Buzz
Traveling through the hidden alleys and corners of Singapore, experiencing the 'delicious, nutritious, budget-friendly' adventures, is sure to benefit those considering Singapore as their destination this summer.
Explore Singapore with the 'delicious, nutritious, budget-friendly' approach
I didn't come to Singapore to visit the famous tourist spots that have been overly exploited by the media. I enjoy wandering through Singapore in a very ordinary way, with the eyes of a curious and excited person about a country worth admiring for its small things.
With my backpacking experiences in some Asian countries, I feel like I can... 'close my eyes and go to Singapore', through lesser-known corners, with very reasonable spending experiences. First of all, it's about booking cheap tickets, you can prepare some contacts of Tiger Air, Airasia, Lion Air or Garuda Indonesia. If Vietnam Airlines or Singapore Airlines have ticket prices around 230 USD to the peak of Tet holidays, it's only about 168-188 USD for Tiger Air or Airasia. In return, you have to be willing to carry hand luggage within 10 – 20kg, because tickets for checked baggage, you have to buy separately. Most importantly, never wait until the last minute to buy tickets, because by then the ticket price will triple.
When I set foot at Changi Airport, I was somewhat stunned by its modernity filled with humanity. I remember the feeling when I saw the first-class granite tiles at Survanabhumi Airport (Thailand) and quietly compared it with the thickened mixed-colors carpets at Changi. The spotlessly clean toilet with sensor-equipped self-flushing toilets also surprised me. But what I found most interesting was perhaps when I saw the screen displaying 4 faces with 4 different expressions from happy to uncomfortable, placed in front of the toilet. At this point, don't forget to swipe your hand over the most appropriate symbol for your feelings after using the toilet here. This public evaluation will help the cleaning staff earn bonus points in their salary. It's truly a report with meaningful implications.
Accommodation
From the airport to the city center takes 15-20 minutes depending on your chosen area. From my experience, you should prepare a Visa/Mastercard to book tickets or hotels online. This will save you a considerable amount and is very practical. Hotel prices in Singapore are among the highest in the world. Standard rooms in 4-5 star hotels cost 30 million VND per night, check-in after 2 pm and check-out before 12 noon the next day. This cost does not include 7% tax and 10.7% service charge.
A standard room in a 2-star hotel in Singapore is equivalent to a windowless Superior room at the 4-star Bong Sen hotel on Dong Khoi Street (Ho Chi Minh City). If you don't mind, you can still choose the types of inns with 'Inn' behind their names, such as Holiday Inn, Ecco Inn, Sevendays Inn... These are family hotels, cozy and inexpensive. In addition, there are many hostels with dormitory rooms (separate male and female rooms) for backpackers. Each room has 4 to 10 beds, priced at 30-60 SGD per night. These hotels seem safe, convenient, and offer free wifi.
There are 3 areas I think you should stay in: Chinatown - the Chinese street, because you can eat, shop, and travel by subway right there, very convenient. The second area is Geylang Area because everything here is cheap. And the third area is Bugis - Little India, where most of the Muslim community lives, with a chain of home appliance stores considered the cheapest in Singapore.
Dining
You can go to Orchard Road shopping district, go down to the underground street, where there are countless bright shops like the Foodcourt of Ion City. Here, from Chinese, Malaysian, Indian food to European cuisine, whatever your taste, you can be satisfied.
Based on my experience, if you're traveling alone or with a companion, opting for the subway is a wise choice. However, for groups of four, it's more economical to hail a taxi as the fare split would be cheaper. Nonetheless, if your group exceeds four individuals, you'd need to call for two taxis to avoid a $200 SGD fine for exceeding the taxi's capacity. Yet, this is still preferable to getting a larger taxi as the fare would triple in price.
With these handy tips, I hope your backpacking trip to Singapore will be both enjoyable and enriching. Wishing you all a meaningful summer adventure!
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Source: Travel guide from Mytour – Credits: Libero.
MytourNovember 17, 2015
