Singapore 2026: getting there, districts, best time to visit, rules and costs

Singapore suits you if you want to combine museums, gardens and hawker stalls in a city trip. The country's only World Heritage Site is the Botanic Gardens, inscribed in 2015. UNESCO has counted hawker culture, eating at public hawker centres, as intangible cultural heritage since 2020.

What is new in 2026 is a closed MRT loop and tougher penalties for e-cigarettes. Since 12 July the Circle Line has connected 33 stations as a loop. Anyone who owns or uses an e-cigarette has risked a fine of up to S$10,000 since 1 May. And anyone who books a return flight from Singapore for 2027 from 1 October 2026 pays a new levy for sustainable aviation fuel.

Singapore is a poorer fit if mugginess gets to you. The mean daily maximums are above 30 °C in every month, and humidity averages around 82 per cent over the year. In December, 331.9 mm of rain falls on average (Changi climate station, 1991–2020).

Getting there from Germany

At the 22 main German airports, a total of 385,208 passengers boarded flights in 2025 with Singapore as their last known destination, 385,191 of them with Changi (SIN) as their destination. That was 45th place of 211 destination countries abroad (Federal Statistical Office, our own analysis, excluding passengers changing planes abroad). Most departed from Frankfurt (187,418) and Munich (105,148), followed at a distance by Berlin (30,077) and Hamburg (23,471).

From Changi airport into the city

MRT: From Changi Airport station (CG2) you ride to Tanah Merah (EW4) and change there onto the East-West Line towards Tuas Link. Alternatively you change at Expo (CG1/DT35) onto the Downtown Line. The first train leaves at 5:31 Monday to Saturday and at 5:59 on Sundays and public holidays. The last journey with a connection towards Tuas Link leaves daily at 23:18 (as of September 2026).

Bus: At Terminals 1, 2 and 3, lines 24, 27, 34, 36, 53, 110 and 858 stop on the basement level. If you pay in cash you need the exact fare; no change is given (as of September 2026).

Taxi: The airport reckons on about 30 minutes' journey time to the city and S$25 to S$45 on the meter. A surcharge of S$8 from Changi applies between 17:00 and 23:59, otherwise S$6. From 0:00 to 5:59 the meter fare goes up by a further half. Taxis and ride-hailing services are available at all terminals around the clock, buses and trains mostly not at night (as of September 2026).

Return flight: new levy from 2027

If you depart from Singapore from 1 January 2027, you pay a levy for sustainable aviation fuel, provided your ticket was sold from 1 October 2026. The airline shows it separately in the ticket price. The amount depends on the first destination from Singapore. For a direct flight to Europe it is, according to the announcement of November 2025, S$6.40 in economy and S$25.60 in business and first. Anyone who only transfers pays nothing (dates confirmed on 3 September 2026).

Regions and destinations at a glance

You reach all destinations from Changi (SIN), so the table gives the way on the ground (as of September 2026).

Marina Bay and Gardens by the Bay

The Flower Dome and Cloud Forest glasshouses are open daily from 9:00 to 21:00. Both together cost S$46 for visitors not resident in Singapore, currently including the dinosaur show in the Cloud Forest (as of September 2026). The outdoor gardens with the Supertree Grove are open from 5:00 to 2:00. The Satay by the Bay food centre is closed for renovation from 1 October 2026.

Kampong Gelam and Little India

The Sultan Mosque in Kampong Gelam admits visitors Saturday to Thursday from 10:00 to 12:00 and from 14:00 to 16:00, not on Fridays. Men wear sleeves and long trousers, women long sleeves and clothing down to the ankle. Robes are lent out at the counter while stocks last. The Malay Heritage Centre and the Indian Heritage Centre in Little India are open Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 18:00, and tourists pay S$10 each (as of September 2026).

Sentosa and Mandai

The Sentosa Express runs from the VivoCity shopping centre to the island from 7:00 to 24:00, and admission of S$4 applies. For both cable car lines, Mount Faber and Sentosa, you pay S$35 together. In the Mandai area, tourists pay S$49 each for the zoo and Bird Paradise on normal days and S$58 for the Night Safari (as of September 2026). The M2 bus from MRT Khatib costs S$2.50 and takes about 20 minutes.

Best time to visit

The values are 1991–2020 averages from the Changi climate station, calculated from the official monthly values of the National Environment Agency NEA (our own averaging).

