Singapore’s iconic skyline is world famous as there are many architectural wonders of various styles and structures which are historical, futuristic or a combination of both especially in the Marina Bay area and Civic District. Here is a list of some of these architectural delights that you will want to include in your itinerary.
Marina Bay Sands
The most famous building in Singapore is undoubtedly Marina Bay Sands, which every visitor must have in their itinerary. This impressive structure features a 1.2 hectare SkyPark – notably, longer than the Eiffel Tower – sitting atop three hotel towers with a 200-metre-high rooftop observation deck which is perched on the 56th floor. At over 60 metres in length, the deck is the longest occupiable cantilever structure in the world.
The legendary Infinity Pool is surely the most famous swimming pool in the region. It can only be accessed by hotels guests and non-hotel guests have to pay an entry fee to visit the pool that has a spectacular view of the city. And the most dazzling feature of this 151-metre long pool is its sleek design, where guests can swim to an edge that seems to vanish before your eyes like a magical illusion!
Marina Bay Sands is also home to the largest atrium casino in the world. It also houses two theatres, a luxury shopping mall, many restaurants and bars as well as one of the largest ballrooms in Asia.
Jewel Changi Airport
Some travellers have missed their flights because they lost track of time when visiting Jewel Changi Airport, which is a multi-dimensional lifestyle destination surrounded by and linked to a passenger terminal of Changi Airport.
Its centrepiece is the world’s tallest indoor waterfall, the 40-metre Rain Vortex, which transforms into a light and sound show in the evening. It is also surrounded by a terraced man-made rain forest that is a 24-hour layered garden attraction that offers many interactive experiences for visitors.
Jewel features a futuristic dome-shaped facade made of glass and steel, and it houses 280 dining and retail outlets as well as various attractions such as the Canopy Park at the topmost level, and Canopy Bridge. By night, the glazed facade reveals the glowing garden within.
Travellers on transit need to clear immigration as Jewel is on the land side. Remember to give yourself ample time such as four to six hours to visit the many attractions before boarding your flight!
Gardens by the Bay
The World Building of the Year in 2012, Gardens by the Bay is a horticultural treasure trove covering 101 hectares of land area and is home to 1.5 million plants from every continent except Antarctica.
The Supertrees of Gardens by the Bay often make people wonder what these alien-like ‘trees’ are. They are in fact, 18 vertical gardens that are about 25 to 50 metres tall and are covered in tens of thousands of plants across 700 species. They look wondrous at night when lighted up, and some people say it looks like a scene from the sci-fi movie Avatar.
The Gardens comprises three distinctive waterfront gardens (Bay South, Bay East and Bay Central), plant and flower conservatories, sun pavilion, art sculptures, lakes, among others. It has drawn more than 100 million visitors to date and no wonder, it is a green haven where wonder blooms.
National Gallery Singapore
National Gallery Singapore elegantly integrates the historical former Supreme Court and City Hall buildings, by symbolically unifying the two buildings which are outstanding examples of British architecture and transforming them as part of a spectacular architectural design combining the old and the new.
The design consists of a linear draped canopy supported by tree-like columns to link the two buildings at the roof level. The design also incorporates an extended staircase linking the basement to the upper levels, making use of solar energy to provide electricity. Fine metal mesh covers most of the City Hall building.
It has a combined floor area of 64,000 square metres, making it the largest visual arts venue and largest museum in Singapore which also oversees the world’s largest public collection of modern art in Southeast Asia comprising over 8,000 art pieces.
Esplanade – Theatres by the Bay
The Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay is an arts centre in the Marina Bay area. Locals often refer to it as “The Durian”, after a popular but ‘smelly’ fruit and it has also been called the ‘fly’s eye’ due to its unique spiky design. Some say it looks like microphones, you decide!
The spikes of this building, which are called cladding, are aluminium sun shades affixed to double-glazed ceilings of its main performance venues. These spikes are designed to let just enough light in while blocking out the tropical heat. Each cladding is cleaned by hand by trained Rope Access Technicians equipped with safety lines, working ropes and harnesses.
The Hive
The Hive at Nanyang Technological University comprises 12 eight-storey towers that taper towards the base and resemble dim sum baskets stacked on top of each other. The various raw treatments of concrete make the building look like it has been made from wet clay. This eco-friendly learning hub swaps air-conditioning for natural ventilation, with the openings between pods allowing natural air to cool the entire building.
This building with no regular windows or doors, has a completely open ground floor plan. Visitors can just go in and explore. Thus, the building has become so popular with tourists that they have disrupted the daily lives of students. In February 2024, the university announced it would require all travel agencies planning tours to the campus to seek their approval as well as to pay a fee as reported in Channel NewsAsia. So maybe it is best not to visit it in order to give space and peace to the students!
Old Hill Street Police Station
The rainbow-coloured double-leafed louvered 927 windows make the Old Hill Street Police Station, a must-see venue. The windows on the first four storeys have the same vibrant intensity while the colours for the fifth- and sixth-storey gradually intensify to accentuate the cantilevered balconies which are interesting architectural features of this historical building.
It was constructed for the Singapore Police Force back in 1934. It housed Singapore’s first prison and barracks for the police personnel. The building’s architecture is Neoclassical, typical of many public buildings in England during the 1930s. The building is now home to the Ministry of Communications and Information and the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth.
ArtScience Museum
As we finally round up this impressive list, we return to the Marina Bay area. Have you always wondered about the building that looks like a blossoming lotus flower, located next to Marina Bay Sands? It is the ArtScience Museum. A piece of art in and of itself, the building was designed as two major exhibition spaces centred around an open atrium with 21 gallery spaces spanning nearly 5,000 square metres.
The upper part of the building is a sculptural marvel resembling 10 ‘fingers’ or extensions resembling a lotus flower, housing exhibition spaces in each ‘petal’ with skylights illuminating the interior. The striking sculpture collects rainwater, channelling into a 35-metre waterfall that can be viewed from the central atrium. Located beneath a lily pond, the lower floors of the museum feature another cluster of gallery spaces.
