A young mother takes her 3-year-old on a leisurely trip to Singapore

Thanks to a well-planned itinerary, Mrs. Hạnh's family had a relaxing trip without any worries about food and rest for their child.

A young mother takes her 3-year-old on a leisurely trip to Singapore

Ms. Mỹ Hạnh, a 30-year-old office worker in Hanoi, recently embarked on a Singaporean adventure with her husband and their affectionately named daughter, Candy. Opting for independent travel rather than a tour, the family wanted the flexibility to accommodate their 3-year-old's needs. Their trip cost over 25 million dong (excluding shopping expenses).

Below are the highlights of the Hạnh family's Singaporean excursion:

Day 1

From Hanoi, there are numerous airlines flying to Singapore such as Vietnam Airlines, Vietjet, Singapore Airlines, SilkAir, Jetstar, AirAsia... We opted for a direct flight with a budget airline, costing us 10 million dong for three round-trip tickets, after comparing prices on a mobile app.

There were various departure times available, but we chose the 9:30 am flight to give our child more rest time and the evening for exploration. Singapore is a 3-hour flight from Hanoi, an hour ahead of Vietnam time. We arrived at the hotel by 3 pm, where I let Kẹo rest more so she didn't fuss, happily cooperating with us in the upcoming activities.

At 4:30 pm, after a light meal at a nearby restaurant, we took the MRT (subway) to Garden by The Bay. We took advantage of photo opportunities, waited until 7:45 pm to watch the music and light show at the Supertree Grove. Kẹo particularly enjoyed this performance, referring to the Supertrees as singing trees. After the show, we headed to Marina Bay Sands for shopping and dining.

Many families with young children often worry about their kids getting hungry or skipping meals due to unsuitable food options, so they carry pre-prepared meals or even rent apartments to cook. This takes away from the excitement of the trip because besides being tired from traveling, mothers still have to worry about cooking. On the contrary, we want our child to explore the local cuisine, opting to dine out.

Day 2

Because this trip is for Kẹo's enjoyment, we limit shopping and focus on visiting amusement parks, zoos, etc.

I bought tickets for the aquarium and zoo online in advance, which were cheaper than buying them at the counter and saved us from waiting in line. This prevented our child from feeling tired from waiting too long. At the attractions, you just need to present the ticket code. The combo ticket for these two places cost 170 SDG (2.5 million dong).

Singapore Zoo is quite far from the city center, requiring two transfers on the MRT and bus. However, Kẹo was very excited about using public transportation. If you want to travel faster, you can book a Grab. The zoo is spacious, offering stroller rentals for children and wheelchairs for the elderly. I also rented a stroller for my child to sit in to save energy.

At the entrance, remember to get a map, which not only provides directions but also lists the schedule for animal shows. Kẹo played here all day. The open design of the zoo makes both animals and visitors feel closer.

The zoo has two dining areas serving lunch and a free water station. While parents eat, children can play freely. Parents can also bring swimwear and towels for their children as the zoo has a small water park area. Next to the Singapore Zoo is the River Safari. However, consider whether to visit the River Safari as exploring the zoo all day can be exhausting; if you visit this area afterward, you might not enjoy it as much, considering the ticket fee.

In the evening, we returned to the hotel to rest before heading to Chinatown for chili crab.

Day 3

We visited Sentosa. Since we woke up late, we went straight to the food court at VivoCity for brunch. This area is beautifully decorated, perfect for taking 'Instagrammable' photos. The food options are diverse, ranging from Chinese cuisine to Malaysian, Thai, and Korean. We chose to dine here because of the variety, suiting Kẹo's taste.

There are two ways to get to the island: take the Express Train on level 3 of VivoCity (payment via Ezlink card, 3 SGD per person), or walk (there are escalators for assistance).

The aquarium here is magnificent, with shows featuring feeding fish. After leaving the aquarium, we went to Candy Delicious, a confectionery shop with a wide array of visually appealing sweets. Kẹo didn't want to leave.

