Essential Singapore – 4 Days

Arrival at Changi Airport, meet-and-greet and private transfer to your hotel in the centre. Baggage reclaim at Changi is usually quick; entry only requires the SG Arrival Card, completed online before travelling.
After time to rest, you meet your guide at Marina Bay around 18:30. The waterfront promenade lines up the Merlion, the ArtScience Museum, the Helix Bridge and the silhouette of Marina Bay Sands. The day ends at Gardens by the Bay, lying back under the Supertree Grove for the Garden Rhapsody light and sound show. It runs every evening at 19:45 and 20:45, lasts about 15 minutes and is free; the first pass coincides with nightfall and is usually less crowded.
For dinner we suggest Satay by the Bay or a nearby hawker centre. You can return to the hotel by MRT from Bayfront station or by taxi.

Breakfast and a full-day guided city tour. In the morning we walk the Civic District: the Padang, the National Gallery in the former City Hall and Supreme Court buildings, St Andrew’s Cathedral and the riverside spot where Raffles landed. Photo stop at Merlion Park, then a pass through Chinatown and Kampong Glam to see the city’s different layers.
The midday break is at a hawker centre, where your guide explains the queueing system, the “chope” custom and tray return, and you choose your own dish. The afternoon belongs to Gardens by the Bay: Mediterranean and South African plantings in the Flower Dome, and in the Cloud Forest the 35-metre indoor waterfall with its walkway through tropical highland vegetation. The conservatories are kept at 23-25 °C, so a light layer is useful.
The tour ends around 17:00. Afterwards you can go up to the Marina Bay Sands observation deck or spend the evening on Orchard Road.

Today we explore the city on foot and by MRT. In Chinatown we visit Thian Hock Keng Temple, raised in the 1840s by migrants from southern China, the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and, directly opposite, the Hindu Sri Mariamman Temple of 1827. First tasting at Maxwell Food Centre: Hainanese chicken rice.
An MRT ride takes us to Little India: the Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple, the spice and vegetable stalls of Tekka Centre and the brightly painted House of Tan Teng Niah. The second tasting happens here, usually roti prata or a South Indian thali. The last district is Kampong Glam: the golden-domed Sultan Mosque, the Malay Heritage Centre gardens, Arab Street and Haji Lane. The third tasting is kaya toast with kopi.
The guided day ends around 16:30 at Bugis MRT station. The evening is free: dine by the water at Clarke Quay or take a Singapore River boat ride.

Breakfast and free time depending on your flight. A few ideas: the UNESCO-listed Singapore Botanic Gardens with the National Orchid Garden (early morning is cooler and quieter); Sentosa Island with its cable car, beaches and the S.E.A. Aquarium; shopping on Orchard Road; or devoting the day to a road trip to Malacca, about 4 hours away.
Hotel check-out is normally at 12:00 and you can leave luggage at reception. Around three and a half hours before your flight, a private transfer takes you to Changi Airport. It is worth arriving early to see the 40-metre indoor waterfall and gardens of the Jewel complex.