Hey Hive!
It's time for another local trip because back in 2019-2021 we couldn't really fly anywhere due to travel restrictions and/or safety reasons. During that time, we saw more of our own country and I thought it'd be cool to share some interesting places from Singapore!
If you missed last week's post, I started sharing about a local tour we went on of Marina Bay Sands (or MBS)! It was to use our SingapoRediscover vouchers that we got from the government to boost local tourism during the pandemic. MBS is Singapore's famous integrated resort which consists of a 2,561-room hotel, a huge convention-exhibition centre, a luxury mall, a museum, a large theatre, "celebrity chef" restaurants, two floating crystal pavilions, art-science exhibits, and the world's largest atrium casino!
Source: Travel Triangle
It is definitely one of the prime tourist spots in Singapore and probably one of the fanciest places too. Despite having lived here my whole life I've rarely been there since it's always crowded and luxury things are not my cup of tea.
So the free tour of the place was kinda nice since I'm not very familiar with MBS. We were shown around the exhibition halls, the mall and certain key shops, before heading to the fancy hotel restaurant for dinner!
This was probably our first and last time eating at a fancy place like this so it was a nice new experience for us too! Not to mention the food was also delicious! But since you can get this kind of food at a much cheaper price elsewhere I'm not really sure if this is worth coming back for.
Anyway, our tour also included a sunset boat ride on Singapore River so after our dinner we headed to the docks!
12 Jan 2022. Wednesday.
We could barely finish our dinner since it was kind of a rush but I was so full anyway since the courses were quite filling so it was nice to go for a walk after that.
It was still pretty early in the evening but the sun was setting soon so we had to hurry to the boats.
On the way I saw these clothes in the window of one of the shops we passed! I'm not sure which shop it was exactly but I thought it was interesting that they made Tony the Tiger clothing!
We exited the mall and it was such a lovely day out! The weather was a lot cooler now so it was perfect conditions for a nice boat ride!
We didn't have too much time to look around since our tour guide was ushering us to the docks and this was where we were going to board the boat!
It's called the Singapore River Cruise and you get to enjoy a relaxing ride aboard the iconic bumboat along the scenic river in Singapore, and marvel at the historical and modern buildings of the city during the 40-minute boat cruise!
It's just beside the iconic Art Science Museum so if you ever want to try it out it's not too hard to find!
This was the mall at Marina Bay called The Shoppes and of course the skyscraper in the back.
We made our way to the River Cruise ticketing booth and the tour guide already passed us our tickets so we only had to scan it.
From the docks we could see so many iconic monuments like the helix bridge and the Singapore Flyer!
We could even see The Float @ Marina Bay, which was where the National Day Parades are normally held! And in the back is the Esplanade, modeled after Singapore's national fruit - the durian!
Our boat was ready and waiting for us so it was time to board! There were characters on the boat's exterior and we apparently got a Spongebob boat!
There was another boat beside us that was designed after the tokidoki brand with Merlion (Singapore's mascot) characters!
I guess the river cruise got the license from Nickelodeon to have a Spongebob boat since the interior was also full of Spongebob! It seems to have been for their 20 year anniversary or something?
There was even Captain Patrick on board, here to guide us I'm sure.
We didn't have to wait long for us to leave the dock and after a few minutes our boat was moving!
So we bid goodbye to the Art Science Museum and were cruising along the River with a nice setting sun behind the skyline.
I tried to get a better pic of MBS from here but you really have to see the view for yourself.
We even had Patrick sitting with us too!
There was an outdoor section of the boat that quite a few people were gathered at since you could enjoy the best views and breeze from there, with Spongebob!
We cruised along and passed by the actual Merlion and of course the iconic Fullerton Hotel behind it along with the CBD buildings.
It reminded me of the painting I did for Sean's birthday a few years back for his birthday! Who knew we'd actually be taking a boat ride over here just a few years after this!
We passed by all the famous icons of Singapore, and I tried to take as many pics as I could! Even Patrick was so excited! XD
We went up close to the Fullerton Hotel and I think this was the closest I've ever been to this building.
While we were on the boat there was a screen with videos playing and a voice over for all the sights we passed, so everyone would know of the history and significance of these buildings. I didn't even know of most of the information so it was a good history lesson.
We passed by Clarke Quay which is known for the nightlife and lots of bars.
Most of these sights I'd seen or been to but it was different seeing them from the river.
We also passed by Riverside Point which I realise looks really old, and also reminds me of Gotham City's Arkham Asylum for some reason. Maybe it's the font?
After we reached Clarke Quay we did a U-turn and started heading back. I was wondering how we were going to go back since it was a river and not a lake.
Soon enough we wound our way back to the Merlion! If you didn't know, the Merlion is probably the most famous Singapore landmark and a major tourist attraction!
I thought we were nearing the end and going back to the dock but we actually went along a different route.
This definitely gave us a much better view of MBS, the Art Science Museum and even the new Apple store!
But the sun was setting so it was kinda hard to take selfies here.
Then we looped around and saw the Esplanade side.
Before looping back to MBS and saw the LV store too!
It was getting dark soon so all the lights were coming on, and it was cool to see the skyscrapers slowly lighting up as the evening wore on.
Soon enough, it was time to head back to the dock! Although it was 40 minutes it felt really quick, but also the right duration since the sun was truly setting. I think we went at the perfect time since any later and it was going to be harder to take any photos.
We did see other people preparing to board another boat as we arrived back on the dock though, and a TMNT boat no less!
That pretty much concluded our tour for the day! What a nice relaxing end to the tour too! I was actually pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the boat ride! And the overall tour was really good too, especially the food! Although many people would probably opt to go to Universal Studios I think this was a good experience as well, seeing as we'd never do these things on our own.
After that we just took a nice walk around MBS and saw a couple of doggos including this cutie with lil booties!
It was such a nice evening we decided to take a little walk around and enjoy more of the sunset.
The lighted skyline was so pretty! Even though I've lived here for all my life it really felt like I was a tourist in my own country!
But it also gave me a new appreciation for Singapore though, and through this tour I can see why Singapore a popular destination for tourists.
But it was getting late and we were getting tired from walking so we decided to head back, not wanting to squeeze with the rush hour crowds.
That's going to be all for this post! I hope you enjoyed our tour because I sure did! It was a nice relaxing look at our own country and the free food was good too! If you ever get the chance, definitely come and experience it for yourself!
Thanks so much for reading!
To find out more about me, check out my intro post here!
Check out my previous post in this series!
TacoCat’s Travels #193 (SG): Going on a Luxury Tour at Marina Bay Sands! ⛲
