//
Bay in the Central Area of Singapore
Photo: Irwan Shah Bin Abdullah / https://ehalal.io/muslim-friendly-travel-2024/Singapore, CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Marina Bay is Singapore's newest district, created on reclaimed land just east of Riverside. It includes the areas east of Shenton Way and Esplanade Dr. Marina Bay is now truly the focal point in many visitors' itineraries: mixing business, shopping, entertainment and culture in one accessible district.
From the travel guide. Select a place for details, a map and what is nearby.
Singapore's second casino, larger and glitzier than its family-oriented competitor on Sentosa, with 600 gaming tables and 1,500 slot machines. Visitors can enter for free, but locals and residents have to pay $150 just to get in. An age limit of 21 applies, and you'll need to bring ID.
Singapore's single most dramatic landmark, the SkyPark defies gravity, perched 55 stories above the ground like a surfboard on top of the three hotel towers. Views aside, for time being there's not much bang for your buck though: the pool is open to hotel guests only. The alternative to paying the entry fee is to visit the restaurants (see Eat) for lunch, which will set you back around $50, but you can freely explore the SkyPark afterwards (excluding the pool area). The SkyPark consists of one very long infinity pool, 3 heated Jacuzzis, a mini chocolate bar and of course the two high-end restaurants.
ArtScience Museum is part of the Marina Bay Sands integrated resort. It is the world's first ArtScience museum and the largest private museum in Singapore. It hosts mainly international travelling exhibitions. The current permanent exhibition, Future World, is billed as "Where Art Meets Science", invites visitors to enter a futuristic world of high-tech interactive artworks and immerse themselves in a world of art, science, magic and metaphor through a collection of cutting-edge digital installations.
Spectra
A light and water show lasting for 15 minutes every night at designated times. May be dazzling or cheesy depending on your perspective. Can also be seen from across the bay, which holds different vantage views.
In October 2017, the Red Dot Design Museum moved to the present location along the Marina Bay. The museum presents the world’s largest exhibition of contemporary design. Every one of these exhibits is a winner of the international Red Dot Design Award, one of the world’s leading and largest design competitions. It features a design shop and a design cafe bar. Here, you can buy carefully curated design objects from around the world and also the best designs produced by Singapore designers. The cafe bar also featured unique highly "instagramable" design food, craft beer, gourmet coffee and tea.
The free outdoor gardens are themed around plants important to Singapore history and culture. Super trees tower over the rest of the gardens, built to mimic real-life trees using technology such as solar cells. The gardens also have a few event venues like the Meadow. Come for the surprisingly charming light show at the super trees, daily 7:45PM and 8:45PM.
The gardens house two cooled conservatories housed in giant glass domes, the Flower Dome simulating a dry-climate area and the Cloud Forest for more tropical highlands plants. Both are a nice air-conditioned escape from the sweltering tropics outside, but if you have to pick one, the Cloud Forest with its winding multi-story walkway, waterfalls and displays of carnivorous plants is the wackier of two and sure to be a hit with kids. The Flower Dome also has a nice if pricy cafe tucked away in the back.
Two of the larger super trees are linked by a skyway, giving visitors a 50-m view off the ground.
Light and sound shows at night. The supertrees get illuminated.
Provides an educational look at the inner workings of a reservoir and the move towards environmental sustainability. The rooftop garden offers stunning views of the Marina Bay skyline, and you'll see some intrepid kite flyers taking advantage of the breeze.
The ferry will loop from Marina South Pier via St John's to Kusu. The timings give you a few hours on Kusu, depending on which service is taken, which is plenty for seeing the sights.
In the same building as the ferry terminal, this exhibition showcases the Singapore shipping industry.
Singapore's equivalent of Sydney's famous Opera House, except that the two-lobed spiky Singaporean version deliberately bears a striking resemblance to the durian, a tropical fruit related to the jackfruit which is notorious for its sharp odour. Opera, dance, classical concerts and similar entertainment is offered daily. Prices for the main entertainment start from $20-30 for poor seats, up to over a $100 for good ones. For the traveller on a budget, there are usually free productions on the outdoor riverside stage on weekends. Head up to the rooftop for alternate views of the Marina Bay area.
Singapore's newest tourist trap, this 150-m-tall observation wheel modelled on the London Eye is the world's tallest. One rotation takes about 30 minutes, and for an extra $36 you can sip on a cocktail while admiring the views, but expect to share your capsule with as many as 28 people unless you stump up $1,000 for a private ride. Discounts are widely available, grab a brochure from any tourist information counter.
An indoor activity arena split into zones where you conquer obstacles and brandish NERF blasters either at targets or against opponents. Also has a dedicated NERF store to purchase your own weaponry (although you can't bring your own into the zones).
Asia's first sustainable light art festival that places 30 vivid and innovative light art installations around the bay, as well as a host of interactive events and activities throughout a three-week period in Mar-Apr.
Annual event held every late May / early June since 2012. You can watch the main event that is the international dragon boat race held in the waters. Also typically hosts many concurrent activities to do: the latest edition in 2019 included beginner water sports sessions (requiring registration), buskers scattered across the area, and of course F&B booths.
