Budget Trip Guide to Singapore

A well rounded guide of our budget trip to Singapore taken in April 2022

1. Tickets & Visa
2. How to Book Attractions
3. Accommodation
4. Sim Card
5. Local Commute
6. Marina Bay Sands Casino
7. Food
8. Lounge Access

Tickets & Visa

Skyscanner.com is the go to website to begin any sort of travel planning. The explore tab on Skyscanner shall aid you in finding the cheapest month and thereafter date to visit Singapore from your city. Once you finalise the dates, setting a price alert on Google Flights will intimate you regarding any price drops.

We booked our tickets using Cleartrip since it offered a well rounded discount on one of our credit cards.

Its best to check for current card offers on local travel sites like MMT, ClearTrip, Goibibo, Easemytrip, etc. Incase of minor price variation, bookings can also be directly made on the airline website itself. Do note – if you travel dates may be subject to change, its wiser to book directly through the airlines to avail convenient re-scheduling.

Singapore does not permit direct application of Visa for Indians. Instead, they have a list of approved travel agents that can assist in the visa application process. Updated list of these agents can be accessed on www.mfa.gov.sg (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Singapore).

We chose to apply our visa from Musafir.com.

Below is the list of documentation we submitted –

1. Original passports (Including old passports if any). Valid for at-least 6 months from the date of submission of the visa.
2. Confirmed return air tickets
3. Hotel booking (We used Booking.com pay at hotel option)
4. Visa application form
5. 2 recent passport size photos (Matt finish against White background)
6. Covering letter (Format for this will be provided by your visa agent)
7. Address proof is required if the current address is any different from the passport (For instance: telephone bill, electricity bill or a letter from the housing society)
8. Last 6 months of bank statement of the primary applicant
9. 3 months salary slip
10. Travel insurance with minimum coverage of SGD 30,000 (We opted for Tata AIG)
11. Negative RT-PCR test (check for latest Covid-19 norms)

How to Book Attractions in Singapore

It is of great importance to browse the official websites for updated timings/scheduled maintenance and other relevant information before proceeding towards any bookings.

Multiple platforms offer online bookings and advance booking is always a good idea so as to avoid getting into long queues and killing the enthusiasm of exploring an attraction.

Few of our preferred and trusted ones being –

• Klook
• Makemytrip
• Direct

Klook.com is a reasonably decent option to book attraction tickets. Use my referral code V33K6P and get Rs.250 off on your first attraction booking. Klook also offers package deals for multiple attractions.

However bookings on MakeMyTrip can be comparatively cheaper than Klook.com because of the offers available on Indian debit/credit cards.

Accommodation in Singapore

Singapore offers an amazing array of hostels and given we hadn’t explored them until now, we decided to book our stay at The Pod Capsule Hotel at Beach Road.

The best site to explore several hotel/hostel options is Booking.com. Once you zero down on your choice of accommodation, it is wise to check the official website of the hotel to chance upon any special discounts they are running at the moment.

Rates can also be compared on Indian websites like Goibibo and MakeMyTrip. These websites offer multiple debit or credit card discounts/instant cashbacks.

Localities that offer amazing vibes – Beach Road, Haji Lane, Arab Street.

Tourist Sim Card in Singapore

7-Eleven is undoubtedly the best place to buy a tourist sim card while in Singapore.
Sim cards are available ranging upwards of $12. We picked the $12 M1 sim card which offered 100 GB data and 20 minutes of international calling. Sim card activation is fairly simple with immediate activation feature.

Local Commute Guide

Singapore’s public transport scores high in terms of efficiency and affordability equally. Designed and planned for easy understanding and navigation, their public transport is largely divided into two – MRT (Mass Rapid Transit) system and local buses covering extensive routes in the city.

Post the stay bookings, note down the nearest MRT stations and bus stops for better understanding. Incase you miss out on that, every station and stop has available maps and network details as well.

Based upon our experience during a 5 day trip, we can vouch for these two modes of public transport to be the most cost and time effective without doing away with the comfort.

The Singapore Tourist Pass (STP), a special EZ-Link stored value card that costed us $30 per person with a refundable value of $10 upon returning the card. We opted for $30 card over the $10 and $20 ones owing to our trip duration and local commute frequency. However these cards can be easily topped up for a day or two incase the stored value is exhausted.

The card can be returned for the refundable value at any MRT station or Changi International Airport. Would advise to do so at the station after taking the last MRT to avoid wasting time on the massive airport looking for the respective service.

Marina Bay Sands Casino

The lavish Marina Bay Sands Casino is one of the highlights of Singapore. Whether a fan of gambling and making some prize money or not, a visit to the casino is a must. Download the MBS app prior to the visit and register for a free account which makes you eligible to avail a physical rewards card at the Sands Rewards Desk. Keep adding reward points into the card while you are at the slot machines or through your dealer.

Not being too keen on gambling, we spent most of our time at the slot machines playing for as minimum as $2 with each round costing mere 10 cents.

Incase you are worried about the shopping bags post the mall spree, feel free to drop them at the casino luggage desk. They would be happy to hold your luggage at no additional cost for a period of 24 hours.

Indian Food in Singapore

Singapore isn’t packed with Indian restaurants but as they say where there is a will one can find a way. We discovered most of the Indian food options in Little India. Delhi6, located at walking distance from Little India MRT station is a wonderful option to fulfil the craving of authentic homeland food.

Another must try is the famous Kaya toast with your choice of tea. Ours was surely Tea-C. The C here implies that the tea consists of milk and sugar.

Its highly important to stay hydrated throughout the day while exploring the city majorly on foot and public transport. Vending machines spread across offer cold drinks, Milo, Iced tea and water. 7-Eleven is another saviour for picking up noodles, frozen pizza and beverages on the go.

Lounge Access

Endless procedures and documentation at the airport can leave us tired and dim the actual excitement of a holiday. Add the task of baggage, check-in and immigration to this chore.

What better way to relax and unwind just before boarding a long 5 hour flight to Singapore other than visiting the airport lounge.
Free entry to these lounges can be easily availed through debit/credit cards. HDFC Regalia is the best suitable card when it comes to offering free lounge access. So you might want to pre-check with the bank if your card offers free lounge access or not.

Once inside the lounge you can enjoy complimentary meals, drinks and a comfortable place to ease out for a while.