Singapore: Our 8 Hour Layover in Singapore
Originally, our summer trip in 2019 was only going to consist of France and Italy. However, once we had the opportunity to visit Ian in Australia, we knew that we could make another stop as a layover between continents. Singapore is a common layover from Australia to Europe, and 8 hours was just enough time for us to explore, eat, and rest up a bit until our next flight.
Before we travel anywhere, I always do my research on what to eat. I was particularly excited about Singapore because I had seen Mike Chang (if you don’t know who this guy is, you NEED to watch his videos) eat his way through a night market in Singapore. Singapore is known for its night markets, serving as a great way to eat cheap and delicious food. While there are tons of things to do in Singapore, eating at a night market quickly became our number one priority.
Because our layover was only 8 hours, we didn’t want to book a hotel, but we also didn’t want to carry our carryons around Singapore all night. Thankfully, you can have your carryons kept in the airport and pick it back up before your next flight. It only cost us $10 for the duration of our layover, which is pretty cheap considering the convenience of it being right in the airport. We dropped off our bags and left the airport around 9PM. We quickly hopped in a cab and headed straight to Old Airport Road Food Centre. Based on the research I did beforehand, the most popular dishes at this market are the Char Sui from Roast Paradise and the Satay from Chaun Kee. While Roast Paradise was closed by the time we got there, we were able to get in line at Chaun Kee for some satay. The line was long, but well worth it. We had the chicken satay, which is served with a peanut sauce. It’s such a simple dish, but the flavor (especially from the sauce) completely blew us away. It was one of the most delicious things I tasted in our entire vacation! Jess stopped by a juice stall and ordered a sugar cane juice, which was then juiced right in front of her. It’s so refreshing drinking something that is made to order! After that, we stopped by Dong Ji Fried Kway Teow to get some Char Kway Teow, which is a spicy rice noodle dish topped with shrimp. We grabbed coconut water on our way out and made our way to Gardens by the Bay.
Gardens by the Bay is a gigantic park in Singapore full of gardens, pavilions, and most notably supertrees. We walked through a few of the gardens for about an hour, taking in all of the beautiful flowers and sculptures. Eventually, we walked to a spot called Marina Barrage where we could get a view of the Singapore skyline. Singapore is such a beautiful city, with elite towers and skyscrapers, including Marina Bay Sands which is a hotel with a boat on top! At this point, it was getting late, so we decided to head back to the airport and rest until our next flight.
Singapore is a beautiful destination with some of the most delicious food. I wish we could have spent more time there, but I’m happy that we were able to make this quick layover on our way to France!
- Nick