Singapore Travel Guide: What I Wish I knew! (2023 Update)

Here are six things I wish I knew when visiting Singapore. And the first one has to do with Singapore travel requirements. So number one, you really need to do the Singapore arrival card through the ICA app. It's a free app by the Singapore government. So this is Immigration and Checkpoints Authority. And you really need to download the app and do it. So one time when we were entering Singapore, we didn't have it filled out on the app. So I actually had to hurry up and fill it out on my phone. Thankfully, they do have Wi-Fi at the airport and even the causeway booths if you are driving from Malaysia to Singapore. And actually, this is another important thing. If you're filling out the immigration arrival form on the app, once you submit the form, you can't edit the form at all. Not even by the officer at the booth. Ask me how I know. Another thing I wish I knew about Singapore is the Jewel at the airport. Okay, so it's open 24 hours. That's what their website says. But the actual waterfall, it's not gonna run 24 hours because we got there like a little bit after 10 p.m. It was not running. And you know, I expected things to be closed like restaurants and shops, right? Since their website said that the Jewel is open 24 hours, we thought that meant the fountain or the waterfall was gonna run 24 hours. But that is not the case. The building itself is open but you're just gonna see this gaping hole in the ceiling staring at you and it's quite a sad thing. So don't make this mistake like we did. And make sure you check to see if the waterfall is gonna run before you plan out your trip there. All right, so this is another thing I wish I knew about Singapore. So there's actually no need to exchange your American dollars or whatever currency into Singaporean dollars. I went to all of the top sites without spending literally a single Singaporean coin. Everything was cashless so they do have many exchange places but you can save yourself some time and the hassle because you can just use your credit cards or debit cards. If it has a Visa or MasterCard logo. If you have American Express or Discover, you probably won't be able to use that. But if you have like Visa or MasterCard, you know, the major credit cards, you can totally use those. So like from the fruit court in Marina Bay Sands to a really cute cafe in Haji Lane, we were able to use our Apple Wallet or Apple Pay so everything was electronic. And here's another one I wish I knew about Singapore. So the MRT. The first time you scan your Apple Watch or some sort of payment method, you're actually not paying for your ride. The first time you scan it, it's their system recognizing you as a passenger at a specific station. And to exit the MRT station at your destination, you're gonna have to scan your Apple Watch or iPhone, you know, or somehow the payment. And this is when you actually get charged. And I wish I knew that because I was walking all over the place inside the MRT station trying to find an exit without having to scan my phone. Because I was used to the subways in New York, where it charges you first before you, you know, go on the train. So it charges you when you enter, but not when you leave. So it's actually opposite here in Singapore. They actually don't charge you when you enter, but they charge you if you want to leave. So that's just a little tip. So you're not walking around aimlessly to try to exit the MRT station like I was. And here's another tip. So don't try to do too much walking outside between the hours of 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. You know, we are used to a hot climate here in Florida. So I thought we would be fine walking around in the afternoon sun because, you know, we're used to it. And we had a lot of water, you know, I had my umbrella. But it was a different kind of hot and sticky heat. So I don't know if it's because there was more pavement and not as much like breeze, you know, and wind that day. I don't know if it's because maybe the A.C. levels weren't turned on as high as I was used to back home in Florida. But just be really smart about planning around the heat. So don't ruin your trip by, you know, getting sunburned or, you know, getting overheated. Here's one more thing. So gardens by the bay. Like I thought I could wander back and forth, you know, in the cloud forest. But it's more of a guided pathway and it's a little tricky to backtrack. So for the cloud forest, get the shots you want before you move on. Even if it's, you know, crowded, just kind of wait until you can take a picture because it's kind of tricky to backtrack. So if you have more questions about gardens by the bay, please watch this video on my Singapore playlist. And you can check out my Singapore playlist for more travel tips and where to eat in Singapore. So I will see you in the next video.