A Spontaneous 5-Day Winter Vacation Trip to Singapore with Kids in 2024

Having visited Thailand many times, this time I spontaneously decided to take a trip to Singapore. After all, a visit once in a lifetime is enough, but it's definitely worth it. The visa process was very convenient. I randomly found an agent on Taobao for 100 RMB per person, and the e-visa was issued in two days. It became even more convenient after February 9th when visa-free entry started.

【Hotel】1. Fairmont Singapore: used a 'pay for two nights, get three nights' deal found casually on Xianyu (second-hand platform). Great value. The room was spacious with a balcony, and the facilities were good. No problem for 2 adults and 2 kids, both over 10 years old. If kids are over 12, the adult rate might apply differently. It came with a $100 USD dining credit, which covered breakfast for the two kids for three days, and we could also grab plenty of minibar drinks. Breakfast was available at the Asian Market on the second floor and Prego on the first floor, both were good. The location was excellent, with City Hall MRT station right downstairs serving both the red and green lines. It was about 1 km walk to the Merlion Park and Marina Bay Sands, very convenient. The room had direct drinking water, making it easy to refill bottles and save money. Amenities were large bottles of Le Labo.

2. Sentosa Resort & Spa (likely Equarius Hotel? but original says 圣淘沙逸豪, which is Resorts World Sentosa - Equarius Hotel? Actually '逸豪' could be 'Equarius' but let's use 'Yihao' or check: it's 'Resorts World Sentosa - Equarius Hotel'? I'll use 'Equarius Hotel' as it's more standard). Also had double balcony, two queen beds, and a sofa, more than enough space. Included two breakfast sets; recommended to eat at Hard Rock Hotel's buffet, which was plentiful and good, while Equarius offered a set meal. Hotels near the resort area had a shuttle bus running continuously from 9am to 10pm; outside those hours, you could ask the concierge at any hotel to call a buggy from the respective hotel to pick you up. To get there, take the Express to Resorts World, then walk to Michael Hotel to call a car or wait for a ride. Service was good; when they saw I had many bags and few people, they specially sent a buggy to take me to Michael Hotel, which was a nice touch. There were water dispensers and ice machines on the floor, very convenient for refilling water. With a same-day hotel booking, you could ride the Express onto the island for free; just show it to the staff. There was a QR code at the hotel entrance that changed every two days; scan it to enter and exit the island freely without paying.

【Transport】Taking taxis is not cheap. You can compare prices between Gojek and Grab; basically it ranges from a few dozen to 200 RMB. For some places without MRT access, you have to take a taxi. Otherwise, the MRT is quite convenient. You can rent a transport card on Xianyu, which is cheaper than buying one; there's a 5 SGD deposit per card that is non-refundable. The MRT can reach most places, slightly more expensive than Shanghai's metro. A single trip is usually over 10 RMB. Still much cheaper than taxis. For hardcore tourists, there might be multi-day passes available, but I didn't research that much.

I recommend bringing your own napkins and wet wipes. Bring a water bottle and fill it up. It's best to bring an iPhone, as many APPs cannot be installed on Android. For maps, Google Maps and Baidu Maps both work fine. The city is not big, and public transport is decent. For some distances you need to decide based on your walking ability. It's definitely worth a visit. The weather is very hot; short sleeves are enough, and sometimes you even hope for rain to cool down. Living costs are not low, but you can spend as much or as little as you like.