Run by famous foodies Makansutra, this outdoor eatery puts together 12 of Singapore's most famous hawkers. Breezy location by the river, great views of the city and pretty good grub make this a winner. The food here is a tourist-friendly reproduction of some of Singapore's best, though you can usually find better (and usually cheaper) versions in the heartlands.
The closest thing to a hawker centre in these parts, Satay by the Bay is a collection of 20-odd open-air stalls selling local favorites. As you'd expect, satay (grilled spiced meat & prawns on a stick, served with a peanutty sauce) is a firm favorite, but you can also find seafood, noodles, even burgers and pasta, all washed down with a cold Tiger beer or a mug of freshly squeezed sugarcane juice. Best visited in the evening to take the edge off the heat.
A mix of dining options ranging from noodles to fast food to sandwiches.
KU DE TA
A branch of the famous bar/restaurant KU DE TA in Bali, although it had to change name over legal issues. The restaurant's tapas-style food is by most accounts overpriced for what you get, but it's still probably a better deal than forking out $50 to enter the bar (one drink included).
Chef Tetsuya's 10-course degustation menu focuses on Japanese cuisine and is created from the best seasonal produce. Rated by Restaurant Magazine as one of the top 50 restaurants in the world. Also has a bar with premium sake and whiskey. Quite possibly the most expensive restaurant in the country, from $400pp excluding drinks.
Offers innovative, Mediterranean-influenced, modern European cuisine. The restaurant gets fresh herbs and vegetables straight from the in-house garden.
A tiny place in a quiet corner of the hotel, you won't stumble into this intimidatingly Japanese place by accident, but the restaurant's many regulars come here for some of the best and most consistent sushi and sashimi this side of Tokyo. Lunch sets are good value, but ordering à la carte for dinner can be very expensive indeed. For connoisseurs.
Billed as a craft-brewery in the penthouse of the Marina Bay Financial Centre. Expect lots of corporate types in the outside terrace enjoying the views overlooking the entire Marina Bay area.
Opened in May 2019, this lounge is actually in the same complex as Marquee Singapore, but doesn't adopt the party club vibe. Besides a classy bar for patrons to enjoy drinks, and a local rotation of DJs (with some occasional guest musicians), there are also several classic arcade games and even private bowling lanes for entertainment.
Opened in April 2019, this nightclub is the Marquee franchise's first foray into Asia after establishing themselves in New York, Las Vegas, and Sydney. Boasts 70-foot-high ceilings and an actual rideable Ferris wheel for party animals to rave in the pods above the crowds.
An impeccably tasteful hotel, next to Suntec City and the Promenade MRT station. The enormous "13" on the side of the building is a Chinese wish for good fortune!
The three "card decks" of the Marina Bay Sands house nearly 2,500 rooms offering some of the best views in the city. The other advantage to staying here is access to the infinity edge pools atop the SkyPark. That said, the hotel rooms are nothing special and unless you're really keen on getting that selfie at the pool, there's better value to be found elsewhere.
Luxurious rooms and suites. Facilities include a business centre, gymnasium, swimming pool and spa.
Modern and impeccably stylish, with fantastic full-wall skyline views, even from the bathroom, for rooms on the Marina Bay side. (Don't worry, it's one-way glass.) All rooms are large and equipped with frills like a pillow in the bathtub. Gym, spa, pool and a popular Sunday champagne brunch. Recommended.
Upscale mall known for housing Singapore's best collection of luxury watch retailers.
At the northeastern edge of the CBD is Singapore's 2nd largest shopping mall, featuring the Fountain of Wealth, reputedly the world's largest fountain. If connecting to the Circle Line is inconvenient, the other way in is to take the MRT to City Hall and then follow the signs in the underground CityLink mall, a 15-min air-conditioned walk.
The Sands' shopping mall, chock full of expensive brands geared at stripping jackpot winners of their earnings, plus a dinky little canal where you can go for a spin in a sampan boat at $10/person.
Singapore's third Apple Store, and the world's first floating Apple Store, officially opened on 10 Sept 2020, appearing as a spherical glass dome sitting on the water. Besides selling Apple products, the store also has a forum space (fittingly called the Forum) for hosting events with musicians and creatives, and a boardroom for hands-on advice and training. The store is connected to the nearby Shoppes at level B2 via an underwater tunnel.
Suntec City, Marina Square, Millenia Walk and the Esplanade in the north are all conveniently linked, either by underground malls or covered walkways.
Read in the guideChoose an airport to see hotels, stations, taxi ranks and car rental desks around it.
Singapore · International · SIN
Loading places around the airport…
Articles and travel topics about Marina Bay and Singapore.
Travel tipsFull 2026 list of visa-free countries for Philippine passport holders. Check ASEAN entry rules, stay limits, and Bureau of Immigration clearance tips.
6 min read
InspirationCelebrate Chinese New Year 2027 with festival dates, temple blessings, lantern displays, and top party spots across Singapore, Penang, and Taipei.
7 min read
Travel tipsThe full 2026 list of visa-free and visa-on-arrival countries for Sri Lankan passport holders, with digital arrival cards and border rules.
7 min read
ItinerariesThe ultimate 3-day Singapore itinerary covering Gardens by the Bay, Marina Bay Sands, Chinatown hawker centers, and Little India street heritage.
6 min read
Every section of the guide. Open one to read it in full.