Assalamualaikum and hello cloudees!

I am finally back again with my travel post! *crying in happiness*. The last time we went travel was in 2019 for our honeymoon and then Covid-19 hits in 2020, and we've literally never been anywhere else since. For your information, this trip is not as budget friendly as my previous trips as we bring our mother-in-law along and our main concern is for her to feel comfortable. Plus, Singapore is not really a budget-friendly travel spot if you're Malaysian as the currency is 3.5x higher hahah! We went there by car and avoid using public transport as we already make calculations on it and as we bring wheelchair along, it is best to use car. Worry not, I'll teach you on how to calculate and make comparisons down below! 

I have been to Singapore several times for work but never for travel and we decided to spend the night there as the traffic to get in/out of Singapore to/from Malaysia is very frustrating. We will surely spend more time traveling back and forth if we don't spend the night there, which beats our main concern - to make my MIL feels comfortable during the trip.  

  NEEDS FOR CASH            

Singapore is a generally cashless city and the only places you need cash is when paying to small hawker stores but most of them accept various cashless options. As for us, we didn't exchange cash and I have SG$17 from previous trips so I just keep that for emergencies. We use credit card, debit card and QR code. The QR Code can be used just like when you're in Malaysia and there's no need to open Singapore bank account. How convenient is that!

I don't even use my SG$17 cash until Gardens by the Bay, and that's only because my SIL want to use up her cash to pay for the guided tour which is SG$10 per pax. And I still have SG$7 left haha.

  THE ITINERARY            

As usual, here's the itinerary and rough details on our trip and you can click on the links provided to read more.

Day 1

• 730am: Drive to Singapore via Woodlands Checkpoint 
• Explore Changi Airport
• Bugis Street
• Arab Street
• Check in at Royal Plaza on Scotts
• Merlion park

Arab Street

Don't know what this building is but it's so beautiful! (shot from moving car)

Orchard Road

  GETTING AROUND IN SINGAPORE            

1. Public Transport

Getting around in Singapore is very convenient as their transport systems are very organized. Choices available including bus, subway. taxi, and of course, Grab. 

To compare the prices of the public transport available (bus or MRT), you need to know first on where you wanna go. For example, we stayed at Royal Plaza on Scotts and we would like to go to Gardens by The Bay. Open Google Maps, enter your direction, and select preferred mode of transport.

Then, go to Singapore's LTA website, choose fare type (adult, student, etc.) and enter your bus number or MRT station as shown in google maps. Click calculate your fare, and done!

2. Your Own Vehicle

Things you must make sure to prepare if you want to drive in Singapore from Malaysia are:

• Autopass 
• Fill in arrival form HERE (this needs to be done regardless of what way you choose to come in)
• Valid vehicle insurance and road tax
• Bring your Touch n'Go card (you need to pay toll charge of around RM2.37 to get into Malaysia for local Malaysian vehicles and RM20 for foreign vehicles)

All non-Singaporean vehicles must first register for Autopass via ONEmotoring website. Just apply for the new Autopass if you never had one and they will inform you via email if it's ready to collect. You can also authorize someone else to help you collect the card by signing and completing the form sent via email, and the authorized person just need to bring the signed form (doesn't require original copy) and present their IC upon collection. 

It is best to complete the registration at least 2 weeks before entering to make sure everything went smoothly. 

You can check the toll rates in Singapore HERE. 

  OVERAL EXPENSES            

Transportation 

We use my BIL's vehicle, so we don't pay for vehicle's rental fee. You can use your own vehicle as long as you make the Autopass. For Malaysian, international driving license is not needed so just use your Malaysian driving license.

Driving your own vehicle, you just need to pay for petrol, toll fees and parking fees. We top-up S$30 to the Autopass for parking and toll and still have around S$13 balance because we didn't know that the toll is free during Chinese New Year, so we saved a lot on toll. Toll is free on Sundays and Singapore's Public Holiday which includes New Year, Chinese New Year, Raya Aidilfitri, Deepavali and Christmas.

And here are the detailed parking fee rates according to our itinerary:

• Changi Airport Terminal 1 (Jewel Carpark) at S$0.04/min, we spent almost 3hours so S$6.80
• Arab Street. Use parking coupon bought at 7eleven which is sold per booklet - S$12 per booklet (cannot pay using Autopass)
• Merlion Park - park at Fullerton Bay Carpark S$6.54 per entry
• Gardens by the Bay at S$0.035 per minute. we spent around 90minutes so S$3.15 
• Touch n'Go toll charge upon entering Malaysia = RM2.37

Accommodation

We stayed at Royal Plaza on Scoots, booked via booking.com and the price includes breakfast buffet. 

King Room RM 1,255.00 excluding tax.

Entrance Fees

You can get around Changi Airport for Free but my SIL and I bought Walking Net pass of S$18.90, which includes Canopy Park tickets of S$8.

Other places we went have no entrance fee, but we pay for Audio Tour at Gardens by the Bay for S$10 per pax so that it's easier for Mil to see the garden.

Total Entrance fee = S$18 per pax @ 3.63 = RM 65.34

Internet and Roaming

We each bought roaming package from our Malaysian Phone line provider, which is Celcom 3-Day Internet pass for RM25

Total expenses = RM1,631.80 (exclude food and drink)

You can totally save more if you're just going for day trip like most Malaysian do and sleep at hotel in JB. Plus, I don't insert the food prices in budget as we went in a group of 6 and we ordered the food based on portions.

There are places that I wanna go and foods I wanna try but we arrived quite late so the bakery is already closed (WHYYYYY haha!). Will definitely blog about it when I get to try the food and yeah, will not repeat spending the night there especially with exchange rate so high TT-TT. 

That's all, thanks for reading!

hn