• Singapore Zoological Gardens

These gardens, on Mandai Lake Road, form what is one of the few open zoos to be found anywhere in the world. Many of the 2,000 animals, representing around 240 species, are contained in their areas by moats rather than cages. The night safari allows you to view around 100 species of nocturnal animals.

Mandai Lake Road
00 65 6269 3411
Daily, 8.30am-6pm, night safari daily from 7.30pm-midnight
Gardens: S$10.30 (£3.30), night safari: S$15.45 (£5).

• Changi Prison Museum

This infamous site of the World War Two prison camp is where Allied prisoners suffered at the hands of their Japanese captors. The prison itself is still in use but on the north side there is a moving prison museum, where photographs and sketches tell the story of the Japanese invasion of Singapore and the fate of soldiers and civilians who were incarcerated here.

Upper Changi Road North
00 65 6214 2451
Monday-Saturday 10am-5pm, Sunday 10am-5.30pm; daily guided tours on the hour. Services are held in the chapel every Sunday, 5.30pm-7.00pm.
Free

• Haw Par Villa

Originally known as the Tiger Balm Gardens, this villa at 262 Pasir Panjang Road, just to the west of the main downtown area, is a gaudy parade of more than 1,000 brightly-painted statues inspired by Chinese legends and myths. It is named after its original owners, the Aw brothers Boon Haw and Boon Par, who made their fortune selling Tiger Balm, the cure-all lotion created by their father.

262 Pasir Panjang Road
00 65 63 37 9102
Daily 9am-6pm
S$5 (£1.70)

• Little India

As the name suggests, this lively area, centered on Serangoon Road, is filled with Indian restaurants, shops and stalls where hundreds of hawkers peddle their wares.

• Singapore Botanic Gardens and National Orchid Gardens

At the western end of Orchard Road, Singapore’s main up-market shopping street, the Botanic Gardens provide 50 hectares of tranquil, lush habitats. The National Orchid Garden claims to hold around 12,000 variations of Singapore’s national flower

00 65 6471 7808
Botanic Gardens: Monday-Friday 5am-midnight, National Orchid Garden: daily 8.30am-7pm
Botanic Gardens: free, Orchid Garden: S$2 (70p)

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