Travel to Singapore
Flying to Singapore
British Airways and Singapore Airlines operate direct flights to Singapore from the UK. From the USA, United Airlines offers a direct flight from Los Angeles to Singapore while Singapore Airlines flies direct between San Francisco and Singapore. Singapore is a year-round destination, but good deals are available if you book early and don’t mind indirect flights.
Flight times
From London - 12 hours; New York - 21 hours (including stopover); Los Angeles - 18 hours; Toronto - 20 hours 30 minutes (including stopover); Sydney - 8 hours.
Travel by road
Singapore’s road system is clear, easy and efficient, but it can get congested at peak times, especially along the causeway to Johor Bahru in Malaysia. Driving is on the left and the speed limit is 50 (31mph) in residential areas and 70-90kph (43-56mph) on expressways.
Drivers must be at least 18 years old and tourists require a valid driving licence and an International Driving Permit (IDP) to get behind the wheel. Minimum third-party insurance is required and can be extended to cover Malaysia.
Emergency breakdown services
Automobile Association of Singapore (AA) (tel: +65 6748 9911).
Routes
The main route into Singapore is the kilometre-long causeway, linking the northern district of Woodlands with Malaysia's Johor Bahru. The Malaysia-Singapore Second Crossing, on the western side of Singapore and connecting Tuas checkpoint in Singapore with Tanjung Kupang in Malaysia, was built to alleviate the traffic on the main causeway.
Coaches
There are many coaches depart from Singapore to various destinations in Malaysia (like Melaka and Kuala Lumpur) daily. Most coaches depart from Golden Mile Complex in Singapore. Coaches may be a great option for a short journey but for further destinations like Penang, getting a cheap ticket from a low-cost carrier like AirAsia is often a more sensible choice than to spend 12 hours on a coach. There is also a public bus (170) which departs for Johor Bahru from Queen Street via Bukit Timah Road and Woodlands Road.
Time to city
From Johor Bahru - 30 minutes; Kuala Lumpur - 3 hours 30 minutes; Malaka - 2 hours.
Travel by Rail
Services
You can take a train from Malaysia to Singapore, which stops at the Woodlands Train Checkpoint in the north of Singapore Island, next door to the Causeway Immigration Complex.
Operators
Malaysian Railway (KTM Berhar) operates daily services between Woodlands Train Checkpoint and several destinations in Malaysia. Woodlands station is also the departure point for the luxury Eastern & Oriental Express (www.belmond.com/eastern-and-oriental-express) to Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok.
Journey times
From Kuala Lumpur - 7 hours 30 minutes.
Transfer
The Singapore-Johor Express and Causeway Link Express offer direct links between Woodlands railway station and the Queen Street Bus Terminal near Bugis MRT. Buses are frequent and operate between 0430 and 2330 daily. The journey takes approximately 30-45 minutes depending on traffic.
Travel by boat
Singapore is considered to be the cruise hub of Asia Pacific. The Singapore Cruise Centre (tel: +65 6513 2200; www.singaporecruise.com) is situated on the seafront side of the HarbourFront Centre on Telok Blangah Road, and has two terminals. Housed inside a shopping centre of the same name, it has restaurants, a food court and a travel agent for Batam trips.
Ferry operators
At the HarbourFront Centre, numerous ferries connect Singapore to the islands of Indonesia and to ports on Malaysia’s east coast. In eastern Singapore, at Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal near Changi, a smaller terminal has ferries to Bintan, Batam, Johor Bahru and destinations on the Malaysian coast.
Operators include Bintan Resort Ferries (tel: +65 6542 4369; www.brf.com.sg), Sindo Ferry (tel: +65 6271 4866; www.sindoferry.com.sg) and BatamFast (tel: +65 6270 2228; www.batamfast.com).
Transfer
It is easy to get from the Singapore Cruise Centre to the city centre. You can take a metro or MRT (from the HarbourFront MRT station) or take a taxi. The journey is about 10 minutes.
