Fun Things To Do In Chinatown Singapore

Chinatown in Singapore is a historic place to visit which has a wonderful mix of Asian and Chinese cultures. This has created a bustling place to visit with a mixture of old, new, and trendy shops, bars, and restaurants. It is an ethnic enclave that is located in the Central Area of Singapore. What are the things to do in Chinatown Singapore?

Singapore’s Chinatown is filled with restaurants, bars, shopping centers, and markets selling a wide range of stuff from fruit to touristy souvenirs as well as visiting the temples in the area. Also, Chinatown is famous for its wonderful street food.

In this post, we will go through things to do in Chinatown Singapore. Let’s get started!

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Is Chinatown In Singapore Worth Visiting?

Chinatown in Singapore is definitely worth visiting because of the amazing street food as well as the mix of old, new, and trendy shops and restaurants. It has had a historical significance with Chinese immigrants since the 18th century when it was a British colony, making it a cultural gem with a mix of Asian and Chinese cultures.

Compared to Singapore in general, Chinatown is a good bit cheaper. And even if you’re not looking to do much shopping, the food alone is more than worth the visit.

Things To Do In Chinatown Singapore

Singapore’s Chinatown can be a maze of narrow roads that are filled with restaurants, bars, and markets. Chinatown is home to some of the best tourist attractions in Singapore.

Here is our list of some of the fun things to do in Chinatown Singapore.

Enjoy Chinatown’s Street Food

Chinatown offers both expensive and cheap food options, it’s worth looking around to see what you fancy. Visiting Chinatown just to try the street food is definitely one of much do things in Singapore.

Chinatown is filled with restaurants, there will be no difficulty in finding a restaurant that appeals to you. There is a large variety of restaurants and street food in Chinatown so the problem will be to decide on which one to dine at.

For local food, Chinatown is cheaper compared to other areas in Singapore and offers a great chance to sample the local food at a fair price.

Visit Thian Hock Keng Temple

Thian Hock Keng (literally “Palace of Heavenly Happiness”) also known as the Tianfu Temple, is a temple built for the worship of Mazu (“Ma Cho Po”), a Chinese sea goddess. The Thian Hock Keng temple has an overwhelming sense of peace.

The Thian Hock Keng temple is surrounded by mostly modern buildings. Offering a wonderful mix of old and new buildings. The temple itself has a traditional Chinese design, with a rich color scheme of red, gold, and black.

Lucky unlike other temples in Singapore, Thian Hock Keng is not as busy as others, normally only a few people will be there to enjoy the temple.

Buddha Tooth Relic Temple

The Buddha Tooth Relic Temple is an outstanding four-story temple that is located in the Chinatown area. The Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and museum were officially opened in 2007.

It is claimed that the relic of Buddha from which it gained its name was found in 1980 in a collapsed stupa in Myanmar. The relic can be viewed by the public on the 4th floor of the temple.

Remember it’s a Buddha Tooth Relic Temple, which means there is a dress code. This means to cover up so no shorts or short skirts and tops that show your shoulder.

Visit the Sri Mariamman Temple

The Sri Mariamman Temple is Singapore’s oldest Hindu temple. It was built in 1827, just eight years after the East India Company set up a trading settlement in Singapore.

The temple has undergone numerous restorations but still preserves its heritage, architecture, and customs. The temple’s most impressive feature is the exterior statues around the two domes. Plus, the surrounding side temples are also very detailed and colorful.

And the Gopuram entrance is a colorful collection of statues depicting the deities and their animals. Remember this is a temple so you need to dress modestly and shoes have to be taken off at the entrance.

Check Out The Tintin Shop

Well considering there are less than five official stores in Asia, the Tintin shop is worth visiting especially if you are a Tintin fan. But if you visit the store at least you were in a Tintin store.

They have got all sorts of Tintin merchandise from mini-figures to notebooks to character figures to models of the various vehicles featured in the series and more!

Visit the Chinatown Heritage Centre

This is a chance to step back in time at Chinatown Heritage Centre where you retrace the footsteps of some of Singapore’s early pioneers. That tells the story of immigrants to Singapore in colonial times.

The heritage center tells the life stories of the immigrants with an audio guide. There is a labyrinth of passageways and rooms that explain the traditions, conditions, and lifestyles of earlier settlers in China Town

Be prepared to spend a minimum of 2 hours there as it involves climbing narrow steep stairs up to 3 stories.

Enjoy The View From Pinnacle@Duxton

The Pinnacle@Duxton is a group of seven interconnected 50-story tower buildings just outside Chinatown. This building offers full 360 views of urban Singapore, where you can see downtown Singapore, Sentosa Island, and Chinatown.

You will need a tourist Card/EZ Link card so it can be programmed to let you through the turnstile on the 50th floor and also there’s an entrance fee of $6 SGD.

Visit Ann Siang Hill

Ann Siang Hill is a small hill park and is home to restaurants, bars, and a few hotels as well as independent boutiques.

It is a quaint place during the day and it turns into a nightspot in the evenings. It is particularly busy at the weekends. Great place to go to if you want to get away from city life for a while.

Wrapping Up

Finally, Chinatown is definitely a must-visit place in Singapore. Chinatown is famous for its amazing street food. It is filled with restaurants, bars, shopping centers, and markets selling a wide range of things from fruit to souvenirs as well as visiting the temples in the area.

And that’s it for now! I’d love to know if this guide on the things to do in Chinatown Singapore has helped you. Let me know if you have any questions and let me know if there is more to add.

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