SMRT train
So first of, WHAT DO I NEED?
In order to utilize their subway system, you'll have to equip yourselves with the EZ-Link Card.
EZ-Link card (image grabbed from here)
It's their version of our beep card but the difference is, you can also use it to buy food, shop, ride buses, taxis, and many more. This is a stored value card which costs S$12 (around PHP 420+). The S$5 (non-refundable) will be for the card cost and the remaining amount will be for your stored value (refundable). You can top-up or add an amount to your card at all train station. The minimum top-up would cost you S$10.
For our trip, I opted to purchase this instead of the tourist pass (which cost around S$30 or PHP 1000+) since our itinerary didn't involve going around much.
Now that you have your own EZ-Link card, the next thing you need to know is, WHERE ARE THE TRAIN STATIONS?
SMRT Map (image grabbed from here)
All the train lines in Singapore are connected and transferring from one lane to another is as easy as moving a chair (literally). When arriving at linked stations, an announcement through the intercom can be heard.
For example, you'll be transferring from the East West Lane (green from the map) to North East Lane (purple); you just need to get to the station where it is interconnected. In this case, it's at Outram Park. Get off at the said station and follow the guidelines posted everywhere, literally everywhere, on how to get to the North East Lane. It's that easy!
If you are still worried on getting lost, their are train maps near the entrance of each station, like the one I posted above. Alternatively, you can also download applications on your phone for the said train map.
--------------------------------------------
For our trip last May 9, we purchase our EZ-Link card at Changi Airport train station (located at Basement 2 of Terminal 3). What we needed to do is get to Harbour Front (located in VivoCity) since this is the gateway to Sentosa Island.
Harbour Front Stations - VivoCity Entrance
In order to get there, we'll be needing to make 3 transfers. So from Changi Airport, we got off at Tanah Merah. Transferred to the East West Lane which goes around the city and got off at Outram Park. We then transferred to the North East Lane and finally reached Harbour Front. By the end of our trip, we still had around S$5+ on each of our card!
Yes it might make your travel longer but it's definitely cheaper compared to taking a taxi which will cost us around S$30-S$40 (around PHP 1000-1400+)!
--------------------------------------------
After having checking in at the hotel, we rested for quite a while and went out again at around 3 in the afternoon. For our first day, I planned on taking them around Marina Bays, where most of the tourist attractions are located (Merlion Park, Esplanade Theater, Gardens by the Bay, Marina Bay Sands, etc).
Merlion Park
From Sentosa Island, we rode the Sentosa Express (if you're checked in at one of the hotels in the island, you'll be given a pass for unlimited rides at the Sentosa Express for the duration of your stay) to get back to VivoCity.
Then we rode the train from Harbour Front up to Dhoby Ghaut station.
Transferred to North South Lane and got off at City Hall station. TIP: If you want to get the most out of your tour at Marina Bays, I suggest you follow this route of getting off at City Hall. From there, you'll just need to walk through Citylink, an underground mall connecting City Hall and Esplanade train stations.
Once you're at Citylink, you'll just need to follow the directions to Esplanade Theater (theater, not the MRT station).
You'll be riding a steep escalator and after that...
you're at Esplanade Theater and behind it, Marina Bays!
Simply follow the smell of the ocean and you'll be greeted by the looming Marina Bay Sands :)
Marina Bay Sands (right) and ArtScience Museum (left)
From your right, you'll see the Jubilee Bridge and by the end of it, the postcard-worthy Merlion Park!
You can opt to pass the Merlion Park and walk along the banks to get to Marina Bay Sands and the Gardens by the Bay or you can also turn back and walk through Helix Bridge to get to the ones stated above :)
Esplanade Theater (left) and Jubilee Bridge (right) as seen from the Merlion Park
We opted for the second route since my companions were already tired to get around the entire Marina Bays hehe
If you're too tired to walk around Marina Bays, you can ride the river cruise for around S$20+ each.
After passing through the river cruise, and other shops, you'll get to the Youth Olympic Park.
After that, you'll reach the Helix Bridge which lights up during the evening (advisable to visit during 8PM onwards).
After passing through the Helix Bridge, you'll reach Marina Bay Sands! But we decided on postponing for a while to visit the Gardens by the Bay instead.
The garden has exhibits which you'll have to pay but they also have parks which you can visit for free. Unfortunately, we didn't get to visit the towering solar trees since they got too tired of walking around.
We headed back to Marina Bay Sands since the train station is also located in its basement.
We rode the MRT back to VivoCity and headed back to our hotel to eat our dinner and rest for the night ;)
No comments:
Post a Comment