What to do in Singapore – Go to Changi Village

A lot of my friends here in Singapore have gone on staycations. It’s where you do a weekend trip at a hotel, i guess to almost simulate a holiday but within the same city. Mostly people do the Marina Bay Sands hotel as a popular staycation spot, but I think 99% of the time its just to get a photo at the infinity pool for Instagram.

So why not do the same, but somewhere cheaper, with better local food, and less of a concrete jungle?

Changi Village – Changi Beach

Changi Village is a perfect place to stay for a staycation. You can get a hotel for ~$120-180 per night for a large room, thats walking distance to many popular eateries and outdoor activities. Its also the spot to take a boat ride to Pulau Ubin, a nearby small island off Singapore thats popular for biking and hiking. Its also really good to get a view of nearby planes flying into and out of Singapore. We stayed at the Changi Village Hotel, only a short walk to the hawker centre, and right in the middle of the commercial area. It also has its own infinity pool, albeit overlooking Changi 😀

Changi Village – Changi Ferry Terminal

Changi Village – Changi Bridge

Its not the best beach in Singapore to go swimming, but your options really are limited in this island. Theres ample space for casual bike riding along Changi Beach.

Boat leaving Changi Ferry Terminal to Pulau Ubin

Finger at Changi Beach

Theres also a nice walking path along Changi that leads you up to the northern point (Changi Coastal Walk). We actually saw a snake and basically shit ourselves when we saw it on the footpath.

Changi Village Coastal Walk

Once you’re done wandering around, its time to eat! Fortunately Changi has plenty to offer in terms of restaurants, casual eateries, and hawker centres.

We had bittergourd and pork belly fried noodles with gravy, and the famous nasi lemak at Changi Village Hawker Centre. The portions are small enough that you can grab a few things to try out without costing a lot.

Changi Village Food Centre

Then we washed it all down with fresh coconut water, kopi and teh, with a fried you tiao. You tiao (a fried doughnut) is best served dipped in hot sweet coffee for that sweet salty mix.

Changi Village Food Centre

For snacks, we hit up Little Island Brewing, an outdoor pub serving craft beers on tap, and bar food. We got the nachos and fried chicken poppers and a few beers. The cool thing about this place is that you buy credits on a top-up card, and use it on a digital ordering system to pour your own beers. That way you can try out a bit from every tap before deciding what you really want to plough down.

Little Island Brewery

Little Island Brewery

And finally after a long day of eating and lazing around, we finished off with Dessert at Traditional Cendol Melaka. I dont think cendol gets any cheaper than $1.50 than here. You can add a whole bunch of other things like red beat, durian, mango, etc.

Changi Village – Traditional Cendol Melaka

Changi Village – Traditional Cendol Melaka