Tarun Khurana purchased a honeymoon package to Singapore, as a wedding gift for his brother. Making a booking through TravelTriangle, he got his brother connected with the right agent, to make his trip a success. At a price of Rs.1,29,400, Krishan got the expenses of his accommodation, local tours and tickets covered. Scroll down, as Krishan re-opens the treasure of his memories.
My trip to Singapore came as a wedding gift to me and my wife, from my brother. Though I was planning for Goa initially, but my brother insisted for Singapore. He selected the destination for us since he had already tried and tested it. My wife and I thought of not postponing the idea anymore and plan the honeymoon while the suitable time lasts. Through TravelTriangle, my brother got me connected with the agent and I further discussed my requirements with him. Eventually, everything got finalized and thus, the fun began.
Day 1: Arrival in Singapore
On landing at the airport, we did not get a pickup. As a result, we had to wait for an hour within the airport premises. After an hour’s wait, we finally accessed the airport’s Wi-Fi facility and contacted the agent. He coordinated with the driver and the cab arrived within 10 minutes. From the airport to Aqueen Jalan Besar Hotel, it was a mere thirty-minute drive. Though the hotel seemed good, but the room that was allotted to us was very congested. We didn’t even have enough space to walk around freely. But I made my peace with whatever was available at hand. The hotel was fine, otherwise.
After settling down, we went out for a stroll in the evening (5 pm) and visited Little India – a beautiful shopping place in close proximity to our hotel. Tourists were hustling around and the place was singing of the Christmas festivities. We further decided to explore a Singaporean theater, as soon as we came across one. This was at the Mustafa Center, a mall near Little India. Here, we watched a local movie (with English subtitles) and had a lot of fun. The rest of the evening was spent chilling at the mall. Finally, we came back around 9 and had a good dinner at the hotel itself.
Day 2: Sightseeing in Singapore
Our day was booked for local sightseeing and Sentosa Island. We got picked up at 9 am sharp and got to explore some famous tourist attractions in Singapore. Since it was a group tour, we got to meet a lot of people and befriended two more couples. One of those couples even accompanied us for a few more days, while we were in Singapore. As part of the tour, we visited the Merlion Park, the Millennium Tower, the Singapore flyer, Thian Hock Keng Temple and many other popular tourist spots in Singapore.
We also made a brief visit to the Chocolate factory, before leaving for Sentosa. We all enjoyed a lot together and are still in touch, even after having returned from the trip.
Our next destination, Sentosa Island, took us through an exciting cable car ride which featured a breath-taking panoramic view of the city. On reaching Sentosa, we started by visiting the Underwater World and later, went to the Dolphin Lagoon. With the frolicking dolphins employed for our entertainment, we had a great time.
We ended our day in Sentosa, with a visit to the mesmerizing Wings of Time. With an elaborate display of lights and fire effects, water and laser show, all dancing to spectacular music – The Wings of Time would give any sci-fi movie a run for its money. On our way to the hotel, we also stopped at the Millennium Park, which has the famous installation, the Cloud Gate or the “bean”. The best part of sightseeing in Singapore during the end of the year was that every place was decorated and reflecting a Christmas-y fervor. At 9:30 our cab came to pick us and we asked the driver to drop us to the vegetarian restaurant Annapurna, near Mustafa mall. We had a lavish dinner and said our goodbyes to our new-found friends.
Day 3: Rocking the Universal Studio
We reached the Universal Studio at 9 in the morning and kick-started our date with the rides. One of the couples that we had met the previous day was also there and we enjoyed the thrilling rides together. Since we were extremely excited about the various options available at hand, we managed to squeeze in each and every one of the 28 rides available at the Universal Studio. Braving through the rides like Roller Coaster, Mummy, Transformer, Madagascar etc. – we enjoyed our time thoroughly. The rides set our adrenaline pumping, but the visual effects of the Transformer compelled us to take this particular ride twice.
The couple accompanying us was very well informed about the places to visit and things to do in Singapore, which came in handy for us too. On the suggestion of our agent, we had started taking the rides in the reverse order. This allowed us to escape the long queues of the starting few rides and saved us a lot of time. After the physically tiring rides, we moved to watch a show, which showcased the story of a lover who saves his beloved. Having witnessed a beautifully portrayed love-tale, we proceeded for a magical extravaganza at The Dance Of The Magic Beans . Concluding the day with a visit to the penny-house, we made an absolute best of the Universal Studio.
Our pick up from the adventure park was scheduled for 7 pm, which we missed. So, we booked another taxi and tried to put the spare time to use by visiting the Gardens By The Bay (since it wasn’t included in our package). Paying around $32 for two, we got to admire the Christmas-special decor and events embellishing the place.
As the Bay of Gardens got shut at 9, we decided to pay a visit to a casino. The taxi driver took us to the one which was near to the Bay of Gardens. The entry was free at the Casino, along with free cold drinks. We played with $14 for the sake of fun but lost the game. With music playing in the background, crazy lighting, casino chips stacked on the tables and energy in the air – our visit to the casino paid off every penny that we had lost.
Day 4: A day at the Zoo
After the power packed three days, our visit to the zoo seemed rather bland. We just walked through the Zoo till 05:00 pm, which left us really tired. After getting done with the zoo, we decided to sit down at the park to pass time until our driver picks up for the Night Safari.
The Safari was to start at 6:30 pm but we received only one ticket from our agent. The queue for the Safari was very long, and buying the ticket would have taken forever. My wife insisted me to go alone, but luckily, we found another group with an extra ticket to the Safari! The icing on the cake was that we got the ticket at a lower price. The Safari took us through the jungle on a tram, where we got to see animals in the open. The experience was okay, but did not appeal much to me.
Day 5: Jurong Bird Park – Where Colors Live
The day at the Zoo, was followed by a visit to the Jurong Bird Park. Although we were at the sanctuary only till 12:30, I felt that it could have been clubbed with our previous day’s visit to the Zoo. The rest of the day was free and we stopped at the Mustafa Center for our last lunch in Singapore. After a thoroughly satisfying meal, we decided to get some souvenirs from Little India. We wandered around for some time and prepared for our flight in the evening.
High Point: Being at the Universal Studio was a hell of an experience, and would stay with us forever.
Low Point: The room could have been better.
Tip to Future Travelers: I suggest, not much time should be devoted to the Zoo or Bird Park.
Singapore is a fun place to be. Don’t deprive yourself of the joy and book your trip to Singapore, NOW!