February is the driest and sunniest month. It rains most from November to January. Rain falls most often in the afternoon, and the centre and west of the island get more than the east. On 171 days a year at least 0.2 mm falls.

The Northeast Monsoon lasts from December to early March, the Southwest Monsoon from June to September. In the transitional months in between, thunderstorms in the afternoon and early evening are typical, sometimes violent. Light to moderate haze often reduces visibility during the Southwest Monsoon (as of September 2026).

Getting around the country

MRT and bus

The MRT network has over 140 stations on six lines. Trains run daily from 5:30 until around midnight, every 2 to 3 minutes from 7:00 to 9:00 and otherwise every 5 to 7 minutes (as of September 2026). In cash, a bus journey costs S$2.10 to S$3.20, less with a card (fares since 27 December 2025). On weekdays except public holidays, every MRT journey costs 50 cents less if you check in before 7:45.

The Singapore Tourist Pass for bus, MRT and LRT costs S$17 for one day, S$29 for three and S$45 for five days (as of 14 September 2026). Not included are express buses, the M2 and the Sentosa Express, among others, and the days must be consecutive.

Taxi

The taxi companies set the base fare, S$4.40 to S$5.20 in a standard taxi (as of 10 November 2025). At peak times, for example daily from 17:00 to 23:59, 25 per cent is added. At Gardens by the Bay and Resorts World Sentosa a location surcharge of S$3 applies at all times, and in Mandai one of S$5 from 13:00 to midnight.

To Malaysia: Johor Bahru

From Changi the TS1 bus runs nine times a day to Larkin Terminal in Johor Bahru, for S$11 (as of September 2026). If you travel to Larkin, you must book online in advance. The RTS Link railway is planned for the end of 2026, from Woodlands North to Bukit Chagar in about five minutes (as of May 2025). You then complete the checks of both countries at the departure station. The fares had not yet been published in April 2026.

Car and roads

Without other signage a speed limit of 50 km/h applies. Extended school zones have had a lower limit all day since 1 January 2026 (as of September 2026).

Money and costs

You pay in Singapore dollars (S$). The goods and services tax GST is 9 per cent and must in principle be included in the displayed price. Exceptions apply only to hotels and restaurants with a service charge. If a clear notice is displayed there, the service charge and GST are added only on the bill, and the service charge is taxed too (as of September 2026).

Practical information

Singapore is on UTC+8. In the German winter it is 7 hours later there, during German summer time 6 hours (our own calculation, as of September 2026). The official languages are Malay, Mandarin, Tamil and English. Emergency numbers: police 999, fire brigade and ambulance 995.

The sockets are designed for three-pin plugs of type G, at 230 V and 50 Hz. The product safety authority considers Schuko plugs unsuitable for Singapore; for two-pin plugs it recommends a suitable adapter, for example with a fuse. The EU rule “Roam like at home” does not apply in Singapore. In 2027 Chinese New Year falls on 6 and 7 February, both public holidays (as of September 2026).

Strict rules

On MRT trains and in stations, chewing gum is banned and, outside designated areas, so are eating and drinking; eating or drinking can bring a fine of up to S$500. Alcohol in public is banned daily from 22:30 to 7:00, except in venues with a licence to serve alcohol during their opening hours. In Little India and Geylang this also applies from Friday 22:30 to Monday 7:00 (as of September 2026).

You will find up-to-date information on entry, safety and health at the German Foreign Office.

Who Singapore is not for

• Anyone who doesn't cope well with mugginess: All year round the mean daily maximums are between 30.5 and 32.4 °C, and before sunrise humidity rises above 90 per cent.
• Anyone looking for sun at the end of the year: December brings on average 331.9 mm of rain and only 4.3 hours of sun a day.
• Anyone who takes rules lightly: Eating on the MRT can cost up to S$500, an e-cigarette up to S$10,000.
• Anyone who expects local prices: At the zoo tourists pay S$49, locals from S$39. The National Gallery costs tourists S$20, citizens and permanent residents nothing.
• Anyone who needs clear visibility: From June to September light to moderate haze is frequent. With heavy smoke haze from across the border, visibility has also dropped below 1 km.
• Anyone who is out and about at night: The MRT runs only until around midnight, after which a taxi carries a 50 per cent surcharge.