Travelling to Singapore with a Toddler – April 2011 2


The next holiday was to Singapore with our son it was just before his 3rd birthday.

Again it was short notice to arrange this holiday.  I really have to get Steve to be a bit more organised so I can pre-book earlier to get a better deal.

Originally we were supposed to leave for this trip in early March however Lewis came down with a very bad cold 3 days before flying out and so we changed our travel arrangements.  This is one time I was glad I hadn’t been able to get the ultra cheep flights as I only had to pay the transfer fee and not lose the entire booking.

Anyway by mid April we were finally on our week long holiday to Singapore.

We arrived in to Singapore at 5pm.  It was peak hour traffic and humid.  We found a taxi straight away and he drove us to the Sentosa Island.  The taxi driver pointed out various attractions along the way including the Singapore Flyer and the new Marina Bay Sands hotel.  He also commented that if you come back to Singapore in 12 months the city will look different, there is always construction taking place.

We arrived at the Rasa Sentosa Shangri-La and we were impressed!   Our room was a pool view yet we also had views across to the sea, beautiful.

After settling in it was time for dinner.  We eventually found that a bus outside the hotel would take us to the monrail stop which took us across to Singapore dropping us off on the top level of the Vivo City Shopping Centre. This shopping centre was amazing with a couple of food halls, restaurants, supermarket and major clothing labels, we really didn’t have to venture any further.

Obviously we did.  With Lewis in the pram and a packed day bag full of goodies for each days adventure.  The following day we found the metro stop on the ground floor of Vivo City and went into the main part of the city.  After a couple of hours Lewis was tired of the shopping and we went back to the resort where we got to enjoy the pool.

The next day we explored Sentosa Island.  We took the free tram ride along the beach front, visited Underwater world, walked around Resort World and through Merlion Park back to the bus station for a free bus ride back to our resort.

Another day we explored the colonial Raffles Hotel stopped for a nice leisurely lunch as Lewis had fallen asleep in the pram (it’s important to go with the flow when travelling with kids and adapt when situations arise) then walked across the Helix Bridge to the Marina Bay Sands Resort and explored the shopping arcades that includes an ice rink and a river with gondola, and also shopped at Vivo City.

Marina Bay Sands in Singapore

Marina Bay Sands and Helix Bridge

The hardest part of this trip was eating out.  Lewis would not sit still whether it was breakfast, lunch or dinner.  Whether he had colour or toys.  He was just up and down all meal.  Eventually I incorporated time out.  I would take him to a chair at the front door and make him sit there for 2 minutes.  This did help calm him down however I never got to remain seated for an entire meal.

A couple of nights we ventured out; we went to the Night Safari Zoo, and made the mistake of going to Little India on a Sunday night.

We also took Lewis to the Underwater World Singapore and Dolphin park.  We thoroughly enjoyed watching the dolphins dance across the water, balancing balls on their noses and diving through hoops.  We then got to walk through the aquarium and point out the fish to Lewis and even at the end put our hand in the water to touch their slimmy scales.  Though Lewis was a bit too scared for that.

But do you know what Lewis’s highlight of the trip was?  Taking the free buses on the island that played a musical tune at every stop.  He could have ridden on those buses for hours.  It just goes to show for little ones you really don’t need to go all out.  The simple things will do just fine.

For me the highlight was being able to go back to our resort on Sentosa Island and escape the hustle and bustle and be able to relax as if we were thousands of miles away from this vibrant city.

Want to see more photos?


About Sally-Ann Brown

I am Sally-Ann the author of Toddlers on Tour. I am a wife and mother who has always had a passion for travel. I love sharing my experiences and lessons learned to help you have a better family holiday or day trip. Read "All About Me" under the "Home" tab to discover my story and what lead me to here.

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