3 Night stay.

I last visited Singapore nearly 30 years ago, and I really did not like it as it felt too controlling and clean. This time I could appreciate how the city has changed beyond recognition whilst regaining its character.

We stayed at Clarkes Quay, next to the river and on the doorstep of a great number of restaurants and bars. It was a lovely area to wander around at night and you felt safe. It is well connected to the rest of the city by MTR, or as we used the tourist hop on hop off bus. We bought a 2 day ticket and managed to get around to everywhere that we wanted on a 3 night stopover.

The city is clean, but it is the work they have done to bring green spaces into the city that is really impressive. It is not unusual to see apartment or office buildings with gardens halfway up or on the roof. Also the creative architecture makes you forget you are in a city of skyscrapers, as they are not just grey boxes. Sitting on the top deck of the bus gives you a great view of this, along with the areas of old Singapore rubbing shoulders with New Singapore.

The Botanical Gardens was a great place to escape the City. They are a beautiful, peaceful sanctuary to wander through. You can do a Canopy Walk, a wander round the Swan Lake, or just sit in the couple swings people watching. You forget where you are.

Little India gives you a feel for old Singapore, as well as the old Malay area near the Great Mosque. The smells of the food stalls around this area are so tempting. The Marina Bay area is a place you need to visit. The hotel, Trees and domes dominate this area, and round the corner is the Grand Prix track. It is an awesome view day or night. A word of warning in that it does get really busy at night in this area. Across the road from the hotel is the shopping mall. This is designer shop heaven and great for window shopping, in the air conditioning.

A trip to Singapore would not be complete without a trip to the reopened Raffles and a Singapore Sling in the Long Bar. It is an indulgence, and the kids loved the monkey nuts just being thrown on the floor. You can also walk around the outside grounds of this historic hotel, but need a reservation to go inside. As a family we really enjoyed Singapore. It has a lot to offer adults and kids, this was without even visiting Sentosa and Universal or doing the night safari....oh well maybe on the next trip?