According to the initial plan, we were supposed to take the Express Train to the beach, climb the tower for sightseeing, and watch the water show. However, because Kẹo was tired, we returned to the hotel. In the evening, we went back to Chinatown for more chili crab. After dinner, my spouse and I took Kẹo for a stroll around the neighborhood and bought souvenirs.

Universal Studios is located on Sentosa Island, but we didn't go because it's an amusement park with intense rides that aren't suitable for young children like Kẹo. Moreover, the entrance fee is high, around 600 SGD (over 1 million dong) per person.

Day 4

The whole family went to Bugis Junction's food court for brunch, enjoying roasted duck rice. We then strolled around the shopping area before checking out early from the hotel to head to the airport. Terminal 4's duty-free zone offers plenty of shopping options, especially cosmetics. A must-buy Singaporean delicacy is Bak Kwa (dried meat), with a sweet and salty taste similar to Vietnamese lap xuong sausage. Additionally, we purchased some bottles of medicated oil as gifts for our grandparents. We opted to buy at the duty-free zone to ensure quality.

Preparation before the trip

We obtained a separate passport for Kẹo, allowing her to travel comfortably on future trips with her grandparents without us accompanying her.

The passport application process is straightforward; you just need to fill out the form online, bring along the household registration book, and your child's birth certificate to submit at the Immigration Office in Hanoi, 46 Phạm Ngọc Thạch (as Ms. Hạnh resides in Hanoi). The passport processing time is 15 days.

Singapore offers visa-free entry for Vietnamese citizens, making immigration procedures straightforward. On the airplane, you'll be given a declaration form by the flight attendant. Your task is to fill in all the required information (date of birth, passport number, name, nationality, duration of stay, hotel address, etc.) and hand it to the customs officer for entry stamping.

Based on the experiences of many families who have traveled to Singapore, we also printed out documents such as round-trip flight tickets, hotel reservations, and online tickets for attractions like the aquarium and zoo. These were clipped together with our passports when presented at customs. Traveling with a young child, our family was easily approved without any obstacles.

Transportation

After landing and completing procedures at Terminal 4 in Singapore, the whole family took the free shuttle bus to Terminal 2.

Here, we purchased a phone sim card for 15 SGD (250,000 dong) and an Ezlink card for 10 SGD (170,000 dong) for convenient transportation. The Ezlink card comes with 5 SGD (85,000 dong) preloaded, and you just need to top up another 20 SGD (340,000 dong) to travel comfortably by MRT and bus in Singapore (taxis here are expensive). The Ezlink card is very convenient; you can use it to buy drinks and snacks from vending machines.

MRT has several main lines, so you can simply use Google Maps to navigate to your destination.

Accommodation

My family selected a hotel based on specific criteria: maximum room price around 300 SGD (but the actual cost of our family's hotel was 6.7 million dong), located near the city center and MRT station. I chose one near the MRT because here most tourists prefer walking, and after a long day of traveling, having to walk a long way back to the hotel from the train station would be very tiresome, especially for families with young children.

Then, I used Google Maps to search around the two main areas, Chinatown and Bugis, to find a hotel. You can download booking apps to compare prices and read reviews from previous guests. My family chose Hotel G because we liked the decor here. The rooms, though small, are charming and thoughtfully arranged with plenty of wall nooks for storage.

Each floor of the hotel has complimentary water dispensers, so when we went out, we filled up bottles to save money. The price of bottled water outside is around 1-2 SGD (17,000-34,000 dong) for a 500ml bottle.

Expenses for Ms. Hạnh's 4-day trip to Singapore:

Flight tickets: 10,000,000 dong

Attraction tickets: 2,500,000 dong

Sim card, Ezlink: 850,000 dong

Hotel: 6,700,000 dong

Food: 5,000,000 dong

According to VnExpress

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Reference: Travel Guide Mytour