1. The weather is hot year round
Make sure you have plenty of water on hand!
2. Instead of Uber, they use Grab
You can use the app for ride share, and food delivery services
3. Use Chope to make restaurant reservations
There is Yelp in Singapore, but it’s not widely used
4. Singapore has plenty to do but don’t forget to check out Changi Airport
If you have a long layover (like we did, for nine hours), it’s actually not that bad – especially if you have lounge access. The easiest way to get from Changi to the city is a taxi, or Grab, which is 20-30 minutes depending on traffic
5. Tipping is not customary
If you’re dining at a restaurant, there’s a service charge % included but if you want, you can always leave extra tip
6. People take hawker stall culture very seriously
During lunch, you’ll see crowds of professionals descend upon the hawker centers. A lot of the meals are so inexpensive, that it’s probably not even worth it to cook at home since the groceries are expensive. Tables are hawker centers can also be hard to come by during lunchtime. We didn’t do this, but we saw several people saving tables with a pack of tissues, while they went to go order their food
7. The best way to get around Singapore is using MRT (Mass Rapid Transit)
It’s well connected and comes pretty frequently. It’s also very clean
8. Official languages include English, Mandarin, Malay, and Tamil
Cantonese is also widely spoken, which did come in clutch a few times, but most people speak English
9. The currency used is the Singaporean Dollar
Credit cards are widely accepted and some places will take Amex. However, a lot of hawker stalls are cash only so make sure you have some on hand
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