Good Time
Time to visit: any major event or festival (unless you hate crowds). My favourite time in Singapore is Christmas because every shopping mall is dramatically decorated with giant plays, sometimes animated. So are the major shopping streets such as Orchard Road. Sale time - Singapore sale. If you can't make the sale, go to Mohammed Mustafa department store. Part of it is open 24 hours.
Bad Time
Monsoon or rainy season. Roads are awash. Floods in major areas and highways. Rain not just an hour in the afternoon but for three days solid. Sandals shipping water. Photographs a waste of time. Boat trips cancelled. On the other hand, two major Singapore activities are still available. Food and shopping.
Tips For Shopping In The Rain
Any advantages to rainy season? This is when your hotels offer bargains. Great time if you are visiting family, indoor museums, restaurants and indoor shopping malls. Think of what you have saved on hotels. More money to spend on shopping.
Trick to shopping indoors? Find basement malls which link one area to another. For example, half of Orchard Road is linked between Orchard MRT and ION along the south side of Orchard Road to Ngee Ann City towers. Two levels of shopping streets at Basement one and Basement two.
Hot or Not
If you are too hot, stay indoors. Indoor shopping malls. Indoor restaurants. Drink lots of iced water.
The locals drink warm water. Women are told that cold water gives you stomach cramps when you have your period and warm water helps relax your tummy. So Singaporean girls and women often ask for warm water. Your waiter will ask if you want warm water or iced water.
In India I was told that Indians like hot drinks such as tea because hot food and drink makes you perspire which cools you down.
Hay Fever, Pollution and Haze
If you suffer from hay fever, allergic reaction to pollen, in England or elsewhere, in spring, get away from it all in Singapore.
Singapore's haze is worst June to September. Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong suffer from polluted skies. Check weather reports. If the locals are wearing masks, either it's a flu or medical epidemic, or haze.
Haze - cause and effect
What causes the haze? Read the local papers and see what they say. Indonesia is blamed for forest fires started deliberately to clear forests to plant crops, eg for oil. At one point the Indonesians were claiming the cause was Singapore. At first it sounded a bizarre case of the pot calling the kettle black.
But I kept reading. One of the companies involved had its HQ in Singapore within sight of where I was then on holiday.
I wish the problem could be solved. Regardless of who is to blame, what can you do as a tourist?
Where can you buy a mask? At a pharmacy. But masks come in two qualities. The cheaper masks are only good for a few hours. You can buy a pack of three.
Will the haze affect you if you are only on holiday a short time? From a photographer's point of view, the sky is white instead of blue. Distant views of mountains are faded and blurred.
When the haze is at its worst, the schools and colleges shut. The staff at outdoor events have to be sent home. The elderly are told not to do strenuous exercise outdoors. Even indoor events are cancelled because the building cannot operate without staff working outside (cleaners, parking attendants, gate security etc).
Children cannot use outdoor playgrounds at school and outdoor walkways linking buildings nor outdoor food courts. Staff who don't have a maid, nanny or granny to take care of children have to go home to mind the children.
Hospitals are extra busy because of those who are ill. Also those who are old or sick must be checked as a precaution if they suddenly have breathing or other problems.
You might come down with a sore throat. No fun if you are speaking at an event.
When your Singaporean friends who are affluent or have family in Australia decide to leave Singapore for Australia, maybe it's time to shorten you outbound stopover at Singapore and plan to stay longer on the way back instead. Or maybe time to plan that Xmas trip. Flights are busy and often fully booked for major holidays such as Xmas and Chinese New Year. So check your calendar and plan the best time for your trip, taking into account budget, seasonal weather and festivities.
Angela Lansbury, travel writer, author, speaker.
Time to visit: any major event or festival (unless you hate crowds). My favourite time in Singapore is Christmas because every shopping mall is dramatically decorated with giant plays, sometimes animated. So are the major shopping streets such as Orchard Road. Sale time - Singapore sale. If you can't make the sale, go to Mohammed Mustafa department store. Part of it is open 24 hours.
Bad Time
Monsoon or rainy season. Roads are awash. Floods in major areas and highways. Rain not just an hour in the afternoon but for three days solid. Sandals shipping water. Photographs a waste of time. Boat trips cancelled. On the other hand, two major Singapore activities are still available. Food and shopping.
Tips For Shopping In The Rain
Any advantages to rainy season? This is when your hotels offer bargains. Great time if you are visiting family, indoor museums, restaurants and indoor shopping malls. Think of what you have saved on hotels. More money to spend on shopping.
Trick to shopping indoors? Find basement malls which link one area to another. For example, half of Orchard Road is linked between Orchard MRT and ION along the south side of Orchard Road to Ngee Ann City towers. Two levels of shopping streets at Basement one and Basement two.
Hot or Not
If you are too hot, stay indoors. Indoor shopping malls. Indoor restaurants. Drink lots of iced water.
The locals drink warm water. Women are told that cold water gives you stomach cramps when you have your period and warm water helps relax your tummy. So Singaporean girls and women often ask for warm water. Your waiter will ask if you want warm water or iced water.
In India I was told that Indians like hot drinks such as tea because hot food and drink makes you perspire which cools you down.
Hay Fever, Pollution and Haze
If you suffer from hay fever, allergic reaction to pollen, in England or elsewhere, in spring, get away from it all in Singapore.
Singapore's haze is worst June to September. Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong suffer from polluted skies. Check weather reports. If the locals are wearing masks, either it's a flu or medical epidemic, or haze.
Haze - cause and effect
What causes the haze? Read the local papers and see what they say. Indonesia is blamed for forest fires started deliberately to clear forests to plant crops, eg for oil. At one point the Indonesians were claiming the cause was Singapore. At first it sounded a bizarre case of the pot calling the kettle black.
But I kept reading. One of the companies involved had its HQ in Singapore within sight of where I was then on holiday.
I wish the problem could be solved. Regardless of who is to blame, what can you do as a tourist?
Where can you buy a mask? At a pharmacy. But masks come in two qualities. The cheaper masks are only good for a few hours. You can buy a pack of three.
Will the haze affect you if you are only on holiday a short time? From a photographer's point of view, the sky is white instead of blue. Distant views of mountains are faded and blurred.
When the haze is at its worst, the schools and colleges shut. The staff at outdoor events have to be sent home. The elderly are told not to do strenuous exercise outdoors. Even indoor events are cancelled because the building cannot operate without staff working outside (cleaners, parking attendants, gate security etc).
Children cannot use outdoor playgrounds at school and outdoor walkways linking buildings nor outdoor food courts. Staff who don't have a maid, nanny or granny to take care of children have to go home to mind the children.
Hospitals are extra busy because of those who are ill. Also those who are old or sick must be checked as a precaution if they suddenly have breathing or other problems.
You might come down with a sore throat. No fun if you are speaking at an event.
When your Singaporean friends who are affluent or have family in Australia decide to leave Singapore for Australia, maybe it's time to shorten you outbound stopover at Singapore and plan to stay longer on the way back instead. Or maybe time to plan that Xmas trip. Flights are busy and often fully booked for major holidays such as Xmas and Chinese New Year. So check your calendar and plan the best time for your trip, taking into account budget, seasonal weather and festivities.
Angela Lansbury, travel writer, author, speaker.
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