With world-class museums in Singapore, you’ll never be short of things to do in Singapore.

1. National Museum of Singapore

 

One of Singapore’s beloved structures, the National Museum of Singapore dates back to 1887 and is the country’s oldest museum. A massive overhaul in 2003 resulted in a blending of the neo-classical structure with a light-filled glass-and-metal modernist extension. The museum warrants a visit not only for its outstanding architecture, but also for its permanent collections of the country’s treasures. These tell the Singapore narrative of being a fishing village, a Crown Colony and now a thriving metropolis. This grand dame is no fuddy-duddy; it engages the public from toddlers to retirees with a busy calendar of events and outreach programmes and hosts excellent travelling exhibitions such as the British Museum’s Treasures of the World.

The Singapore Night Festival takes place on 19, 20, 26 and 27 August 2016.

National Museum of Singapore
93 Stamford Road
Tel: (65) 6332 3659
Opening hours: 10am to 7pm daily

2. Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum

In 2015, the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum opened to much fanfare with Singaporeans excited to have its first natural history museum. The museum boasts more than 500,000 Southeast Asian animal and plant specimens including insects, mammals, molluscs and native plants. Many of them, formerly housed at the former Raffles Museum, are over a century old. It’s located next to the University Cultural Centre at the National University of Singapore and is worth the trip for its fascinating collection that showcases the diversity of local flora and fauna. Also hard to miss are the highlights of the space: three rare fossils of diplodocid sauropod dinosaurs.

Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum
Faculty of Science
National University of Singapore
2 Conservatory Drive
Tel: (65) 6601 3333
Opening hours: 10am to 7pm Tuesday to Sunday and Public Holidays (3 sessions each day)

3. National Gallery Singapore

The much-anticipated National Gallery Singapore museum opened to much fanfare in November 2015 and has since welcomed more than a million visitors. A new roof connects two magnificently restored national monuments, the former City Hall and the old Supreme Court building, creating a voluminous atrium between the two. The museum holds the largest public collection of modern art in Singapore and Southeast Asia with over 8,000 works in its care. With works from the 19th century to the present, the museum gives a clear view of Singapore over the years. Look out for works by Georgette Chen and Tang Da Wu.

The upcoming exhibitions include the Iskandar Jalil: Kembara Tanah Liat from 1 Sep 2016 to 28 Feb 2017 and Artist and Empire: (En)countering Colonial Legacies from 6 Oct 2016 to 26 March 2017.

National Gallery Singapore
1 St. Andrew’s Road
Tel: (65) 6271 7000
Opening hours: 10am to 7pm Sunday to Thursday and Public Holidays; 10am to 10pm Friday to Saturday and Eve of Public Holidays

4. Singapore Art Museum

A former school, built in 1855, has been the home of the Singapore Art Museum since 1996. So, imagine the galleries in the museum as classrooms! The first art museum in Singapore, it is known for its collection of treasured contemporary Singapore and Southeast Asian art, and also from the wider Asian region. At the Singapore Art Museum, you’ll find artworks from pioneering and avant garde artists, mid-career artists and emerging art practitioners. They include artists such as Jane Lee, Robert Zhao and Sima Salehi. From 6pm to 9pm every Friday, entry to the museum is free.

Two sea-themed exhibitions named Odyssey: Navigating Nameless Seas and Imaginarium: Over the Ocean, Under the Sea are happening now and will end on 28 August 2016.

Singapore Art Museum
71 Bras Basah Road
Tel: (65) 6589 9580
Opening hours: 10am – 7pm Saturday to Thursday; 10am – 9pm Friday

5. ArtScience Museum

A hard-to-miss structure set against the Marina Bay Sands towers at the Marina Bay cityscape, the ArtScience Museum quickly gained icon status since it opened in 2011. Designed by acclaimed architect, Moshe Safdie, it is said to resemble a lotus flower. As it name suggests, the museum focuses on exhibitions centred upon art, science, design, architecture, media and technology, most of which are travelling exhibitions. Among the past exhibitions were Annie Leibovitz: A Photographer’s Life 1990 – 2005, Andy Warhol: 15 Minutes Eternal, Dinosaurs: Dawn to Extinction and Essential Eames: A Herman Miller Exhibition.

Future World: Where Art Meets Science is the new permanent exhibition at the Art Science Museum.

