Kathmandu (where I had a couple of days first) and then Silk air to fly on to Singapore. Fly Dubai was 1,400 AED return and Silk air was 3400 AED return.
2. Accommodation – I stayed at the Holiday Inn (Orchard Street) on a bed and breakfast package which was 650 AED a night.
3. Activities – I used the leading Adventure Trip provider in Singapore – “Adam Khoo Outdoor Company”. They provided a Kayaking + Jungle exploration + Overnight Camp – Including all food, equipment and the Guide at just 450 AED per person.
Contact: info@akltg.com (Ask for JD or Royston)
4. Sentosa Island to the Mainland Cable Car Ticketing:
Website – www.onefabergroup.com/
Price (one way) – $18 sgd / person
5. Universal Studios – Sentosa Island
Website – www.rwsentosa.com/Homepage/Attractions/UniversalStudiosSingapore
Price (All day entry and rides) – $68 / person ($50 supplement in the park gives you priority to all rides to beat the long queues)
6. Mega Adventure Zip Line – Sentosa Island
Website – www.sg.megaadventure.com/
Price (for 1 ride) – $50 ■
Words by: Dan Wright
Photos by: Dan Wright and Royston Utirapathy