Singapore Art Museum
6 Bayfront Avenue
Tel: (65) 6688 8888
Opening hours: 10am – 7pm daily

6. Red Dot Design Museum

The striking red structure of the Red Dot Design Museum stands out from the rest of the buildings in Singapore’s business district. It was built during the colonial era, and it used to be the Singapore Traffic Police Headquarters. But since 2005, it has gained cred for housing innovative ideas and design from around the world that have won the prestigious Red Dot Design Award. For the Red Dot Award for Product Design 2016, for example, a panel of 41 international experts evaluated 5,200 entries from 57 countries. The museum provides free admission during the Market of Artists and Designers (MAAD) events.

The new Exhibition: Today, which features the design works fromRed Dot Award 2016, will be on show from 1 August 2016 to 30 November 2016. Other ongoing exhibitions are Exhibition: Convey and Exhibition: Future, the former featuring communication design works and the latter design concept works and prototypes for the future.

Red Dot Design Museum
28 Maxwell Road
Red Dot Traffic Building
Tel: (65) 6327 8027
Opening hours: 11am to 8pm daily

7. Peranakan Museum

The Peranakan Museum is a treasure trove of objects related to Peranakan culture that’s unique to the Southeast Asian region, which has its long history as a region for trade from around the world. In the early days of Singapore, traders from Chinese communities married local women and built their lives in Southeast Asia. This led to a blending of local Malay styles and cooking techniques with Chinese customs. Also located at a former school, which was built in 1912, the Peranakan Museum’s galleries showcase the cultural traditions and visual arts of the Peranakans. Past exhibitions include Great Peranakans: Fifty Remarkable Lives and Luminous Depths.

The exhibition Nyonya Needlework: Embroidery and Beadwork in the Peranakan World runs from 24 June 2016 to 26 March 2017.

Peranakan Museum
39 Armenian Street
Tel: (65) 6332 7591
Opening hours: 10am to 7pm Saturday to Thursday; 10am to 9pm Friday

8. Singapore Philatelic Museum

These days, mail still plays a role in our lives, but is mostly relegated to bills and packages from online shopping. But before the Internet and emails came along, communication was largely by mail. Whether it is for relationships or work, letters and so postage stamps were central to daily life. And postage stamps, today or then, are often overlooked works of art. Singapore’s stamps, for instance, have been a platform for showcasing Singapore’s nature, wildlife and heritage. They also provide a glimpse of the world. The Singapore Philatelic Museum is the place to go for the ever-growing collection and long history of postage stamps.

The exhibition Shaking it with Shakespeare runs from 14 May 2016 to 15 January 2017.

Singapore Philatelic Museum
23B Coleman Street
Tel: (65) 6337 3888
Opening hours: 10am to 7pm daily

9. Asian Civilisations Museum

With permanent galleries organised according to four geographic zones ¬– China, Southeast Asia, the Indian subcontinent and the Islamic world – the Asian Civilisations Museum gives excellent insight into the rich cultures of the Asian region. It’s housed in the Empress Place Building, a National Monument that was built in 1864 as a city courthouse. Much of the neo-classical Palladian architecture seen in the colonial era has been retained when the museum opened in 2003. Two new wings, in glass and warm-hued titanium that contrast with the neo-classical building, were added in recent years. Its galleries showcase cross-cultural connections through trade and religion, among other things.

Christianity in Asia: Sacred Art and Visual Splendour is on from 27 May 2016 to 11 September 2016.

Asian Civilisations Museum
1 Empress Place
Tel: (65) 6332 7798
Opening hours: 10am to 7pm Saturday to Thursday; 10am to 9pm Friday

10. Heritage Centres

A melting pot of races and religions, Singapore prides itself on being an inclusive society. Over the years, heritage centres have been built to educate and inform tourists and locals alike on the rich cultures and customs of various communities. The most recent addition is the Indian Heritage Centre, located in the heart of Little India. Unveiled in 2015, the four-storey building features five galleries that showcase the history, development and achievements of the Indian community in Singapore. Among the many cultural artefacts is an elaborate 19th century Chettinad doorway with 5,000 intricate carvings. Singapore’s heritage centres also host travelling exhibitions and cultural festivals.

Malay Heritage Centre
85 Sultan Gate
Tel: (65) 6391 0450
Opening hours: 10am to 6pm Tuesday to Sunday

Indian Heritage Centre
5 Campbell Lane
Tel: (65) 6291 1601
Opening hours: 10am to 7pm Tuesday to Thursday; 10am to 8pm Friday and Saturday; and 10am to 4pm Sun & PH

Eurasian Heritage Centre
139 Ceylon Road
Tel: (65) 6447 1578
Opening hours: 9am to 6pm Tuesday to Sunday